Big Sky Conference

Reinvigorated run game satisfying for Bobcats

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BOZEMAN — Chris Murray’s vast improvement in spinning the pigskin caught all the eyes in a sellout crowd at Bobcat Stadium during Montana State’s home opener. The talented sophomore signal caller put on a show in the second half unrivaled in his young career, throwing for more than 300 yards and four touchdowns all told in MSU’s 31-27 loss to the No. 4 team in the country.

That display against South Dakota State put everyone in the Big Sky on high alert. The offensive occurrence that made Jeff Choate smile most however played out at the Alerus Center last weekend.

Coming out of the SDSU loss and entering into an early bye week, Choate said his ideal identity for his Bobcats would be for a team that “run the ball between the tackles and take people’s souls.” But at that moment, he was not sure a lineup working in two new starters at offensive guard had power rushing in their makeup.

That all changed Saturday in Grand Forks. Montana State ran the ball with relentless authority against the University of North Dakota, the 2016 Big Sky Conference champions and the league’s top rushing defense for two years running. Montana State running back Troy Andersen became the first Bobcat true freshman since 2006 to rush for more than 100 yards, totaling 132 and two touchdowns. Murray threw for 174 yards and three scores and added 132 yards rushing and a score.

Montana State offensive linemen Mitch Brott (63), Caleb Gillis (73), Alex Neale (70), and Dylan Mahoney (55)

Montana State offensive linemen Mitch Brott (63), Caleb Gillis (73), Alex Neale (70), and Dylan Mahoney (55)

With an offensive line featuring senior Caleb Gillis making his first-ever start at left guard and redshirt freshman right guard Taylor Tuiasosopo ever, Murray and the Bobcats used elements misdirection, power, counter, jet and fly sweep, triple and zone-read option to flummox UND for the duration of the game. Behind the green starters and veterans senior left tackle Dylan Mahoney, junior center Alex Neale and sophomore right tackle Mitch Brott, MSU scored on seven of nine possessions, rushing for 341 yards in the process.

Essentially, Montana State beat the Fighting Hawks at their own game. MSU possessed the ball for nearly 40 minutes, including 12 minutes in the fourth quarter. MSU gained 341 on the ground and gave up 102 rushing yards. The Bobcats posted a dominant 49-21 victory to snap North Dakota’s 11-game league winning streak.

“We ran the ball 59 times, we controlled the possession 40 to 20, or two to one, we rushed for 300-something yards and at halftime, we had 180 and they had two,” Choate said on Monday. “I knew we were winning that game right there. They weren’t coming back. That’s their DNA, time of possession, run the ball. We flipped the script on them. That’s how you do it.”

“We put a bigger emphasis on the downhill run game,” MSU offensive coordinator Brian Armstrong added. “We were getting a little wide with our stuff. We wanted to have the mentality for those guys to come off the ball, those running backs to come downhill. That was fruitful for us Saturday.”

Montana State sophomore right tackle Mitch Brott

Montana State sophomore right tackle Mitch Brott

Montana State converted 12 of 16 third downs and its only fourth down try, using a combination of Andersen’s brute strength and Murray’s elusive ability to convert a seemingly endless string of short-yardage opportunities. Before the bye week, Choate challenged the offensive front and the team in general to raise its level of physicality. The Bobcats answered the bell enthusiastically.

“We did a lot of individual drills where we practiced coming off the ball and being able to move someone who is coming at you,” MSU sophomore right tackle Mitch Brott said on Tuesday. “We didn’t focus on too many double teams, mostly solo blocks.

“That last performance shows that our offensive line can help this team do damage. I’m excited to see what the future holds for us. We have to keep coming out with the right mentality to continue dominating up front.”

The emergence and improvement of the tight ends was noticeable throughout the UND victory. Amos, a 6-foot, 230-pound junior, lined up as a H-back/fullback on a number of plays by starting in a three-point stance in the backfield. Brott, a former high school quarterback who spent two years as a tight end, then most of Choate’s first 18 months as a reserve left tackle, is now back at tight end.

Montana State junior tight end Wilson Brott

Montana State junior tight end Wilson Brott

Armstrong estimated Wilson Brott, Mitch’s older brother, played 38 to 40 snaps against UND, likely more than his entire career up to that point. He played a pivotal role in helping MSU control the line of scrimmage, particularly on the edges. The 6-foot-5, 265-pounder also got a nice reward when he caught a 12-yard touchdown on a sneaky misaligned formation the decoyed the defense into thinking Mitch Brott, not Wilson, was the tight end.

“We knew going into it, it would be a really big game for us since UND won the conference, went undefeated, I think was on an 11-game conference win streak,” Wilson Brott said. “We looked at it as an opportunity for the playoffs to set us up into being in the driver’s seat of our own season. We were most excited about getting that win and starting to play with the swagger we had toward the end of the season.”

The breakout game by Wilson Brott served as affirmation for a player who joined the Bobcats as a 195-pound walk-on that spent his high school career prioritizing basketball. Entering his fourth year in the program, Brott had already transitioned to tight end then learned both tackle spots. He got up to as heavy as 280 pounds, a trying journey in itself for the formerly slender fourth-year junior. Now he’s found a role as MSU’s power tight end. Catching his first career touchdown served as icing on the cake.

“That was my first touchdown I’ve ever caught,” Wilson Brott said. “It’s definitely a different experience throwing them in high school. Everyone was pretty jacked up about it because coming from o-line to tight end, I didn’t think I’d ever catch a touchdown and I’m sure no one else thought that. It was super fun.”

MSU found great success when running behind Amos as a lead blocker to the right side of the line when the Brott brothers lined up next to one another. Just a year apart in school, Mitch started on the offensive line in front of his brother during Wilson’s senior year at Billings West High. But the trip to UND brought a new experience as the brothers lined up literally next to each other frequently.

Montana State tight end Wilson Brott (97) and guard Taylor Tuiasosopo (60)

Montana State tight end Wilson Brott (97) and guard Taylor Tuiasosopo (60)

“That was pretty sweet,” Wilson said. “Not a lot of people get to experience something like that, being on the same team let alone lining up next to each other. We worked together on a couple of blocks and on one of them, Mitch finished a guy to the ground so that was cool to be in on something like that with him.”

The offensive line seemed to find reinvigoration while the tight ends seemed to turn a corner.

“The tight ends have come a long way,” Choate said. “Last year, I felt like that was a little bit of a liability. I have been super impressed with Wilson and him embracing this new role. Connor Sullivan, he might have matured more than any guy on our roster in terms of how he approaches his workouts and his preparation. He watches as much film as anybody. Curtis Amos is a great leader in that group, a really quality young man who did some nice things for us today. They don’t get a lot of pub but they do a lot of the dirty work.”

Those improvements will be tested mightily again in Bozeman on Saturday as MSU welcomes No. 18 Weber State (1-0 in league, 3-1 overall) to Bobcat Stadium for a homecoming showdown.

“The most physical team we have played since Washington State,” Mitch Brott said. “Their front seven is huge. They know how to come off the ball. We just have to prepare with a good mentality to move the down linemen. In order to win this game, we have to be able to move the nose tackle and the 3-tech. It’s not something we haven’t prepared for before but this game is going to be more physical than mental when it comes down to it. We just have to fire off the ball.

“They are very deliberate with their movements. We have to prepare for it and come out and hit them in the mouth.”

Brooks Nuanez contributed to the reporting of this story. 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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