The semis are set.
The FCS playoffs are down to its final four and, once again, things did not necessarily go how many people thought they might. While the Montana schools held serve at home and handled business, the other side of the bracket continued to spring chaos. Those two road teams won and advanced, making for a semifinal matchup that no one could have conjured up in their wildest dreams. Nashville is now just one victory away for these squads. Here’s how we got here:
Montana State Runs Away from SFA 44-28
Montana State once again punched its semifinal ticket by taking down Southland champions Stephen F. Austin on Friday evening. Behind a monster rushing performance from sophomore running back Adam Jones, MSU rolled out to a 16-point win at Bobcat Stadium. Jones ran for 114 yards and accounted for three touchdowns, helping the ‘Cats outgain the Lumberjacks 473 yards to 344.
The game got off to a rough start for SFA quarterback Sam Vidlak and the offense. Vidlak turned the ball over on his first two possessions, fumbling after getting sacked by Kenneth Eiden IV and then tossing an interception to safety Caden Dowler. Montana State turned both of those takeaways into touchdowns to open a 14-0 lead early in the second quarter.
MSU would balloon that lead up to 24-0 later in the half off of another turnover. Quarterback Justin Lamson connected with freshman tight end Luvens Valcin for a three-yard scoring strike. The Lumberjacks would answer right before the break, though, with big plays from Vidlak in the passing game that quickly got them into the red zone. Vidlak found Clayton Wayland for the touchdown and the ensuing two-point conversion made it 24-8 as the two teams headed to the locker room.
SFA cut into the deficit further in the third quarter with a 14-play drive that yielded another TD. Jaylen Jenkins pushed his way over the chalk from five yards out. From there, however, MSU started to pull away again. Kicker Miles Sansted hit a 36-yard field and Lamson ran in for another touchdown. Montana State was on top 34-21 as the fourth began.
Jones’ third touchdown of the night gave the ‘Cats a comfortable 20-point advantage and from there they were able to close it out. Lamson completed 20 of his 26 throws for 246 yards and two scores. Dowler again led the way on defense with eight tackles and his first-quarter pick. He now has six interceptions in the last five games. Montana State is back in the semifinals for the fourth time in five years and will host rival Montana next Saturday for a spot in the national championship game.
Stephen F. Austin’s season ends at 11-3 after making its first quarterfinal appearance since 2009. Star receiver Kylon Harris finished his night with 11 catches for 85 yards but no touchdowns. Vidlak went for 242 yards in the air with one score. Standout corner Charles Demmings did not play due to an illness.
VillanovaRallies from 14 Down to Upset Tarleton State
Early on it looked like 4-seed Tarleton State was on the fast track to its first ever semifinal appearance as the Texans, playing at home, opened up an early-two touchdown lead over visiting Villanova. The Wildcats, however, did not fold under pressure and instead fought all the way back to pick up one of the biggest wins they’ve experienced in a decade and a half.
‘Nova looked strong on its opening drive but quarterback Pat McQuaide’s bad pass from deep in the red zone got picked off by Texans defensive back Blake Smith in the endzone to stymie the possession. One snap later and Tarleton State was up 7-0 as signal caller Victor Gabalis hit receiver Payton Kramer for a 80-yard touchdown strike. Backup QB Daniel Greek would score on a TD run on the next Texans possession and it appeared as though a blowout would be in hand for the Wildcats.
Villanova started to swing things back its way shortly after. Kicker Jack Barnum capped a long 16-play drive with a field goal and then on the Wildcats next defensive play, Anthony Hawkins intercepted Gabalis to get the ball right back. Coach Mark Ferrante dug into the bag of tricks a few plays later as receiver Braden Reed took a handoff and then threw to fellow wideout Lucas Kopecky. Kopecky hauled it in for a 27-yard touchdown to make it a one-score game. The Wildcats would tack on one more field goal to make it 14-12 at halftime.
Tarleton extended its edge on its first possession of the third quarter. Gabalis hooked up with receiver Trevon West for a 15-yard touchdown but it would not take ‘Nova at all to answer. Running back Ja’Briel Mace broke free on a 47-yard scamper up the middle and scored easily effectively making 21-19 in favor of the Texans.
It wouldn’t be until the fourth quarter that the Wildcats got their first lead of the day. This time it was Reed again but on the receiving end of a McQuaide pass. It would be up to Villanova’s defense to hold and hold they did. On a fourth and six, Gabalis laced one to West who appeared to come down with the grab. Review, though, showed his foot did not touch in the end zone and the call was overturned. The Wildcats ground out a first down and came away with the 26-21 win.
Ferrante’s team has now won three in a row in these playoffs including the last two on the road. Villanova will make its first semifinal appearance since 2010 thanks to a big day on the ground from Mace who ran for 151 yards and a score. McQuaide completed 16 passes for 180 yards and a TD as well. The defense logged four sacks and as a team the Wildcats dominated the time of possession battle, holding the ball for almost 34 game minutes. ‘Nova will host Illinois State next Saturday.
The Texans, who had a lot of hope of reaching the championship game in Nashville, will see their successful season come to an end. Gabalis threw for 210 yards and two scores while running back Tylan Hines ran for 75 yards on 19 carries. The offense, though, was stopped on third down eight times and turned away on fourth down twice in the loss. TSU went 12-2 this fall.
Montana Dominates South Dakota in All Phases
Just as they did a week ago, Montana welcomed in a team from South Dakota and proceeded to promptly run them out of the building in Missoula. Last week it was the Jackrabbits and this week it was the Coyotes. The Grizzlies made light work of Aidan Bouman and company, running out to a lopsided 52-22 win in front of a rabid crowd at Washington-Grizzly Stadium. The win will set up what is sure to be an electric rematch with rival Montana State in the semifinals next weekend.
The Griz offense got off to a fast start, scoring on their first three offensive possessions and jumping out 17-0 midway through the second quarter. What was already a bad situation for USD got worse when Montana quarterback Keali’i Ah Yat connected with receiver Michael Wortham for a 53-yard touchdown that blew the game wide open. The Coyotes would score before half when running back L.J. Phillips scrambled in from 23 yards out but it was still 24-7 at the break.
UM would get a boost from its special teams in the third quarter when Drew Deck cut it through the South Dakota kick coverage unit and took it 93 yards to the house. Deck’s touchdown ensured that Montana would have a 31-7 advantage as the fourth began. In spite of a few late scores from USD, the Grizzlies would continue their onslaught and, for the second straight week, dropped a 50-burger.
Wortham was a man possessed, accounting for 244 total yards and three touchdowns. Those 244 yards propelled Wortham to first all-time in school history for all-purpose yards in a single season, breaking the mark previously held by Marc Mariani in 2008. Ah Yat also continued to show why he’s one of the sharpest passers out there right now, completing 21 passes for over 300 yards and three touchdowns. Running back Eli Gillman found the end zone once as well and the Griz defense held the ‘Yotes to just 120 rushing yards.
Bouman would end up throwing for 231 yards and two scores but also had an interception. Phillips was held to under 100 yards on the ground and the team was penalized 13 times for a total of 75 yards lost. For the second straight season, South Dakota’s season comes to an end to a Montana school.
The Grizzlies are now bound for Bozeman for the semifinals next Saturday afternoon. It will be the first-ever meeting between the two rivals in the postseason and will take place less than a month after Montana State beat UM 31-28 in the regular season finale.
Illinois State Does it Again, Bounces #8 UC Davis
The magic has not run out just yet for Illinois State. The unseeded Redbirds, one week after stunning North Dakota State in Fargo, went on the road again and pulled off another upset over a top eight team in UC Davis. Brock Spack’s team found itself in a back-and-forth battle with the Aggies early on but, as they did last weekend, weathered the storm. Big plays from star receiver Daniel Sobkowicz and quarterback Tommy Rittenhouse again carried ISU through and suddenly the Redbirds are four quarters away from playing in the national championship game.
The fireworks started early. After UC Davis opened the scoring with a field goal, Illinois State return man Chris Taylor housed a kickoff for a 91-yard score and it never really slowed down from there. Everything the Aggies were able to do in the first half, the Redbirds answered. When UC Davis running back Jordan Fisher ran in for a touchdown later in the first, ISU responded with a Rittenhouse TD throw to Dylan Lord.
It was the long 93-yard score from Rittenhouse to Sobkowicz, though, that really helped Illinois State start to pull away. Sobkowicz high-pointed the ball while making his defender stumble in the process and took it practically the length of the field to put ISU up 21-10. The Aggies made it 21-17 shortly after when freshman quarterback Caden Pinnick connected with Stacy Dobbins. All of that happened before the first quarter came to an end.
For all the blows in the first, though, the second quarter would remain scoreless. Both teams missed field goals down the stretch before halftime and it would stay a four-point advantage for the visitors heading into the locker room.
Illinois State really started to pour it on in the third, getting a 14-yard touchdown from senior running back Seth Glatz. Three plays later, UC Davis turned it over when Zach Jones coughed up the ball after a catch. ISU would turn that turnover into points but not after a long drive. On the heels of an 11-play, 80-yard march, the Redbirds made it 35-17 in front of a stunned crowd with another Rittenhouse-to-Sobkowicz TD. The Aggies were starting to reel as they headed into the fourth frame down 17.
Just when it started to seem like UC Davis might finally start to be gaining some traction, Pinnick made a costly mistake at the goal line, tossing an interception to defensive back C.J. Richard Jr in the end zone. Richard’s pick kept the Redbirds up by three scores with less than ten minutes to play. From there, Rittenhouse was able to orchestrate another clock-eating drive that chewed nearly minutes. Aided by a beautifully-executed fake punt, Illinois State put it on ice. Glatz tied the bow on it with a 58-yard scoring run. The Aggies surged a little in the closing stages but it was too little too late.
The win is the third straight on the road for Illinois State who will play in the semifinals for the first time since 2014. They will play at Villanova next Saturday night. Rittenhouse ended up throwing for 266 yards and three touchdowns. Sobkowicz was on the receiving end of 150 of those yards and had a pair scores. The defense stopped the Aggies on fourth down twice as well. Running back Victor Dawson also helped pave the way with 148 yards.
For UC Davis, their season comes to a close in the quarterfinals for the second straight season. Pinnick accounted for 428 yards running and passing. As a team, though, the Aggies turned the ball over two times.
Category: General Sports
