Southern Utah is making a habit earning program-defining victories at Bobcat Stadium.
In 2013, the upstart Thunderbirds helped propel themselves into the FCS playoffs for the first time with a 22-14 win over a Bobcat team filled with hallowed names like DeNarius McGhee, Cody Kirk, Tanner Bleskin and Brad Daly.
On Saturday, Southern Utah came into Bobcat Stadium as a decided favorite, a surging team that had given up as many touchdowns (five) as it had earned Big Sky Conference victories. Behind an opportunistic offense that found its footing after halftime and a smothering defensive effort like none the Bobcats have seen this year, the Thunderbirds continued to roll with a 34-23 victory in front of 17,417 here on Saturday afternoon.
SUU quarterback Ammon Olsen rolls out and throws with MSU defensive tackle Taylor Sheridan providing pressure
The victory was Southern Utah’s seventh straight, a program record for a single season. Southern Utah is now 6-0 in Big Sky Conference play, 7-2 overall with a trip to Portland State and a home date against Northern Arizona remaining on its schedule.
“The magnitude going down the stretch and having a good run going in conference and what Montana State represents, it’s just a huge win,” Southern Utah eighth-year head coach Ed Lamb said. “We got their best effort and that is a huge compliment for where they are at on the season and what they are facing.”
What Montana State is facing is a season that will not end in the playoffs for just the second time this decade. MSU must win games at Idaho State and at home against rival Montana to extend a streak of winning seasons that dates back to 2002. Saturday’s loss drops Montana State to 2-4 in Big Sky Conference play, 4-5 overall.
“I think we are pressing a little bit,” MSU ninth-year head coach Rob Ash said following his team’s first home loss of the season. “It happens. I’ve been in this business long enough to know that as the season goes along, you can’t underestimate the importance of getting on a roll and getting better every single week. And if you don’t do that, the gap widens every week. Southern Utah has done it. They have been able to stay on track and get some wins and get better every week. We’ve had to retool and redesign and back pedal. It gets tougher and tougher and you start to press.”
Southern Utah’s league-leading defense smothered Montana State’s Big Sky-best offense like no team has been able to this season. Montana State gained 420 yards but averaged just five yards per play on 84 plays as junior quarterback Dakota Prukop found himself under constant duress. Prukop completed 18-of-30 passes for 163 yards and a 28-yard touchdown to senior tight end Beau Sandland in the fourth quarter.
SUU defensive end James Cowser pursues MSU quarterback Dakota Prukop in the backfield
Prukop left the game on two different occasions after hard hits, giving way to Great Falls native senior Jake Bleskin. The CMR product completed 3-of-5 passes for 33 yards, including a completion late as Prukop did not play the final series of the game. Ash said his starter was “banged up” but did not disclose further detail.
“We wanted to make sure that a high percentage of the time we had a lot of eyes on Dakota,” Lamb said. “We emphasized some zone coverage. When we did get into man coverage, we had to make sure to pull back the pass rush a little bit. He’s a real weapon. He’s difficult to plan for.”
Despite the constant pressure as well as a concerted effort to use one and sometimes two spies, Prukop still managed to lead an MSU rushing attack that piled up 215 yards with 96 yards on 17 carries. Junior Chad Newell added 18 carries for 73 yards and two touchdowns.
The Southern Utah pass rush was credited with one sack and two quarterback hurries but Ash pointed to it as a key to the game. Prukop forced two throws into coverage that were intercepted and a passing attack that averages 311 yards per game was kept in check.
“Their pass rush was daunting all day,” Ash said.
SUU defensive end James Cowser pass rushes on MSU left tackle John Weidenaar
“They are very physical and they are very gifted,” MSU senior left tackle John Weidenaar said following his 47th straight start. “They changed up some of their looks but nothing we couldn’t handle. With guys going down like they did and young guys having to step up, we did decently well but they are still a good football team and we didn’t do enough to win today.”
Montana State’s offensive line was playing without senior right tackle Alex Eekhoff. His streak of 21 straight starts ended because he had to take an engineering exam. The Bobcat offensive line also lost senior guard Kyle Godecke and junior J.P. Flynn to undisclosed injuries during Saturday’s action. Senior cornerback Bryson Keeton and sophomore safety Khari Garcia also left the game with injuries and did not return.
MSU freshman cornerback Tre’Von Strong left the stadium on a stretcher. Ash said the use of the stretcher and an ambulance ride were precautionary and Strong should be fine.
Southern Utah senior defensive end James Cowser notched a first-quarter sack, giving him the Big Sky Conference and Football Championship Subdivision records for tackles for loss in a career with 73.5. Idaho State standout and NFL All Pro Jared Allen previously held the Big Sky record. Many have compared the 6-foot-4, 260-pound Cowser to Allen, a future NFL Hall of Famer with 134 career professional sacks.
MSU quarterback Dakota Prukop slips on the Bobcat Stadium turf, one of several unabated falls during the game
“It seems like every win this year has been a little more sweeter than the last one because as you win more games, the conference championship gets closer and the games start to mean more,” said Cowser, who now has eight sacks this season and 37.5 in his career, one short of Allen’s Big Sky career record. “We are definitely starting to inch towards playoffs and towards our goal. But most importantly, we are getting better.”
Montana State ran the ball on 11 of 12 plays on a 75-yard drive to open the game capped by Newell’s first touchdown run. MSU opened the second half with a 13-play, 75-yard drive that included 10 more runs, capped by Newell’s second touchdown.
Other than that, a Bobcat offense that entered the game averaging 45 points per outing was kept under wraps. MSU had not scored less than 35 points in a game this season until Saturday.
After a first half that saw the Thunderbirds miss countless throws and a pair of field goals, Southern Utah’s interior run game gained traction after halftime. Senior Malik Brown rushed for 62 of his 89 yards after halftime and scored touchdowns of 19 and 31 yards in the final two frames. Junior Levi Te’o rushed for 38 of his 62 yards after halftime and scored a 26-yard touchdown run to give SUU a 26-17 lead that would swell to 34-17 on Brown’s long run early in the fourth.
SUU quarterback Ammon Olsen runs the option with running back Levi Te’o
“We got it going a little bit with some of the run-pass option stuff,” Lamb said. “Ammon (Olsen) did a good job of reading the box. Montana State was emphasizing more field blitz than boundary blitz so we tried to take away and exploit what was there.”
The result means SUU is now in the driver’s seat for the Big Sky title after Portland State’s loss at Northern Colorado on Saturday. The Bobcats continue to search for answers as the team tries to avoid its first losing season in more than a decade.
“We gotta win a game,” Ash said. “That’s what we just talked about. There’s a game on the horizon for us next week on Saturday. We are going to go play that game and win that game. That’s what we are going to do.”
Photos by Brooks Nuanez. All Rights Reserved.
