South Dakota State earned its second consecutive national championship by pulling away from Montana in the second half for a 23-3 win on January 7, 2024.
The Jackrabbits have now won 29 games in a row. Montana’s season ended with a 13-2 record that included a 10-game winning streak leading up to the championship game, the 8th in Griz history and the fourth under 12-year head coach Bobby Hauck.
Montana fans were out in full force for UM’s first national championship game appearance since 2009/ by Blake HempsteadThe Griz spirit squad leads Montana onto the field at Toyota Stadium/ by Blake Hempstead
Montana senior captains Levi Janacaro (37), Trajon Cotton (3) and Braxton Hill (35) lead the Griz/ by Blake HempsteadMontana senior captains Trajon Cotton (3), Chris Walker (55), Braxton Hill (35) and A.J. Forbes (57) take the field for the coin toss/ by Blake HempsteadSouth Dakota State running back Isaiah Davis rushed 16 times for 87 yards and a touchdown/ by Blake HempsteadSouth Dakota State senior Jaxon Janke had four catches for 66 yards/ by Blake HempsteadSouth Dakota State’s defense tackles Nick Ostmo. The Jackrabbits gave up just 47 rushing yards and just 1.6 yards per carry to Montana/ by Blake HempsteadSouth Dakota State senior Isaiah Davis squares up against Montana senior Braxton Hill/ by Blake HempsteadMontana senior Corbin Walker picked off South Dakota State quarterback Mark Gronowski in the first quarter, only the fifth interception Gronowski threw all season/ by Blake HempsteadSouth Dakota State senior linebacker Isaiah Stalbird with a near interception/ by Blake HempsteadMontana freshman quarterback Keali’i Ah Yat completed 6-of-7 passes for 47 yards/ by Blake HempsteadMark Gronowski threw for 175 yards and rushed for 53 yards on the way to earning Most Outstanding Player honors for the second year in a row/ by Blake HempsteadSouth Dakota State running back Amar Johnson quietly rushed nine times for 50 yards/ by Blake HempsteadMontana senior linebacker Braxton Hill rolled up 12 tackles and a tackle for loss (pictured here) to finish his All-American senior year with 128 tackles and 8 tackles for loss/ by Blake HempsteadMontana freshman Eli Gilman, the 2023 Jerry Rice Award winner as the nation’s top freshman, rushed seven times for 18 yards against SDSU/ by Blake HempsteadSouth Dakota State senior wide receiver Jadon Janke/ by Blake HempsteadSouth Dakota State defensive tackle Ryan Van Marel recovers a second half fumble/ by Blake HempsteadVan Marel and his teammates celebrate/ by Blake HempsteadMontana senior linebacker Braxton Hill and South Dakota State senior running back Isaiah Davis following the game/ by Blake Hempstead
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.
