CHENEY, Wash. – In what had to be one of the, if not the, most emotional wins in Montana State history the Bobcats gutted past Eastern Washington 38-35.
Montana State junior quarterback Sean Chambers scored on a 13-yard run and MSU forced a turnover on the next EWU possession. Two first downs later, they were in victory formation.
“You don’t script them that way,” MSU head coach Brent Vigen said. “That’s what football is all about. You take the twist and turns and ultimately you have a team that’s willing to have each other’s back.”
The win helps Montana State put last week’s 68-28 drubbing at the hands of Oregon State further in the rear view. The victory is also MSU’s second straight in Cheney, marking the first time the Bobcats have won consecutive games here in the 44-game history of the regional rivalry.
A game that saw MSU star quarterback Tommy Mellott leave the game with an apparent head injury after he laid still on the Roos Field turf for what seemed like an eternity and the defense get shredded on EWU’s first two possession, MSU found itself…momentarily.
“It was tough,” said Chambers, a 6-foot-3, 232-pound former Wyoming transfer. “I think emotions were running pretty high. Feel awful for Tommy. He puts in endless hours of work and film study. It was awful, but reality kind of sets in there and you realize you’ve got a game to win.”
Down 14-7 prior to the hit on Mellott, the Bobcats (1-0 Big Sky, 3-1 overall) outscored the Eagles 24-7 to take a 31-21 lead after driving for a touchdown on their first possession of the second half. Montana State looked like they would power to the win from there.
MSU could’ve taken complete command, but senior linebacker Callahan O’Reilly dropped what looked to be a pick-6 deep in EWU territory on third down, then the Eagles long snapper nearly launched his punt snap over Nick Kokich’s head, but he was able to snare possession.
MSU then went three and out on three successive possessions and while the Bobcats were keeping the Eagles in check during the stretch, the momentum finally swung in a huge way when EWU senior quarterback Gunner Talkington found Freddie Roberson for an 80-yard touchdown. Talkington nearly doubled his yardage total to that point with one throw. The Eagles scored again on their next possession to seize all the momentum and the lead, 35-31, with 9:24 to play.
Montana State proceeded to march into the red-zone on its ensuing possession. Facing a 4th down and goal from the it’s own 8-yard line, Chambers threw an interception to Jaden Banks. The pick marked the first turnover of the game, but not the last.
Just like that, however, the Bobcats forced a fumble by Michah Smith on EWU’s next play, and they were back in business 20 yards from the end-zone. Sophomore defensive tackle Sebastian Valdez punched out the ball and senior Ty Okada recovered it. Two plays later, Chambers plunged across the plane, but there was still over three minutes play.
“I was just glad I could step in and help this team out,” said Chambers after rushing for 144 yards on 26 bruising carries. “It meant a lot. Anytime you lose, it leaves a sour taste in our mouth.
“I can’t say enough about our willingness to hang in,” Vigen said. “These are the types of wins that you can really build off. We came to a tough place to win at.”
The Bobcats forced EWU into a fourth and 10 and perhaps the craziest play of a game filled with wild plays occurred when Talkington threw deep to Nolan Ulm at the MSU 40. What initially appeared to be a catch was ruled an interception by Danny Uluilakepa. After numerous official reviews it appeared the call was reversed as the MSU defense and EWU offense came back on the field. The call was upheld and two first downs later, the Bobcats were in victory formation.
Mellott was injured when he gave up his run after a medium gain. As he was sliding, he was hit on both sides and then appeared to hit his head on the ground. He laid motionless for about five minutes, then wasn’t taken off the field for another five minutes as the crowd remained stunned. MSU players were on their knees. When Mellott finally got to his feet, he was visibly shaken and walked off the field gingerly.
“It makes you sick to see that,” Vigen said.
After sitting on the bench for a few minutes, he was helped to the locker room. He would return in street clothes. The injury seemed to be a bit of a wake-up call for the MSU defense. Smith, who isn’t on the EWU’ two-deep, scored from 56 yards and 28 yards within the first 5:53 of the game as MSU gave up its 82nd point in just under 66 minutes in the Pacific Time Zone.
Chambers finished with 144 yards and two TDs on 26 carries and sophomore Elijah Elliott broke out, finishing with a career-high 141 and a score on 17 totes. The Bobcats ran for 327 yards and four touchdowns overall.
As is becoming commonplace for the Bobcat’ defense they played well sans a few huge gaffes. The Bobcats allowed plays of 75, 66, 31 and 31 yards in a 40-17 win McNeese State. Oregon State had two 80-yard plays against MSU return teams. They also scored on 25, 24, 23 and 17-yard plays. OSU quarterback Chance Nolan had 14 completions for first downs and four more for touchdowns.
Saturday, the consistently potent Eagle offense got 164 yards on just three plays – all touchdowns. Aside from that they had just 214 yards.
Valdez was stellar again for MSU. He collected a sack – he has 5.5 sacks on the season – forced a fumble and hurried the quarterback once. Uluilakepa lead MSU with eight tackles from his inside linebacker position. Okada and O’Reilly each had seven stops. Okada recovered the fumble Valdez forced, blocked a punt, and broke up a pass.
MSU’s first score came on a 45-yard run by Elliott after Smith went 56 yards. Smith scored again on the next drive and then MSU got a field goal from Blake Glessner and a TD run on a rare carry by senior fullback and captain R.J. Fitzgerald from the EWU 13.
The Bobcats would scored three of the next four TDs. Efton Chism took a pass from Talkington four yards, then Patterson caught a 4-yard touchdown pass from Chambers. Right before the end of the half MSU missed a chip shot 20-yard field goal.
The Bobcats took their first possession of the second half for a 12-play, 6:15 drive to paydirt as Chambers ran the ball in from the 2-yard line. After a long offensive lull by both teams EWU exploded for back-to-back TDs to grab the lead setting up the wild finish.
Montana State returns to Bozeman to face UC Davis in a nationally televised game on ESPNU Saturday at 8:15 p.m..
