Montana State added five players who missed the Bobcats’ opener last week to the roster as MSU prepares to head to Cheney this weekend.
Junior tight end Austin Barth, sophomore defensive end Devin Jeffries, sophomore safety Khari Garcia, sophomore linebacker Blake Braun and freshman cornerback Tre’Von Strong were each added to the MSU depth chart released by the team on Monday afternoon. Montana State will take on No. 14 Eastern Washington at 2 p.m. MST on Saturday afternoon.
Barth, a 6-foot-6, 250-pound former quarterback out of Columbia Falls, is listed as senior Beau Sandland’s backup at tight end. He’s missed the last four weeks after having emergency surgery to remove his appendix.
Devin Jefferies
Jeffries, a 6-foot-1, 250-pounder who was the 2013 Class AA Defensive MVP at Kalispell Glacier, is listed as the No. 2 Bandit defensive end behind junior Zach Hutchins and in front of junior college transfer Jessie Clark. He missed MSU’s opener with a pulled hamstring.
Garcia, a 5-foot-10, 178-pounder who started four games as a freshman, missed MSU’s season-opening 45-14 victory over Division II Fort Lewis after being suspended for a DUI conviction in the off-season. Garcia and redshirt freshman DeMonte King are listed as co-No. 1s on the depth chart.
Braun, a 6-foot-2, 227-pounder, also missed the opener because of a suspension for a violation of team rules. The Riverside, California product played in five games as a true freshman at Sam linebacker before missing last season with a shoulder injury. He was MSU’s No. 1 Will linebacker for spring drills and fall camp before the spot was awarded to junior Fletcher Collins. Braun is listed as redshirt freshman middle linebacker Grant Collins’ backup at Mike linebacker.
Strong, a 6-foot-1, 190-pounder out of Billings Skyview, had an impressive fall camp and earned a spot on the MSU two-deep, the only true freshmen defender to do so. The rookie missed the opener for a violation of team rules. He’s listed as senior Bryson Keeton’s backup at left cornerback.
Bryson McCabe, a 5-foot-11, 195-pounder who transferred from Iowa Western last winter, made five tackles in MSU’s opener. He’ll miss the EWU game with an a knee injury.
Montana State’s cornerbacks got a few extra bodies with the return of Strong along with the medical clearance of Braelen Evans and Zach Stern. Evans is a 5-foot-11, 190-pounder from Frisco, Texas. The highly touted cornerback redshirted last season before tearing his ACL for a second time in January, an injury that cost his senior season in high school as well. Stern is a 6-foot-1, 200-pounder who transferred to MSU from Santa Monica College. The former JC sprinter was originally slated to play Sam linebacker for the Bobcats. He’ll play cornerback now. He missed MSU’s opener with a pulled hamstring.
Montana State Depth Chart Week 2
Left tackle
55 John Weidenaar, 6-7, 285, Senior
62 Mitch Brott, 6-6, 265, Freshman
Left guard
75 JP Flynn, 6-5, 317, Junior
54 Monte Folsom, 6-2, 295, sophomore
Center
70 Joel Horn, 6-4, 320, senior
65 Doug Hanson, 6-3, 280, junior
Right guard
63 Kyle Godecke, 6-5, 325, senior
73 Caleb Gillis 6-6, 285, sophomore
Right tackle
71 Alex Eekhoff, 6-6, 290, senior
60 Dylan Mahoney, 6-6, 283, sophomore
Tight end
85 Beau Sandland, 6-6, 250, senior
15 Austin Barth, 6-6, 250, junior
Quarterback
5 Dakota Prukop, 6-2, 195, junior
2 Jake Bleskin, 6-1, 195, senior
Running back
17 Chad Newell, 6-1, 210, junior
27 Gunnar Brekke, 5-11, 192, junior
23 Nick LaSane, 5-11, 213, sophomore
OR 9 Tavon Dodd, 5-8, 180, redshirt freshman
X Receiver
82 Mitchell Herbert, 6-4, 205, sophomore
87 Conner Sullivan, 6-4, 223, redshirt freshman
F/Y Receiver
13 Mitch Griebel, 5-10, 193, senior
19 Jayshawn Gates, 5-8, 150, sophomore
Z Receiver
3 Justin Paige, 5-11, 175, sophomore
4 Brandon Brown, 6-0, 180, junior
OR 7 Will Krolick, 6-1, 184, junior
Kicker
45 Luke Daly, 6-2, 185, sophomore
Punter
30 Trevor Bolton, 5-10, 189, senior
2 Jake Bleskin, 6-1, 195, senior
DEFENSE
Bandit
16 Zach Hutchins, 6-3, 215, junior
94 Devin Jeffries, 6-1, 250, sophomore
33 Jessie Clark, 6-3, 245, junior
Tackle
90 Taylor Sheridan, 6-4, 280, senior
50 Nate Bignell, 6-2, 273, senior
Nose
97 Connor Thomas, 6-3, 290, senior
92 Tucker Yates, 6-0, 303, redshirt freshman
End
57 Tyrone Fa’anono, 6-2, 261, sophomore
2 Shiloh LaBoy, 6-4, 255, sophomore
Sam
49 Mac Bignell, 6-0, 190, sophomore
14 Toti Moeakiola, 6-0, 215, redshirt freshman
OR
42 Joey Michael, 6-2, 205, junior
Mike
41 Grant Collins, 6-4, 225, redshirt freshman
34 Blake Braun, 6-2, 227, sophomore
Will
59 Fletcher Collins, 6-2, 216, junior
22 Marcus Tappan, 6-2, 235, sophomore
Left corner
3 Bryson Keeton, 6-2, 190, senior
26 Tre’Von Strong, 6-1, 190, freshman
Rover
6 Desman Carter, 6-2, 190, senior
29 West Wilson, 5-11, 198, sophomore
Free safety
1 DeMonte King, 6-0, 192, redshirt freshman
OR
12 Khari Garcia, 5-10, 178, sophomore
Right corner
38 Trace Timmer, 6-0, 183, senior
OR
24 Bryce Alley, 5-11, 165, sophomore
Kick returns
13 Mitch Griebel, 5-10, 193, senior
27 Gunnar Brekke, 5-11, 192, junior
Punt returns
13 Mitch Griebel, 5-10, 193, senior
27 Gunnar Brekke, 5-11, 192, junior
Long snaps
56 Rocky Hogue, 6-3, 205, sophomore
Holder
13 Mitch Griebel, 5-10, 193, senior
Photos by Brooks Nuanez. All Rights Reserved.
