Big Sky Conference

Bobcats prepare for only public scrimmage of fall camp

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Montana State stages the only public dress rehearsal of its current fall camp Friday night at Bobcat Stadium. Jeff Choate expects it to be the first step in a long process of defining who the Bobcats will go to battle with in 2016.

“It’s really important because hopefully it can provide some clarity for us as coaches moving forward in terms of what we need to do,” said Choate, Montana State’s first-year head coach. “We have to find that two-deep, that sweet spot a little bit. We have to start making decisions but the one thing about the way our schedule sets up is we don’t have to make any tough decisions until the Sac State game.”

Montana State will hold its only public scrimmage of August on Friday night at 6 p.m. on its home turf. The Bobcats open their season on Thursday, September 1 at the University of Idaho. Because MSU opens with an FBS opponent, the Bobcats will be able to take 70 players on the opening road trip.

MSU wide receiver Keon Stephens (86) and cornerback Chris Harris (8) will both battle for travel roster spots

MSU wide receiver Keon Stephens (86) and cornerback Chris Harris (8) will both battle for travel roster spots

Montana State’s next three games — non-conference contests against Bryant of the Northeast Conference and Division II Western Oregon along with MSU’s Big Sky Conference opener against North Dakota — are played in Bobcat Stadium. Home teams can dress full rosters during conference play. By the time October 1 rolls around, MSU will have to parlay its travel roster down to 58 players as the Bobcats hit the road for an away league game for the first time under Choate.

“While we might not have 100 percent answers on every kid by the end of camp, we are going to have clarity by the time we get to Week 5,” Choate said. “We will have three categories: guys who are definitely playing, here’s your role. We will have guys on the fence, we aren’t sure what’s going on, we will keep you up and ready to go. Then you are going to have your guys definitely redshirting. Friday night, we have to start taking steps toward making some of those decisions.”

Following his team’s first scrimmage, Choate called the second scrimmage “a pivot point” of fall camp. He said Friday’s session will include a modified pre-game warm-up before beginning with two situational drills. The Bobcats will engage in their “backup” period where the offense starts deep in its own territory followed by the “clutch” period, which is a variation of the two-minute offense. The rest of the scrimmage, which Choate said will be between 60 and 80 plays, will be the “play it” format where the offense starts with the ball on its own 30 and simply battles the defense.

Choate said the “play it” periods would be broken up sporadically for special teams work. MSU will drill punt and kick returns as well as field goals. Freshman Jered Padmos seems to be the front-runner for MSU’s punter job but Padmos, classmate Gabe Peppenger and redshirt freshman Devon Tandberg are locked in a tight battle for field goal and kickoff duties.

On offense, the Bobcats are largely healthy as offensive coordinator Courtney Messingham continues to install a scheme more traditional than the wide-open theatrics provided by Tim Cramsey’s attack the last three seasons at Montana State.

MSU running back Gunnar Brekke

MSU running back Gunnar Brekke (2)

Choate said earlier in fall camp that playing quarterback is three things: decision making, accuracy and leadership. Choate feels junior quarterback Tyler Bruggman embodies all three qualities as he continues to distance himself from redshirt freshmen Brady McChesney and Ben Folsom and true freshman Chris Murray. The battle for the backup quarterback position between the three freshmen — true freshman Kamden Brown did not practice all week and sported a heavy brace on his knee — is more intriguing.

The offensive line took a hit on Wednesday when senior left guard J.P. Flynn rolled his left ankle, although Choate did not rule him out for Friday night. If Flynn can’t go, redshirt freshman Jake McFetridge will take the first-team reps in between junior left tackle Dylan Mahoney and sophomore center Alex Neale. On the right side, juniors Monte Folsom and Caleb Gillis continue to fight for the right guard spot while redshirt freshman Mitch Brott is still holding off graduate transfer Patrick Carroll for the right tackle spot.

In the backfield, Chad Newell and Gunnar Brekke are expected to take the bulk of the first-team reps, at least initially. The proven veterans might see a light work load, giving way to sophomore Noah James and freshman Anthony Pegues as the scrimmage wears on. Junior Nick LaSane has been in and out of practice since last weekend, and has battled a knee injury for the duration of his college career.

At tight end, senior Austin Barth and sophomore Connor Sullivan have taken most of the starter reps with sophomore Curtis Amos working in on occasion and redshirt freshman Woody Brandom providing depth at the position. At wide receiver, All-Big Sky junior Mitchell Herbert is an incumbent while junior Justin Paige is trying to hold off redshirt freshman Cameron Sutton on the outside. Senior Brandon Brown and junior Jayshawn Gates are all of a sudden chasing sophomore John D’Agostino for reps in the slot.

“I just want to see the offense operate,” Choate said. “I don’t think we need to roll out the whole playbook. I think it needs to be simple, grooved called, good communication, good tempo, good execution. We have to eliminate some of the holding penalties we had in the first scrimmage.”

MSU versatile defensive lineman Shiloh (2) and sam linebacker Mac Bignell (49)

MSU versatile defensive lineman Shiloh (2) and sam linebacker Mac Bignell (49)

Defensively, the Bobcats are more banged up. On Thursday, redshirt freshman Marcus Ferriter took first-team reps at defensive end with juniors Tyrone Fa’anono, Shiloh Laboy and Devin Jeffries all sitting out. On the inside of the defensive line, sophomore nose tackle Tucker Yates has been battling with something Choate calls “nagging but not serious”, yet has taken snaps over the last two days. Senior defensive tackle Robert Wilcox has not practiced all week and has worn a big brace on his surgically repaired left knee.

Sophomore Grant Collins, MSU’s starter at middle linebacker last fall, and senior Jessie Clark continue to battle for time at the Buck end. Laboy is in the mix at the Buck when healthy as well. On the inside, sophomore Zach Wright remains the No. 1 defensive tackle but junior college transfers Brandon Hayashi and Fou Polataivao have rounded into shape and are taking more snaps recently. Senior nose tackle Matt Brownlow will also take reps at the tackle positions, as will 6-foot-6, 266-pound man child true freshman Lewis Kidd.

“Toughness, run to the ball, competitive, disciplined,” first-year defensive line coach Byron Hout said bluntly when asked what he expects out of his players Friday.

The linebackers took a hit with junior Blake Braun appearing with a walking boot on his left foot earlier this week. In his place, junior college transfer Lukas McCarthy and his twin brother Jakob have shared reps with redshirt freshman Josh Hill at Will linebacker. At Mike, senior Fletcher Collins continues to solidify his spot with the McCarthy brothers and redshirt freshman Walker Cozzie giving chase. All-Big Sky junior Mac Bignell is solidified at the Sam linebacker spot.

On the back end, juniors Bryson McCabe and Khari Garcia are the projected starters at safety, a position that becomes thinner by the day. With junior West Wilson still recovering from a devastating leg injury suffered during spring drills and senior Zach Stern out with an injury, the last week has seen true freshmen Jacob Hadley and Will Martel take reps with the second string defense. Redshirt freshman walk-on Ty Robbie has also seen time. Brayden Konkol, a redshirt freshman from Belgrade, switched to linebacker the first day of camp only to be switched back shortly after. Chris Harris, a 6-foot-2, 190-pound redshirt freshman, has moved from cornerback to safety in recent days as well.

MSU cornerback Tavon Dodd (9) works drills with cornerback Braelen Evans (5)

MSU cornerback Tavon Dodd (9) works drills with cornerback Braelen Evans (5)

The suddenly deep cornerback position has had a healthy competition playing out all camp. In recent days, sophomore Tre’Von Strong and graduate transfer John Walker (Colorado) have taken first-team reps with sophomore Braelen Evans and junior Bryce Alley also working in with the starters, although Evans did not practice on Thursday. Sophomore Tavon Dodd, a converted running back, continues to make strides as does Naijiel Hale, a former 4-star recruit who played as a true freshman at Washington in 2014 before sitting out last season all together. True freshman Damien Washington rounds out a group flush with players hungry for spots in the rotation.

“Being banged up might give the young guys an opportunity to go a little bit here and there. But we have to play on Saturday if we have guys nicked up too so it’s just about responding to the game situation and going and playing,” Choate said. “I really believe that’s part of football. I don’t really lose a lot of sleep over it. I feel bad for the kids when it happens but if I start obsessing about it and I start talking about it, guess what happens? It becomes an excuse. And our players are going to use that. So I don’t dwell on it. Next man up.”

Photos by Brooks Nuanez. All Rights Reserved. 

About Colter Nuanez

Colter Nuanez is the co-founder and senior writer for Skyline Sports. After spending six years in the newspaper industry with stops at the Missoulian, the Ellensburg Daily Record and the Bozeman Daily Chronicle, the former Washington Newspaper Association Sportswriter of the Year and University of Montana Journalism School graduate ('09) has cultivated a deep passion for sports journalism during his 13-year career covering the Big Sky Conference. In August of 2014, Colter and brother Brooks merged their passions of writing and art to found Skyline Sports.

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