Montana State runs all over Idaho in 38-7 beatdown

From staff reports

BOZEMAN – At the expense of the Idaho Vandals, the third-ranked Montana State Bobcats demonstrated why they’re the frontrunners in the Big Sky Conference.

In a nationally televised matchup of Big Sky heavyweights, the Bobcats had no trouble powering through the eighth-ranked team in the FCS. Montana State throttled the Vandals 38-7 on Saturday evening at Bobcat Stadium in Bozeman.

Montana State (7-0, 3-0) showcased its formidable rushing attack and suffocating defense, and distinguished itself as a national title contender and the conference’s clear-cut team to beat.

The No. 2 rushing team in the FCS, Montana State piled up 361 yards on the ground against a Vandals defense that entered the game ranked eighth in the FCS in rushing defense (93.3 yards per game).

The Bobcats held Idaho (4-3, 1-2) to 267 total yards – the Vandals had only 72 yards at halftime.

Bobcats quarterback Tommy Mellott had a game-high 140 rushing yards on 11 carries, and completed 11 of 15 passes for 121 yards and two touchdowns. Sophomore tailback Scottre Humphrey, a top-10 runner nationally, tallied 124 yards on 19 carries.

Mellott opened the scoring with a 65-yard run midway through the first quarter, and the Bobcats seemed well in control from that point on.

Mellott found receiver Taco Dowler for a 34-yard touchdown pass late in the period, then made the score 21-0 with a 7-yard TD rush late in the second quarter. Mellott threw an 11-yard touchdown to Rohan Jones early in the third quarter to extend his team’s lead to 31-0.

The Vandals offense had no response throughout the game. Idaho went three-and-out on five of its 10 drives. Three drives ended with a turnover on downs. Idaho also committed two turnovers.

Idaho starting quarterback Nick Josifek exited the game early in the second quarter after taking a hard hit on a sack. He passed 5 of 8 for 42 yards. Backup Jack Wagner went 11 of 23 for 134 yards with a touchdown and an interception. He threw a 9-yard TD pass to backup tailback Deshaun Buchanan with 43 seconds remaining in the game.

The loss was Idaho’s most lopsided in three years under coach Jason Eck.

The Vandals next play host to Cal Poly for a 1 p.m. kickoff Saturday at the Kibbie Dome.