The FCS is set to throw a party in Nashville, Tennessee, although Montana State is going to consider its spot in the national championship game as more a business trip. Here’s a review of how the Bobcats advanced with a semifinal-round win over Montana.
The other side of the FCS playoff bracket has been surprising, but Montana State has exerted pure brute force on advancing back to the national championship game.
The No. 2-seeded Bobcats powered past No. 3 Montana 48-23 in a semifinal Saturday that was a raucous rematch between Big Sky Conference rivals.
Montana State (13-2), the 2024 FCS runner-up, has won 13 straight games since an 0-2 start. Coach Brent Vigen’s squad will face No. 12 seed Villanova (12-2) or unseeded Illinois State (11-4) on Jan. 5 at FirstBank Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee.
FCS Playoffs – Semifinals
No. 3 seed Montana (13-1) at No. 2 seed Montana State (12-2)
How It Happened – The Bobcats jumped to a 20-3 lead, allowed 20 straight points to fall behind the Grizzlies, then answered with the final four touchdowns in a 10-minute, 6-second span, highlighted by wide receiver Taco Dowler’s 87-yard catch-and-run and Bryce Grebe’s 40-yard pick-6.
Game Ball – Quarterback Justin Lamson, who guided MSU to a 31-28 win in the regular-season Brawl of the Wild, accounted for 252 yards of offense and four touchdowns (two passing, two rushing).
Three Key Stats – Montana State has won 44 of its last 46 home games, while Montana has lost its last eight road playoff games. … The Bobcats were 10 for 14 on third down conversions. … Montana’s Michael Wortham entered the game ranked second in the FCS in all-purpose yards per game and finished with 136, but Dowler had the game high with 180.
The Takeaway – Even with Montana State pulling away in the fourth quarter, the playoff “Brawl” lived up to the billing as an emotionally charged slugfest that was their 125th meeting all time, but the first in the postseason. The Bobcats will be considered heavy favorites to add a second FCS championship to the one they claimed in 1984.
Up Next – It will be a first-time matchup when Montana State faces Illinois State or Villanova in the FCS championship game on Jan. 5 at FirstBank Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee (7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN2).
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