BOZEMAN, Montana — As the dust settled on a Gold Rush Saturday night filled with fanfare, it was hard not to wonder what was gained, what was lost and just how uneven the Football Championship Subdivision has become.
In their first game at Bobcat Stadium since a 48-23 triumph over archrival Montana last December, and their first in Bozeman since claiming the football program’s first national championship since 1984, the Montana State Bobcats had moments of looking like the No. 1 team in the country.
But what do those flashes mean when you are playing a private school from Indianapolis, Indiana, that competes in a non-scholarship league? And how do you compartmentalize the risk that comes with playing an opponent, no matter how overmatched, and the casualties that can come with it?
MSU overcame a slow start to score 34 unanswered points and firmly establish authority over Butler in front of a record-setting crowd. Electric sophomore Jabez Woods ripped off a 100-yard kickoff return for a touchdown to spark the onslaught. Senior quarterback Justin Lamson threw touchdowns to Dane Steel and Taco Dowler while also pounding in the second rushing touchdown of his senior season in front of a Sonny Holland end zone filled with raucous students soaking up the 2026 debut of the 2025 national champions.
But Montana State also lost its captain for the foreseeable future, although head coach Brent Vigen suggested that Caden Dowler’s injury is not season-ending.
The Bobcats were able to play into their depth against the overmatched visitors, and some of those lesser-used players had to experience adversity when the Bulldogs forced a turnover that they turned into points to cut the lead to three scores, 37-17, with four minutes to go in the second quarter.
Ultimately, the Bobcats slammed the door and emerged with a 51-24 win. But Dowler’s injury loomed large on an evening filled with fanfare, nerves and fireworks as the Gallatin Valley continues to bustle with enthusiasm over its favorite golden-clad football team.
“You schedule whatever games you can, and you take them as they come,” Vigen said. “There’s no crystal ball for how they’re going to play out.”
Montana State forged a 34-point blitz after a sputtering start that saw the game tied 3-3, despite MSU’s dominance in recent years and Butler’s 27-23 win over an NAIA school last week. That barrage included much of what makes MSU an overwhelming favorite to become the first Big Sky Conference member to repeat as national champions.
MSU turned a tie game into a 37-3 runaway thanks to nearly 100 yards receiving and 166 punt return yards from Taco Dowler, the resident folk hero of the city and Bobcat Nation after his iconic third-and-20 conversion against the Griz in the Super Brawl and his game-winning TD in overtime in the national championship game in Nashville.
The spurt was sparked by Woods’ 100-yard kick return late in the first quarter. The return was MSU’s first since Marqui Johnson took a kick 100 yards for a touchdown against Oregon State in 2022, and it affirmed Woods’ preseason selection as the all-league kick returner.
It also continued MSU’s early-season special teams dominance. MSU defensive back Colter Petre blocked a punt that Xavier Ahrens returned for a touchdown in Montana State’s 54-0 win at Utah Tech last week. The Bobcats have looked stellar and game-altering on special teams so far this season, including Woods’ record-tying return.
“It’s about everybody being bought in,” Woods said of Montana State’s stellar special teams play. “With the new five-year rule, freshmen can play now, so they’re all trying to make that travel list. We have to take special teams seriously because the game has three phases: offense, defense and special teams.”
For as dominant as MSU has looked on special teams — Carter Dahlke blocked a punt Saturday that got called off, and punter/kickoff specialist has looked like an aspiring NFL specialist — that’s also where Saturday’s significance got called into question.
Montana State entered the game as a 46.5-point favorite over the overmatched non-scholarship visitors. So when Dahlke’s blocked punt was called off and Butler got another chance, leading to the latest of Taco Dowler’s 20-plus-yard punt returns, it would be easy to notice that a season-altering injury also occurred.
On that play late in the first half, Caden Dowler, the reigning Big Sky Defensive MVP, got rolled up on and left the field visibly emotional. After being consoled by Vigen on the sideline, he headed to the injury tent. He emerged in street clothes with a heavy brace on his right knee, an ominous sign for a player who has suffered three season-ending injuries and another hindering shoulder issue last season.
Which raises the question again: What is the state of the FCS when it’s more than beneficial, both financially and within the playoff picture, for Montana State to schedule a non-scholarship FCS team that counts toward its playoff resume, helps the program sell more than 22,000 tickets and allows the MSU coaching staff to play as many guys as possible, but also holds a similar risk for elite players suffering injuries?
MSU has to fill its schedule. Butler is a Division I game that adds a victory to Montana State’s Division I playoff resume. But what really is the gap between the defending champs and Butler compared to, say, Western Michigan and Michigan? If one of your players is going to go down on a re-done punt, would it be easier to swallow if it happened against a more competitive opponent?
It’s certainly an unanswerable question at this moment, considering the volatility that exists in the college football world. But even if it’s unanswerable, it’s still worth asking.
“Anytime a guy of that magnitude goes down, especially with Caden’s history, it’s tough,” Vigen said. “Those guys care so much about one another, and if there was inspiration, I imagine they showed it with their play in that moment. I’m anxious to see that sequence because I didn’t see it.
“It’s not season-ending. I couldn’t tell you the severity or timeline right now, but I’m encouraged by the initial prognosis.”
