MISSOULA — The Montana football team will play North Dakota for the second time in its past 15 games this weekend.
That makes it feel like the Grizzlies and Fighting Hawks are once again Big Sky Conference foes after the latter left in 2018 to join the Missouri Valley. It's certainly a more frequent affair than the Griz have with some league teams.
The nonconference games are a home-and-home agreement that started last year when then-No. 4 Montana blew a 24-7 halftime lead at then-No. 23 UND in a 27-24 loss. Now, the No. 5 Griz (1-0) will shoot for payback against No. 16 North Dakota (1-1) at 1 p.m. Saturday in Washington-Grizzly Stadium.
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"It's nice going in with a little chip on your shoulder for sure," Griz running back Eli Gillman said Monday, two days after beating Central Washington 42-17. "We're definitely going to come back stronger than ever this week."
Gillman is one of the players who appeared in last year's game as Montana overhauled nearly half its roster while keeping its coaching staff nearly intact. North Dakota hired a new head coach in Eric Schmidt, has a new starting quarterback but does return some key pieces on both offense and defense.
What's not different from last year is how this early season meeting could have massive implications down the road. The winner of the matchup pitting powerhouse conferences could help not only themselves but their league come playoff seeding time, which the Big Sky could use after a puzzling start.
Whoever wins gets a signature victory, but they're not guaranteed anything long term. The Griz lost last year but finished with a 9-5 record and second-round exit in the playoffs. The Fighting Hawks won during a 4-1 start to the year, then lost six of their final seven to finish 5-7 and miss the postseason.
"They've got a new head coach in Eric Schmidt, but their DNA's still the same," Montana head coach Bobby Hauck said. "He's a North Dakota guy. They look like they're a very tough football team to me."
Here are five things to watch in the game:
Griz vs. CWU football 09.JPG (copy)
Montana running back Eli Gillman (10) runs the ball against Central Washington defensive back Jalen Webber (32) during the college football game between Montana and Central Washington on Sept. 6 at Washington-Grizzly Stadium in Missoula. BEN ALLAN SMITH, Missoulian
How much growth will Ah Yat show?
Quarterback Keali'i Ah Yat showed how composed he was in the first game of the year and his seventh career start. He also displayed an ability to bounce back by putting together a scoring drive after each of his two interceptions. He played the entire game without being subbed out until garbage time.
Both picks came over the middle, where he nearly threw a third that could've been a pick-6. He had a pass deflected at the line and had two completions to Michael Wortham for a total of 11 yards as he finished 2-of-6 over the middle. This week's defense features MVFC preseason watch list safety Zach Lewis.
Ah Yat ended 14-of-24 passing overall, or 58.3 percent. That was slightly lower than his 59.3 percentage last year, which ranked 12th in the Big Sky. He was 2-of-4 passing for 27 yards on third downs, with both completions moving the chains. UM was 7 of 12 on third down. UND has held teams to 9 of 22.
Ah Yat also had five rush attempts for negative-4 yards. That was similar to his average of 5.2 carries per game last year, but he did net 159 yards and seven touchdowns, including tying a school record with four rushing scores in a game. How much of a weapon will he make his legs this season?
Will the offense be ready if this turns into a shootout? UM put up 42 points last week, but that came against an NCAA Division II team. North Dakota is averaging 42.5 points in two games against Big 12 and Big Sky teams. It's a big jump from averaging between 30.3 to 31.4 each of the past three years.
"Everybody wants to control the ball, but scoring points is what you have to do," Hauck said. "I don't believe them to be a team like we just saw that's going to stay in the huddle and bleed it out (on offense). I don't think that's how they're going to play it. Now, they might, but I don't think that's how they're going to play it.
"Everybody wants to generate first downs. These guys are no different. They've done a nice job of that the first couple of weeks and they've done it a multitude of ways."
How real is Montana's offensive line?
Montana's new-look offensive line passed it first test last week as the three players from center on over to right tackle were making their first start at that position in a Griz uniform while rotating the center every few possessions. Now comes an anticipated stiffer test against MVFC squad North Dakota.
The Fighting Hawks have altered their defensive scheme to a 4-2-5 defense with four down linemen, two linebackers and five defensive backs. They had traditionally run a 3-4 with three linemen and four linebackers. Linebacker Malachi McNeal and edge Lance Rucker made the MVFC preseason watch list.
"They've changed some, particularly on the defensive side, but what hasn't changed is they're really good up front on both sides of the ball," Hauck said. "They're a physical team. They play hard. All those things are just who their football team is and who they have been."
North Dakota has allowed 29 points per game while giving up 17 first downs per game, 112.5 rushing yards per game and 3.8 yards per carry. Will Griz running back Eli Gillman get the protection to rush for 198 yards again? How much support does he get again from backups and Wortham in the Wildcat?
Could the Griz find more success through the air this week? North Dakota is allowing 232 passing yards per game on a 63.9 completion percentage. Will Montana be able to give Ah Yat time in the pocket and keep him upright? The Fighting Hawks have totaled 10 quarterback hurries across two games.
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Montana linebacker Solomon Tuliaupupu (58) blocks a pass attempt by Central Washington quarterback Kennedy McGill (17) during the college football game between Montana and Central Washington on Sept. 6 at Washington-Grizzly Stadium in Missoula. BEN ALLAN SMITH, Missoulian
They've also accrued 10 tackles for loss and three sacks against Kansas State and Portland State. Eleven players have recorded at least half a TFL, led by nickel Jonnie Wiltshire with two. Four players have had at least half a sack, with one each from defensive tackle Logyn Eckheart and edge Braden Mohr.
How does defense continue to progress?
Montana gave up 17 points in the opening 26 minutes last week while playing with 11 new starters, then pitched a shutout for the final 34 minutes. The Griz totaled five TFLs and one sack, which all came from the linebackers and defensive backs. Will the D-linemen now make more of a statistical impact?
They'll face a UND O-line that lost one of its four returning starters to injury. The three returners are right tackle Seth Anderson, left guard Liam Becher and center Ben Buxa. All three made the MVFC preseason watch list. Anderson was the MVFC O-line of the week following the loss to FBS Kansas State.
Behind that line is sophomore quarterback Jerry Kaminski, who beat out last year's starter, Simon Romfo, to win the job. He's a dual-threat QB who has completed 62.7% of his passes for 395 yards, five touchdowns and no picks. He's also UND's rushing leader with 74 yards and three touchdown runs.
"He looks like he's really prepared, not just week to week, but he looks like he's ready to go," Hauck said. "He's just a sophomore, but he looks pretty veteran. He looks composed. He's run the ball well.
"He's been good in the RPO game in particular. He's hit passes downfield. Seems to be accurate on the move. So, they've got a lot of different things they do with him and he seems to be handling it all pretty well."
Montana did shut down a dual-threat QB last week by holding Kennedy McGill to 7-of-16 passing for 76 yards, one touchdown and one interception while giving up just 39 yards on 13 rushes. The Fighting Hawks look to have more weapons around the QB and certainly like to spread around the ball more.
They've completed passes to 14 players and have used eight rushers. Running back Xavier Leigh leads with six catches, 68 receiving yards and 19 carries. Tight end Nathan Hromadka leads with two scoring grabs. Running backs Gaven Ziebarth and Sawyer Seidl both made the MVFC preseason watch list.
"I think that we're going to have to come together as one unit and be able to show up when it matters most," UM cornerback Kenzel Lawler said of facing an offense with so many weapons. North Dakota is 10 of 26 (38.5%) on third downs, while Montana held Central Washington to 4 of 14 (28.6%) last week.
How well does UM clean up miscues?
The Griz had some first-game miscues with tackling and were able to clean that up as the game went along. They can't afford to be missing those again this week and allow North Dakota to pile up yards after contact. CWU ran for 221 yards; UND averages 188.5 rushing yards and 211.5 passing yards.
Montana also needs to be cleaner in the turnover column. It lost the turnover battle 3-2 last week, but the teams finished tied 7-7 in points off turnovers. Ah Yat threw two picks and Wortham fumbled on a punt return. Safeties Kade Boyd and Micah Harper came up with UM's pair of turnovers gained.
North Dakota forced three turnovers last week against Portland State and had a plus-two margin for the game. Safety Jy Martin and nickel Avery Scott each picked off a pass. The Hawks have also forced one fumble and recovered two fumbles. They've fumbled four times and lost two but haven't been picked off.
Penalties is another area where the Griz will want to makes strides in playing cleaner. They were flagged 10 times last week, with eight penalties accepted and two declined. Their eight enforced penalties came with 85 yards. Three of those penalties gave CWU a first down. One wiped out a Griz touchdown.
North Dakota has been penalized just five times across two games. Those penalties have totaled 45 yards, or 22.5 yards per game. Could the Wa-Griz fans force some false starts like they have in past years? This won't be the Hawks' first game in a big-time atmosphere as they opened at Kansas State.
"At practice, we try to make it a loud environment over there just to make sure our communication, everything is good," North Dakota linebacker Micheal Devereaux said. "I don't think the loudness or anything like that would be a problem for us. I think guys kind of build off of that and we'll have a lot of success over there."
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Montana wide receiver Drew Deck (2) runs the ball down the sideline during the college football game between Montana and Central Washington on Sept. 6 at Washington-Grizzly Stadium. The Grizzlies will host North Dakota at 1 p.m. Saturday in Missoula for a Top 25 showdown. BEN ALLAN SMITH, Missoulian
How good is the special teams really?
The Griz looked like they had picked up right where they left off as Drew Deck ran back a punt for a touchdown in the season opener, the first game at the stadium since Junior Bergen housed two punts in the first round of the playoffs last year. However, his score was called back due to a holding penalty.
Deck had another big return later, but the spotting of the ball was brought back as he was ruled to have stepped out of bounds. Wortham also ripped of a 41-yard punt return but fumbled and Central Washington recovered. Flipping the field on special teams could be valuable in a likely tight game this week.
Last week, Jett Sutton forced a fumble on a Portland State kick return and Grant Noland recovered the ball for the Fighting Hawks. They punched in a score and led 15-0 before the Vikings got their first offensive snap. Against K-State, Ethan Boll recovered a fumble, which also came on special teams.
North Dakota's Sawyer Seidl has one kick return for 36 yards after he ranked No. 6 in the FCS last year at 28.5 yards per kick return. Avery Scott has gotten the most returns with three, averaging 18.3 yards with a long of 28. Zach Lewis has a long punt return of 28 yards this season for the Hawks.
North Dakota's C.J. Elrichs is 11 of 11 on extra points but 0 of 2 on field goals, missing from 43 and 30 yards last week. Montana's Ty Morrison has made all six PATs but has yet to attempt a field goal. He was 17 of 23 on field goals last year with a long of 50. Every kick could be crucial in a projected tight contest.
"It's an awesome game day environment," Schmidt said of playing in Wa-Griz. "That's the cool thing about going into places like this. Guys are going to be juiced up and ready to go. You're not going into a place where there's no energy, where there's no environment.
"We're going to play in one of the best environments in FCS football, really in any level of football. That's fun to be able to walk into those environments and know it's going to be fun. It's going to be loud. It's going to be really stressful. Those things are what you prepare for and why you play this game."
Frank Gogola is the Senior Sports Reporter at the Missoulian and 406 MT Sports. Follow him on X @FrankGogola or email him at frank.gogola@406mtsports.com.
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