Montana State rushed for 364 yards in a comeback victory over New Mexico in Albuquerque.
ALBUQUERQUE – Montana State appeared to pick up where it left off last season as the Bobcats seemed to be making too many mistakes to give themselves a shot at beating FBS New Mexico. But the last 20 minutes of the game, Adam Jones and the Bobcat run game took over, the winds of change blew both figuratively and literally and a 17-point fourth quarter deficit turned into a 35-31 win over the Lobos.
“I think going through all of those challenges and then working through this summer and staying focused on the goals we have this season, I think we were able to persevere today,” senior linebacker McCade O’Reilly said.
The Bobcats were all over the map throughout the game. They were hit with four pass interference penalties and their heart-and-soul – quarterback Tommy Mellott – coughed up the ball twice and both fumbles recoveries were returned for touchdowns for the home team. A year ago, the Bobcats lost three crucial games due to a variety of miscues despite gaining more yards than their opponents in two of those games. And this day, looked like just another game of that ilk.
“I can’t think of a lot of fumbles like that for him on sacks,” Montana State head coach Brent Vigen said. “Those are uncharacteristic plays when they happen. You can go in the tank when those things happen, if you’re a player that doesn’t have the experience to believe.”
Montana State’s rushing attack, playing behind a completely reshuffled offensive line and featuring a pair of young running backs in Jones, a redshirt freshman, and Scottre Humphrey, a true sophomore, spearheaded a rushing attack that piled up 362 yards on the ground and averaged 7.7 yards per carry.
Jones rushed for 167 yards, including a 93-yard run to cut the deficit to 31-28 with 4:25 to play. And Humphrey rushed for 140 yards, including a 4-yard touchdown with 10 seconds left for the final margin of victory as MSU posted its first win over an FBS opponent since beating Colorado in 2006.
“Our class (seniors) has been through so much,” linebacker McCade O’Reilly said. “Been to two semifinals, a championship and then that early loss last year. I think that going through all those challenges and staying focused on the goals we have, I think we were able to persevere today.”
Montana State stayed in the game by bouncing back back from a 17-0 hole with two straight touchdown drives to balance the game out only to let that lead slip back to 17 points on New Mexico’s last drive of the half. Mellott’s second fumble was another scoop-and-score on MSU’s first drive of the third quarter. The Bobcats were scoreless in the frame only to be greeted with gale force winds in the fourth quarter that gusted up to 50 mph and persisted until the end, seemingly changing MSU’s fortunes.
Mellott got the comeback going when he bolted into the end zone from 15 yards out with 13:39 to go to make it 31-21. The Bobcats had turned the ball over on downs the previous drive and after getting a 3-and-out forced by the MSU, they squandered what looked like their last shot when they turned the ball over on downs for the second time in three drives with just 6:15 to go, still down by 10.
“Through so many games I’ve battled through so much adversity and the biggest thing is the guys around me believe in me and what we’re doing and what I’m doing,” said Mellott, who finished 21-of-32 for 205 yards and two passing touchdowns while adding 30 rushing yards.
“Tommy’s a dog,” running back Scottre Humphrey said. “Nothing’s going to shake him. I know that for a fact. He’s been through some tough times, some trying times. I mean he’s the guy.”
Undeterred, the Cats got another stop on defense only to see UNM’s punt be downed at the MSU 7. After offsetting penalties, Jones exploded down the left sideline for 93 yards nearly untouched and a score to make it 31-28. It was the second longest run in MSU history and the second longest run allowed in UNM’s history.
MSU needed and got one more stop when a dropped pass on third down forced a punt. Taco Dowler appeared to set the Bobcats up in decent field position with a return to the 35, but that was negated by a holding penalty during the return, which meant the penalty was marked off from where Dowler caught the ball and it was placed at the MSU 11 with 1:59 to play.
Mellott then engineered one of the best two-minute drills in MSU history as he connected on six of nine passes for 81 yards before handing the ball to Scottre Humphrey for the final four with 10 seconds to go. Mellott connected with Lonyatta Alexander, Jr. on third and 10 for 37 yards to the UNM 31 to not only keep the drive moving but put MSU in striking distance.
“That’s what a two-minute drive, touchdown to win, looks like,” Vigen said. “And I’m damn proud of the guys for that.”
A field goal to send the game into overtime was never a consideration for MSU. The Bobcats struggled mightily in that department last season and with starter Casey Kautzman out due to injury, there were no plans to let freshman Miles Sansted on the field despite the fact that he’d made all four of his extra points prior to that drive.
Humphrey was rolling all game as he went over 100 yards in the first half. He and Jones combined for 307 rushing yards with Jones leading the way with 167 and Humphrey getting 140. Senior Ty McCullouch, who made a diving catch on the play before the game-winning score, had 91 total yards (66 receiving, 25 rushing).
Although the team allowed 31 points, the defense only gave up 17 of those. The secondary had several lapses in coverage that led to pass interference calls on under thrown balls, but they made plays when they were needed. They also got a little help when UNM receivers didn’t pull in two well-placed passes late in the 4th quarter, both on 3rd downs leading to punts.
“It’s hard when you have two touchdowns put up there that you had nothing to do with,” Vigen said. “Those are still on the board and that’s sometimes hard psychologically. One thing that really disappointed me was we had four pass interference penalties and holdings in the defensive backfield. That can’t be a part of winning football.”
The Bobcats had a 567-324 edge in total yards, but the two touchdowns on fumble returns skewed the score in the Lobos favor for much of the afternoon at University Stadium, where temperatures hovered in the mid-90s all game. Still, Montana State were able to hold an FBS team in check on their home field.
UNM jumped out to a 17-0 lead on a Christian Ellis 41-yard fumble return for a touchdown, a field goal by Luke Drzewiecki’s 45-yard field goal and tight end Trace Bruckler’s 12-yard touchdown reception from Devon Dampier.
MSU netted two TD passes from Mellott, who had started the game just four of eight for 19 yards, to cut the lead to 17-14. He hit Bozeman Gallatin product Rylan Schlepp first from the five and then found McCullouch, a former Colorado State transfer who’s more familiar playing Mountain West opponents, all alone in the left corner of the end zone. After the slow start, the Butte native connected on 17 of 24 passes for 186 yards and two touchdowns against no interceptions, but one fumble.
“I never felt like guys didn’t believe that we were going to still find a way to win,” Mellott said. “Teams find a way to win if they’re winners and I think that’s what we’re all about.”
The Bobcats will fly back to the southwest again next week when they travel to St. George, Utah to take on Utah Tech.
Photos courtesy of Montana State Athletic Communications. All Rights Reserved.
