Big Sky Conference

SUNDAY NOTEBOOK: Two-minute drill flummoxes Bobcats again

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Montana State is staring a three-game losing streak to begin Big Sky Conference play square in the face. The skid is accentuated by the fact that MSU has lost four games in 2016 by a total of 14 points. The Bobcats cannot seem to come up in the clutch despite their best efforts during the weeks of practice leading up to Saturday contests.

On Saturday, Montana State possessed the ball trailing visiting Northern Arizona 20-14 with one minute, 46 seconds left. For the third straight week and the fourth time this season, Montana State had a chance to drive the field and tie the game or take the lead. For a fourth straight time, MSU’s two-minute drill did not produce any points and for the third consecutive week, the Bobcats’ last gasp ended with a turnover.

NAU senior Siupeli Anua beat Caleb Gillis around the right side and chased down MSU freshman quarterback Chris Murray from behind, forcing a fumble that Xavier Stephens returned 39 yards to the MSU 19-yards line with 12 seconds to play. NAU took a knee and earned its first Division I win this season.

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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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