MISSOULA, Montana — The 2026 Montana Grizzlies certainly have no trouble putting opponents on their heels with a quick-strike offense that has scored points in blitzes three games into the Bobby Kennedy era.

It’s offensive consistency, extended drives and running the ball outside of Eli Gillman’s record-setting exploits that continues to elude Montana.

On Saturday against an over matched Utah Tech team that came to Missoula as a 33.5-point underdog with an 0-2 record after a 54-0 loss to No. 1 Montana State and a 63-7 loss to BYU, Gillman continued to rewrite both the UM and Big Sky Conference record books. His three touchdowns lifted him into rare air in league and FCS history while also helping Montana to a 35-14 win on a beautiful afternoon.

“Really pleased because the only thing we can ask right now is to be 3-0, and I’ve said this all along: our team is a continual work in progress, but I’m pleased with the way that they prepare every week, I’m pleased with our leadership on this team, and we have we have good players that want to get better,” first-year head coach Bobby Kennedy said. “But Utah Tech did some good things today. You know, obviously we won’t like to give up those those touchdowns at the end, but we also have a lot of young players who are gaining valuable experience, and so so we’ll learn from that also.”

Montana had scoring drives of 57 seconds, 33 seconds and 11 seconds among its five touchdown “drives.” Gillman scored three touchdowns, including a 75-yarder to help him tie former Sac State record-setter Charles Roberts with 56 career rushing touchdowns, the most in Big Sky history.

Gillman’s three total touchdowns give him 62 for his career, three more than Chase Reynolds for the most in the history of Griz football. It also vaulted him past former Idaho standout Sherriden Maye (1991-1994) and former Portland State star Charles Dunn (1997-2000) for second place on the Big Sky career total touchdown list.

Only Cooper Kupp, the incomparable Eastern Washington wide receiver turned NFL triple crown award winner and Super Bowl MVP, has more total touchdowns (72) than Gillman in the 63-year history of the Big Sky.

Gillman went over 100 yards for the 18th time in his illustrious career. He finished with 17 carries for 147 yards, giving him 328 yards in his senior season and putting him over 4,000 in his career. He needs just 63 yards to break Yohance Humphrey’s record for career rushing yards (4,070), breaking a record that has stood for 25 years.

Despite Gillman’s big day, the Griz largely struggled to run the ball. Before GIllman’s 75-yard run, the Griz had 52 yards rushing on 25 carries. Of Montana’s 216 rushing yards, 132 came on Gillman and Paine’s touchdown runs while UM averaged 3.1 yards per carry otherwise.

“You’re in there and you’re punching, punching, punching, and then you go for that knockout shot, right?” Kennedy said. “Like sometimes it’s wearing them down in those inside, outside zone plays. You’re not getting much, but you’re trying to get positive yardage. And then you wear them down enough, and then you spray a big one. And those are the things that can that can change the game.”

Gillman’s propensity for big plays has mirrored UM’s offense so far this season. Montana’s 16 touchdown drives during a peculiar 3-0 start, 11 have been on possessions that lasted 150 seconds or less. Big plays, like Dylan Paine’s 57-yard run to put UM up 35-7 in the fourth quarter, have come in spaces so far this season.

And Brooks Davis has continued to affirm himself as a true All-American candidate during his third year. He hauled in 12 passes for 151 yards, including a beautiful over-the-shoulder catch on Montana’s lightning-quick scoring drive to close the first half that helped set up Lekeldrick Bridges’ 15-yard touchdown to give Montana a 21-0 lead at halftime. The possession lasted 53 seconds.

“I was in the West Coast offense for a number of years, and and there was a lot of volume,” Kennedy said. “And the thing that I appreciate about Brent (Pease) and I appreciate about our kids, you think about Landon (Ransom-Goelz) coming in, or (tight end) Mariano Birdno coming in, it’s not add water instant player. We throw a lot at these guys each week. The the amount of plays that we put in, whether it be on third down, the red zone, like these guys are asked to do a lot.

“And so as we continue to get more comfortable,we’ll be on the same page. I really respect what our guys do, not only offensively but defensively, learning a new scheme, executing the way they’ve executed. I really respect what our guys do.”

But when Montana doesn’t hit a big play, the offense has looked inconsistent and plodding. Senior quarterback Keali’i Ah Yat finished 25-of-35 for 246 yards and continues to have good to great stat lines if you simply look at the box score. But he has not looked in rhythm during extended drives, and the Griz offense has not hummed along like many expected considering the return of Ah Yat, Gillman, Davis and highly regarded offensive coordinator Brent Pease despite Montana’s tumultuous offseason that saw Bobby Hauck “retire” and Bobby Kennedy become a first-time head coach.

“I thought there was good moments, bad moments, just like every game,” Ah Yat said. “But I was really proud of the o-line, the receivers. I think they did a great job today. Proud of our guys and I’m just excited to keep working and keep improving.”

BOX SCORE

Montana’s revamped defense, operating a multiple-front scheme under upstart defensive coordinator Eric Sanders, was supposed to be the unit that looked uneven and rebuilding during the first month of this season. The Griz returned only two starters — senior captains Solomon Tuliapupu and Peyton Wing — from last year’s talented but inconsistent unit. And the overhaul from playing a completely unorthodox 3-3-5 stack that Hauck favored to Sanders’ multi-front, multi-formation scheme was expected to have its growing pains.

Instead, the biggest concern for Montana on defense is health and personnel. With rumors swirling around Missoula about his status, Tuliapupu was not in attendance at Saturday’s game. The Scripps Sports television broadcast reported that Tuliapupu was inactive because he was on “personal leave.”

Kennedy said following the game that Tuliapupu “is taking a personal leave and we really hope he comes back. I know he has a lot on his plate. He’s a guy I love and really respect and I hope he rejoins us. That’s going to be his decision.”

Two weeks ago, senior defensive end Hayden Schwartz went down with an undisclosed injury that caused him to fall off the depth chart and not dress for the last two games. Sources confirm that senior safety Kade Cutler is out indefinitely with a shoulder injury. And Saturday against Utah Tech, senior defensive tackle Jake Mason went down with what appeared to be a serious injury to his right ankle/lower leg. Mason was carried off the field in an air cast and appeared to be in significant pain.

Without Mason, Schwartz and Tuliapupu all with uncertain status moving forward, the depth of a surprisingly deep defensive front will certainly be tested. But the emergence of sophomore tackle Cooper Buffington, the strong play of nose tackles Manase Tupou and Zeke Seumalo and the emergence of former transfer defensive end Tyler King has helped solidify a unit many followers wondered about given how much different their responsibilities would be in Sanders’ scheme compared to the chaotic, gapless 3-3-5.

Tupou, a 6-foot-1, 315-pound bowling ball who started his career at Utah State before spending last season at Montana State-Northern, notched his first career sack on Saturday. King, a 6-foot-5, 255-pound transfer from Central Washington, had two sacks against Drake last week and was disruptive again against Utah Tech. Buffington, a 6-foot-4, 275-pound former 8-man star from Iowa who redshirted last season, has more than held his own in the trenches. And Seumalo, a 6-foot, 265-pounder who plays with tremendous leverage, has earned the nickname “Sleek Feet Zeke” for his ability to maneuver on the interior defensive line.

“We are rotating so many guys on the defensive front, so we are continuing to grow in that area,” Kennedy said. “I am happy with those guys but once again, we are playing so many guys right now and we are doing a good job of subbing guys in and getting guys in in different spots and different situations. I like their growth and development, but we are not a finished product.”

The strong play of the front combined with Wing continuing to wreak havoc (he had two tackles for loss among his five stops plus a quarterback hit on Saturday) and the continued progression of Braeden Orlandi, a former Frontier Conference Defensive Player of the Year at Carroll College, has the defense humming when at full strength.

But the non-headliners were certainly challenged when Montana was trying to salt away the game on Saturday. The Griz gave up 405 yards of total offense, including 301 passing yards all told to the winless Trailblazers in a non-conference game between conference opponents. Utah Tech had 203 yards of total offense and scored both its touchdowns in the fourth quarter after Paine’s long touchdown run gave the hosts enough breathing room.

After three straight home games in which the Griz were favored by 19.5, 34.5 and 33.5 points, respectively, now Montana’s attention turns to Oregon State, a maligned Pac 12 program fighting for relevance in the FBS but still with a fully-funded top-level program.

“No. 1, it’s great to be at home and keep your feet on the ground but we also know that every game gets tougher,” Kennedy said. “Obviously, we’re playing a quality opponent next week. But like I said, the way that these guys prepare, the way our coaches work to try to get these guys in the best situation possible, we have a lot of work to do. But we’re not done improving.”

PHOTOS BY MEGAN MORRISON, FOR SKYLINE SPORTS