September 19, 2004

I-AA and Big Sky Conference Results.
---
Kat scratched: Sam Houston State QB Long burns top-ranked Grizzlies (Missoulian).
Grizzly notebook: Early interception sets tone for game (Missoulian).
Sam Houston slices, dices UM defense (Great Falls Tribune).
---
No. 1 bites the dust (Huntsville Item).
---
Idaho State Snaps Bears Home Winning Streak in Double Overtime, 49-42 (UNC).
UMaine springs big upset (Portland Press Herald).
I-AA Review: Week Three (Coulson, I-AA.org).

***


Big Sky Conference Results

Idaho St 49, at Northern Colo 42 (2nd OT) Eastern Wash 39, Central Wash 8 Sacramento St 23, Southern Utah 17

NAU, Idle

Montana 29, at Sam Houston 41
Montana St 14, Cal Poly 27
Weber St 29, UC Davis 31
Portland St 17, at Fresno St 27

Griz Opponents

Maine 9, at S Mississippi St 7
Hofstra, idle

---

Big Sky Conference
Overall
W L PF PA Pct
UM 2 1 97 84 .667
MSU 1 1 33 27 .500
PSU 1 1 55 27 .500
Sac 1 1 30 76 .500
EWU 1 2 73 87 .333
ISU 1 2 90 115 .333
NAU 0 2 20 45 .000
WSU 0 3 60 97 .000

***

I-AA Top 25 Results

1. LOST Montana 29, at Sam Houston 41
2. won Southern Ill 59, William Penn 9
3. LOST Wofford 14, at #8 Ga Southern 58
4. won Furman 38, at Gardner-Webb 6
5. LOST Villanova, 0, James Madison 17
6. won Delaware 24, West Chester 6
7. LOST Northern Iowa 21, #13 SF Austin 24
8. won Ga Southern 58, #3 Wofford 14
9. LOST Massachusetts 14, Richmond 24
10. LOST New Hampshire 7, Wm & Mary 9
11. won Western Ky 21, at Eastern Ky 8
12. won Colgate 17, Dartmouth 15
13. won SF Austin 24, at #7 Northern Iowa 21
14. LOST Montana St 14, #22 Cal Poly 27
15. won Maine 9, at Miss State 7
16. LOST Western Ill 20, at Hampton 40
17. won McNeese ST 24, Youngstown St 20
18. idle Northeastern
19. idle Northern Arizona
20. won Appalachian St 28, Citadel 14
21. won Northwestern St 52, Tex Southern 6
22. won Cal Poly 27, at #14 Montana St 14
23. won Pennsylvania 61, at San Diego 18
24. won Lehigh 34, at Liberty 16


***


Kat scratched: Sam Houston State QB Long burns top-ranked Grizzlies

By FRITZ NEIGHBOR of the Missoulian

http://www.missoulian.com/articles/2004 ... orts01.txt

HUNTSVILLE, Texas - Add a little bit of Jerrod Fuller to a lot of Dustin Long, and it's "Houston, we have a problem."

Long diced up the University of Montana defense for 329 yards and two touchdowns, and Fuller caught 10 passes for 133 yards and ran for another score to lift Sam Houston State over the top-ranked Grizzlies 41-29 Saturday at Bowers Stadium.

It's one of the biggest wins in school history for the Bearkats (2-1), who hadn't beaten a team ranked No. 1 in Division I-AA in 19 seasons of trying.
Saturday's win was just their 14th over a ranked opponent in 57 games. It was also their first win over Montana in three attempts.




And it was convincing. With several hundred in the announced crowd of 12,941 chanting, "Over-rated," Sam Houston drove 80 yards, capped by a 3-yard run by Stevie Smith, to go up 41-10 with 9:28 left in the game.

"It was a blessed game," said Fuller. "We came out with some intensity. We kind of had a sour taste in our mouths from the last time when we left Missoula (a 38-14 loss last season). We thought we should've had those Grizzlies.

"Losing a critical game last week that was just a heartbreaker, that just gave us a little more fire in our eyes."

Sam Houston's defense, burned for two touchdowns late in a 33-31 loss to Southwest Missouri State last week, came up big early, blunting Montana's opening drive when Mark Hughes intercepted a Craig Ochs pass in the end zone.

From their 20, the Bearkats drove for their first touchdown in 10 plays, seven of them runs. Smith, who finished with 115 yards and two scores, scooted in from 11 yards and Sam Houston had the lead for good.

The big plays and long drives kept coming: A 9-yard run from Robert Garmon capped an 89-yard drive on the Bearkats' ensuing possession, making it 13-0 at 14:14 of the second quarter; then the Kats capitalized on a botched fake punt for a 16-yard scoring pass from Long to Vincent Cartwright, who broke four tackles on the way to the end zone.

That made it 20-0 with 7:14 left in the first half. The Grizzlies (2-1) managed another short drive, culminating in a 38-yard field goal from Dan Carpenter at the 1:58 mark.

Sam Houston led 20-3 at halftime, and erased almost all doubt of the outcome by taking the second half kickoff and driving 70 yards for another touchdown, this time on Fuller's 19-yard run on an end around.

"They're a good football team that played a great game, and they need to be given credit for that," said Bobby Hauck, who suffered his worst defeat in
16 games as Montana's head coach. "When you're playing a team at (their) home and they're playing at that level, you can't go out and lay and egg like we did."

The I-AA henhouse was crowded. Keeping the Grizzlies company were No. 3 Wofford, No. 5 Villanova, No. 7 Northern Illinois, No. 9 UMass, and No. 10 New Hampshire. All lost Saturday.

Which was small consolation for the Grizzlies.

"It's a good wakeup call," said Jefferson Heidelberger, who caught nine passes for 167 yards, including a 69-yard scoring strike from Ochs that cut the gap to 41-16 with 8:47 left in the game. "We know we're a good team, we know we belong near the top of the rankings. We'll be that team if we just stop those mistakes we made tonight. Mistake after mistake after mistake."

Grizzly punter Tyson Johnson was actually stopped on two fake punts, although on the first, he was set up for a big gain but for a shoddy block and a finger tip tackle. Sam Houston cashed them in for Cartwright's TD, plus a 27-yard Long pass that Jason Mathenia made a diving catch on in the end zone.

That made it 34-10 late in the third quarter.

Montana's lone touchdown to that point came on a short field, after Shane MacIntyre scooped up a Long fumble and returned it 10 yards to the SHSU 16.
Lex Hilliard bulled in from 1 yard for the score, cutting the gap to 27-10.

"Dustin Dlouhy and Mike Potts just hit the quarterback and he coughed it up," MacIntyre said. "I just happened to be running in the right place at the right time."

The Bearkats missed a field goal on their next possession, but then regained the ball at Montana's 30 on the Grizzlies' second failed punt. Long's TD pass to Mathenia came on third-and-18.

"Their offense, they called a real good game today," MacIntyre said. "We'd do one thing and they'd just run a play we didn't want to see coming out of it, you know? We know they're a fast team. We just couldn't stop them."

Montana scored the last 19 points of the game to make the score respectable.
After Heidelberger's long TD - Ochs was kicked in the calf on the play, and left the game - Montana forced an SHSU punt that turned jail-break, the snap sailing over punter Curtis Parks' head. The Grizzlies Ryan Bagley blasted Parks off the ball, and Kroy Biermann recovered in the end zone for a touchdown with 7:02 left.

With 1:37 remaining, back-up QB Jeff Disney capped an 8-play, 86-yard drive with a 5-yard dart to Tate Hancock.

It wasn't timely enough for the Griz, who return home to face Northern Colorado this coming Saturday. The film will show several near misses, from the end zone interception to a potential big-gainer to Bagley. Heidelberger had another highlight-reel catch ruled out of the end zone before Carpenter's field goal.

"We certainly didn't play our best game, and you know what, we're going to learn from this," said Ochs, who absorbed some big hits while throwing for
198 yards on 18-of-31 passing. "We're going to watch tape and get better from this. This team's going to get better."

"They just made plays and we didn't," said Hauck, now 11-5 as Montana's coach. "In all facets we just made too many mistakes. I wouldn't even say it was mistakes. We did not make plays. When we have the opportunity we need to make them."

***


Grizzly notebook: Early interception sets tone for game

By FRITZ NEIGHBOR of the Missoulian

http://www.missoulian.com/articles/2004 ... orts03.txt

The biggest play Sam Houston State made Saturday - and the Bearkats made quite a few of them - might have been Mark Hughes' interception to thwart the Grizzlies' opening drive.

It came in the end zone, after Montana had driven to the SHSU 30-yard line.
Griz quarterback Craig Ochs tried to hit Jon Talmage on a post pattern, but overthrew it and Talmage ended up looking like the defensive back on the play.

"The play was there," said Ochs, who later left the game with a calf injury.
"I had Jon one-on-one, and I think it was just a tremendous individual effort by that corner. Usually when I throw it high, Jon can go get it."

Sam Houston coach Ron Randleman couldn't overestimate the importance of the pick, after his secondary was victimized for two late touchdowns in a loss last week.

"It was big because it was a defensive stop early on," said the Bearkats'
23rd-year head coach. "I think it gave our defense a boost because you know, we're young over there. I think we're going to get better. I think our defense is coming along.

"It's been hard on our defense's confidence in spring and early fall camps, some days, when Dustin (Long) is throwing it like that and the receivers are catching it and Noah (Allen) comes in and throws it. It hasn't been easy on them."

Long, a senior transfer from Texas A&M, was 26-for-33 passing. Allen, a sophomore transfer from Oklahoma, didn't throw a pass Saturday but gained 9 yards on two rushes in relief.

Ochs was sacked only once on a bruising hit from Paul Donalson that lost 11 yards, but he took plenty of shots. When he threw to Jefferson Heidelberger for 69 yards and a touchdown, he was under pressure and said he took a cleat to his right calf.

"I got hit on the play where I hit him for the touchdown," Ochs said, still limping after the game. "I either cramped up real bad or have a deep bruise."

Montana's ground game netted just 78 yards against some excellent SHSU defense. Lex Hilliard led the team with 30 yards on seven carries. Justin Green, who cramped up during the game played in 90-degree heat, added 24 yards on seven totes.

And Tyson Johnson added 2 yards on two carries from his punter's spot. The first time he rolled out, Johnson could've had a big gain but Sam Houston's Corey Zeno shed his blocker and made a shoe-string tackle.

"He's actually looking to punt that, on both of them," Montana head coach Bobby Hauck said. "If he breaks contain and there's nobody there, he's got the option to run.

"On the first one maybe it was a good one for him to run it. The second one we should've punted."

The heat affected some Grizzlies. One apparently vomited on the field, which led to a Keystone Cops cleanup attempt that included several pounds of ice on the 40-yard line.

"We were hot, and I started cramping up, but I don't think that's that big of a factor in that game," said linebacker Shane MacIntyre, who led the Griz with 6fi tackles and a fumble recovery. "They beat us. That's about all I can say."

Kevin Edwards and Tuff Harris added five tackles each for the Griz. Donalson led the Bearkats with 6fi.

***


Sam Houston slices, dices UM defense

By Special to the Great Falls Tribune

http://www.greatfallstribune.com/news/s ... 62574.html

HUNTSVILLE, Texas -- Sam Houston State carved a piece of football history Saturday night as the Bearkats gained their first victory in school history over a No. 1-ranked opponent.

The Bearkats outplayed top-ranked Montana from the onset and handed the Grizzlies a stunning 41-29 loss on a warm, humid night at Bowers Stadium.

It was the first loss in three games for coach Bobby Hauck's Grizzlies, who fell behind early 20-0 and never recovered.

Hauck said Sam Houston's team speed didn't surprise him, even though the Berakats clearly were the most athletic team UM has faced this season.

"We talked all week about their skilled kids and we knew they were fast,"
said the second-year coach. "Coupled with the (artificial) surface, they were really fast."

Unranked Sam Houston, which was 0-6 in previous games against top-ranked opponents, improved to 2-1. The Bearkats had never beaten a team ranked higher than fourth.

"They're a good football team and they had a good plan tonight," said Hauck.
"I told the kids after the game that every player has to make sure we don't lay another egg like this."

Senior quarterback Dustin Long, a Texas A & M transfer, riddled UM's secondary for 329 yards and two touchdowns. The Bearkats outgained UM 512 yards to 352, with most of Montana's production coming in the final 20 minutes.

The Bearkats stopped Montana's opening drive with an interception in the end zone, as senior quarterback Craig Ochs threw over the head of 6-foot-4 wide receiver Jon Talmage. Sam Houston then drove 80 yards in less than five minutes, scoring on a 10-yard run by backup tailback Stevie Smith 8:12 into the contest. Placekicker Joey Price missed the conversion.

Sam Houston outgained UM 147 yards to 83 the first quarter, running mostly off tackle for 88 yards even though top RB Jason Godfrey was sidelined with an injury.

The Bearkats made it 13-0 early in the second quarter as third-string tailback Robert Garmon went five yards up the middle.

UM gambled and failed on a fake-punt play as punter Tyson Johnson stepped out of bounds before reaching the first-down marker. Sam Houston converted that mistake into a third touchdown as Long hit Vincent Cartwright on a 25-yard play to make it 20-0.

Montana finally got on the board with 1:58 left in the first half as Dan Carpenter booted a field goal to slice the deficit to 20-3. That came one play after Jefferson Heidelberger was ruled out of the end zone on an apparent TD catch.

The Bearkats got out of the gate fast in the second half, taking the kickoff and marching downfield behind the exploits of wide receiver Jarod Fuller.
The 5-8, 170-pound senior gained about 30 yards on two passes from Long, then dashed 17 yards on a reverse to make it 27-3.

Montana defensive end Mike Potts forced a fumble a few minutes later, and linebacker Shane McIntyre returned it to the SHS 16. Sophomore tailback Lex Hilliard scored on a 1-yard run at the 8:34 mark to trim the Bearkats'
advantage to 27-10.

Montana gambled and lost on another fake-punt play at its own 30, and Long made the Grizzlies pay with a 27-yard scoring strike to Jason Mathenia.

Ochs finally teamed up with his favorite receiver, Heidelberger, on a 69-yard scoring play midway through the quarter quarter to make it 41-16.
Ochs limped off the field after the play, however, and backup QB Jeff Disney failed on a two-point conversion pass.

On the next SHS possession, the Bearkat punter couldn't handle the snap and UM freshman linebacker Kroy Bierrmann of Hardin recovered the ball for a touchdown, slicing the lead to 41-22. But Disney again missed tight end Willie walden on a two-point pass.

Disney stayed in the game and guided Montana to a final TD with 1:37 to play, hitting Tate Hancock on a 9-yard scoring pass. Carpenter's conversion narrowed the final gap to 12 points.

Hauck said Ochs appeared to suffer only a cramped calf muscle, and he's expected to play Sept. 25 at home against Northern Colorado, which lost at home against Idaho State on Saturday.

***


No. 1 bites the dust

By Jason Barfield, Huntsville Item

http://www.itemonline.com/articles/2004 ... orts01.txt

All the Bearkats were asking for was a chance to get Montana at home.

Saturday they got that opportunity and made the most of it against the No.
1-ranked team in the nation. Sam Houston State jumped up 20-0 on the Grizzlies and held on for a 41-29 victory at Bowers Stadium for the first-ever win over a top-ranked opponent in SHSU history.

"As I told the players in the lockerroom, I was just awfully proud of all of them," SHSU head coach Ron Randleman said. "This is one of those games they can enjoy individually and we can enjoy as a team. More than that, we can enjoy this as a university. That is a win for everybody."

The Bearkats combined an aerial assault with a strong running attack to rack up 512 yards of total offense against the Griz defense. Senior quarterback Dustin Long passed for 329 yards, but maybe the most telling number for the offense was the 183 yards they racked up on the ground, despite not having starting tailback Jason Godfrey.

"I think the rushing yardage was really big for us because we were able to wear them down a little bit, especially early," Randleman said. "It was hot for them and our offensive line was coming off the football and that was key. Our ability to move the football on the ground set the tone for this football game."

Stevie Smith, who filled in for Godfrey, never missed a beat. He capped the opening drive of the ballgame for the Bearkats with an 11-yard touchdown run, the first of two for Smith. He finished the night with 113 yards on 23 carries.

"I saw something in Stevie's eyes tonight before the ballgame that I have never seen before," Randleman said. "I said to myself 'This guy looks like he is ready to go,' and he looked good. He didn't look tentative tonight. He hit it up in there and I was proud of him."

A week after giving up a pair of scores in the final two minutes of the ballgame in a loss to Southwest Missouri State, it was the SHSU secondary that set the tone early in the game.

Montana took the opening kickoff and marched down the field to the SHSU 30-yard line. But senior quarterback Craig Ochs was intercepted in the end zone by Mark Hughes, one of nine players on the SHSU roster who were a part of both previous losses to the Grizzlies.

Hughes helped lead a defense that limited Ochs to just 198 yards on 18-of-31 passing.

"That is what we expected," Hughes said of the victory. "We worked hard all week long, and we knew if we came out and played four quarters of football we would come out on top.

"Our coaches had the perfect game plan for us coming in to this. All we had to do was execute and that is what we did. We had seen it all on film, and it was just a matter of us going out and doing what we were told to do."

Following Hughes' interception, the Kats marched 80 yards in 11 plays setting up Smith's first touchdown. The Kats were on the board again early in the second quarter on a 9-yard run by Robert Garmon. Once again, SHSU was able to put together a long drive, moving the ball 89 yards in 12 plays for the score.

Long and the Bearkats went to the air for the third score of the game. Long hit Vince Cartwright on a crossing route at the 10-yard line. The 6-foot-4 receiver then broke four tackles to get to the end zone for a 17-yard score and a 20-0 lead.

A late field goal by the Grizzlies cut the Kats' halftime advantage to 20-3.

The Kats got the ball to start the second half, and picked up right where they left off. Long completed his first four passes on the drive, three of them to Jarrod Fuller, quickly moving the ball to the Montana 19. On the fifth play, Fuller took a handoff from Long, sprinted to the left corner and turned it up the sideline for a 19-yard score.

"Anytime when you have a lead and you can come out and score on your opponent to start the third quarter, it is huge," Randleman said. "I think we had several plays tonight that played a big part in keeping the momentum in our favor."

Fuller's only score of the game was on the ground, but he did most of his damage on the Montana defense catching the ball. He led all receivers with 10 catches for 133 yards.

"We knew all we had to do was keep fighting, and if you keep punching they will finally go down," Fuller said. "It was like a heavyweight fight.
Sometimes they go down early and sometimes you have to go 12 rounds. Well tonight, this was a heavyweight fight that lasted 12 rounds and we came out on top."

Jason Mathenia also had a big game receiving for the Kats, grabbing five balls for 102 yards. No catch was bigger, though, than his diving grab in the end zone with 1:39 left to go to put SHSU up 34-10.

"Dustin made a great audible," Mathenia said about the touchdown catch. "He audibled to a deep pass like he did in the last game, and I made an out move and the cornerback bit on it. Then Dustin just threw a great pass. I knew I had it, you always know when you can get to a ball."

Long finished the night completing passes to seven different receivers, and unlike last week where he was intercepted four times, didn't toss a pick.

"Those guys are good," Long said about his receiving corps. "It just makes my job easier because I can just put the ball in the air and let those guys go get it. They can make plays, and if can hit them in running full speed they will make guys miss and score. The good thing about our offense is we have four or five guys that can do that."

With the Kats up 41-10 late in the game, Montana made the contest interesting. They first scored on a 69-yard touchdown from Ochs to Jefferson Heidelberger with 8:47 left to play in the game. Less than two minutes later, Kroy Biermann fell on a bad snap in the end zone that sailed over punter Curtis Parks' head. A touchdown pass with 1:37 to play cut the lead to 41-29, but Fuller snagged the onside kick from the Grizzlies and the Kats were able to run out the clock.

"I think Montana is a fine football team, and I would love to play them again later in the year," Randleman said. "I would love to play them here later in the year. We have been talking about wanting to get them here in our house and we were able to take advantage of that opportunity."

***


UP NEXT: Northern Colorado at Montana, September 25

---

Idaho State Snaps Bears Home Winning Streak in Double Overtime, 49-42

UNC drops to 1-2 on the season despite scoring a season-high 42 points.

http://uncbears.collegesports.com/sport ... 04aab.html

GREELEY, Colo. - After a tough loss last week to Maine, the University of Northern Colorado football team was edged out by the Idaho State Bengals, 49-42, in a thrilling double-overtime game that lasted four hours and five minutes.

The loss is just the sixth all-time for the Bears at Nottingham Field, and the first home loss since Sept. 29, 2001, when UNC fell to the University of Nebraska-Omaha, 29-27. The streak totaled 16 games.

Senior wide receiver Vincent Jackson, an NFL prospect, set a bundle of school milestones. His 127 yards receiving takes him to third all-time at Northern Colorado in receiving yards with 2,316. Jackson's 155 all-purpose yards, which brings his career total to 4,144 breaks the UNC record held previously by running back Adam Matthews.

Despite the defeat, junior quarterback Tony Christensen finished his day by going 19-of-35 passing for 245 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions.

Christensen yanked the monkey off his back from the very get go when he completed a 44-yard pass to Jackson, which brought the ball to the Idaho State 29-yard line. The snag was one of eight catches in the game for the preseason All-American Jackson, who previously had just four catches for 23 yards in UNC's first two games this season. His eight catches also brought him to sixth all-time at Northern Colorado on the career receptions list with 109.

The Bears were able to take the ball down to the ISU two-yard line, but the Bengals were able to stop sophomore tailback Andre Wilson at the three, bringing it to fourth down. Junior kicker Justin Zaitz stuck it between the uprights to give Northern Colorado a 3-0 lead with 12:12 remaining in the first quarter.

Idaho State (1-2 overall) looked to retaliate in their opening drive, but they were stopped short of the first down by junior safety Reed Doughty and junior linebacker Thomas Smith on fourth and two.

UNC (1-2, 1-0 Great West Football Conference) took advantage of the opportunity when Wilson punched the ball in the end zone from the ISU six-yard line. The touchdown was Northern Colorado's first of the season.
The score brought UNC's lead to 10-0.

In the Bengals' next possession, it looked like the Bears would stop them again when ISU was stuck in a corner on the 50-yard line with third and 29 to go. Idaho State was able to get a first down on a pass interference penalty by UNC. From there, the Bengals drove down to the Bears' six yard line and then scored on a pass by ISU senior quarterback Mark Hetherington.
Hetherington finished with 360 yards passing and four touchdowns.

Senior linebacker Wade Sumpter returned a Matt Hagler pass 71 yards to put UNC on top 17-7. Then redshirt freshman cornerback Aaron Henderson returned a Hetherington pass for an interception with 10:03 to go in the second half to give the Bears a 24-7 advantage.

The Bears came out of halftime with a 27-14 lead, and they were able to extend their lead to 34-14 with a Jackson touchdown catch. The catch by Jackson extended his UNC career touchdown record to 27.

Idaho State mounted a comeback by scoring three consecutive touchdowns that spanned from the end of the third quarter to the start of the fourth quarter. ISU's comeback gave them a 35-34 lead that stunned, but did not put an end to the Bears' hopes.

Northern Colorado clawed the Bengals back on their next drive when Christensen connected on a pass to senior wide receiver Jamar Farbes for 28 yards, bringing the ball to the Idaho State 33. Later in the drive, Farbes caught a fade pass for a touchdown that helped UNC regain the lead at 42-35 with 8:21 remaining in the fourth quarter after Christensen completed a pass to Wilson for a successful two-point conversion.

The Bengals made the game a nail biter when they were able to tie the game at 42 with 25 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter. ISU's 14-play, 95-yard drive was capped off with a touchdown pass by Hetherington. The game went to overtime, which was Northern Colorado's fifth all-time (3-2) and the first at Nottingham Field.

Both teams' scoring drives in the first overtime were unsuccessful, and the game went to double overtime. Idaho State took the possession from the 25-yard line and pounced into the end zone with a touchdown catch from Bengal sophomore wide receiver Akilah Lacey, who had two touchdown catches in the game. The touchdown and extra point gave ISU a 49-42 lead.

It looked as if the Bears would even the score when Farbes caught a pass at the ISU two-yard line, but Bengals' junior safety Marcell Lagrone forced a fumble that bounced into the end zone and was recovered by Idaho State. The recovery brought the game to a shocking end.

Farbes finished with five catches for 80 yards. Senior linebacker Ryan Palmer also had a big day on defense with 16 tackles, 11 of them solo.
Despite giving up 486 yards on defense, UNC was able to force four interceptions.

The Bears hope to rebound from the close defeat when they travel to Missoula, Mont. next Saturday, Sept. 25 to tackle the Montana Grizzlies in a battle of the bears. UNC, then NCAA Division II, last battled then No. 1 I-AA Montana in 2002 in an exciting, close game that saw Northern Colorado fall 31-14. The game audio will be available free on UNCBears.com.

***


UNC drops one

Sam Mustari, Greely Tribune

http://www.greeleytrib.com/apps/pbcs.dl ... /109190064


Four hours and 11 minutes was just enough time for the Idaho State
University football team to figure out what more than a dozen others have
failed to do at Nottingham Field in four years -- beat the

University of Northern Colorado Saturday afternoon in NCAA I-AA action.

It took two overtimes, but the Bengals stunned a crowd of 4,080 with a 49-42
victory, the Bears' first loss at home since losing to Nebraska-Omaha in
2001.

"That's not a big issue with me -- it's another football game," said UNC
head coach Kay Dalton, whose team drops to 1-2 with the loss. "I'm sure it
means a lot to the kids, and it should.

"If they're not disappointed, I certainly am."

The Bears' final chance at a victory slipped from the hands of wide receiver
Jamar Farbes as he headed for the end zone, but he was hit by ISU's Marcell
Lagrone, forcing a fumble which was recovered by Ernie James in the end
zone.

The Bengals (1-2) scored on a 9-yard pass from Mark Hetherington to Akilah
Lacey in the second overtime.

"I was extremely proud of the way our kids hung in there and kept fighting,"
ISU head coach Larry Lewis said.

Neither team scored in the first overtime period, but ISU tied the game with
25 seconds left in regulation when Lacey took in a 13-yard pass for a score,
completing a 14-play, 95-yard drive.

Farbes had scored on a 10-yard pass from Tony Christensen (19-for-35, 245
yards and two touchdowns) with 8:21 left in the fourth quarter to give the
Bears a 42-35 lead. It was the last time the Bears would score.

Christensen watched helplessly as Farbes appeared headed for the tying
touchdown in the second overtime.

"Sometimes a receiver gets in a position that when he gets hit, the ball can
pop out," Christensen said. "That's what happened."

UNC was a scoring machine in the first half, putting up touchdowns by Andre
Wilson (6-yard run) and on interception returns by Wade Sumpter (71 yards)
and Aaron Henderson (13 yards).

The marathon contest featured enough special plays to fill a highlight reel,
but it was special teams play that had Dalton upset.

"We gave up 17 points on special teams," Dalton said.

Idaho State scored 21 points in the fourth period, including a 20-yard
blocked punt return by James and a 39-yard punt return by Kenyon Blue, who
wisely picked up a punt that had rolled dead and went untouched into the end
zone.

"There's no excuse for that," Dalton said. "Our kids know they have to go
and down a punt. It was punt, not a great punt, but you have to go down the
ball."

The Bears' defense didn't shut down the Bengals after the first quarter,
giving up two second-quarter touchdowns to Sale' Key on receptions of 6 and
13 yards.

UNC's other second-half touchdown came via an 18-yard pass from Christensen
to All-American wide receiver Vincent Jackson (8 catches, 127 yards), which
gave them a 34-14 lead.

The Bengals then scored three touchdowns in just 3:34 to trail by six
points.

"But we haven't lost here in a long time," Jackson said. "It's still a long
season, and it's not going to get any easier."

Jackson had an 85-yard punt return for a score in the fourth quarter called
back when an official declared he stepped out of bounds at the UNC 43.

"I know I was in," Jackson said. "Our defensive coordinator also said an
official told him that he guessed I had stepped out, and that's what he saw
from the angle he had."

The Bears also had a 29-yard field goal by Justin Zaitz in the third quarter
nullified after being called for an illegal formation. Zaitz then missed
from 34 yards.

"We showed some improvement on offense," said Dalton, whose team had 446
total yards and looked like it was headed for a third overtime.

"I thought he (Farbes) was going in," Dalton said. "It was a well executed
play. All he had to do was catch it, which he did, and get to the end zone.

"But if we get to keep our field goal that we made, we win too. I'm saying
that our two blocked punts (actually one) and the field goal that we
actually made -- that's what got us beat. A loss of this nature is
disappointing."

***


UMaine springs big upset

By JENN MENENDEZ, Portland Press Herald

http://sports.mainetoday.com/college/fo ... game.shtml

STARKVILLE, Miss. -- Can you believe it? In perhaps the program's greatest
upset, the University of Maine football team stunned Division I-A
Mississippi State 9-7 on a last-quarter drive amid the deafening noise of a
cheering partisan crowd.

Maine's John Baumgartner forced a fumble that rolled out of the end zone for
a touchback, setting up the winning 80-yard drive. Quarterback Ron Whitcomb
connected on a 17-yard pass to a diving Kevin McMahan for the winning score
with 2:55 remaining to give the Division I-AA Black Bears their first win
against a I-A team.

"It was disbelief," said Whitcomb. "It was the greatest feeling I've had as
a player, to throw a ball that's so meaningful.

"I wasn't expecting that play (to be called from the sideline). When I heard
it, a smile came across my face."

Maine, playing in front of 43,486 rabid, cowbell-ringing fans, had dodged
several bullets earlier in the game, twice turning Mississippi State away
inside the Black Bears' 20-yard line.

Maine trailed 7-0 at halftime but pulled within 7-3 in the third quarter on
a 31-yard field goal by Mike Mellow.

The Black Bears were outgained 374-226 overall, including a 250-124 passing
advantage. But they kept hanging in.

"I just told them I'm so darn proud of them. We had big performances from a
lot of people," said Coach Jack Cosgrove. "This had a playoff feel to it.
It's a special night . . ."

A half-dozen Maine players with cell phones streamed out of the locker room
after the game. "Ask me where Maine is now," one shouted from inside the
locker room.

"I've got to call my wife," said offensive line coordinator John Strollo.
"She won't believe this."

Maine opened the game with a nine-play, 38-yard drive, getting two first
downs and reaching the Bulldogs' 42-yard line before Mellow punted to the
14.

Mississippi State scored on its second possession. After getting to the
Maine 18 with 49 yards on six running plays, Omarr Conner completed an
18-yard touchdown pass to Eric Butler on third-and-12. Keith Andrews' PAT
kick made it 7-0.

The Bulldogs threatened again on their next possession, staying on the
ground and getting four first downs before facing a third-and-goal. Conner
rolled back to pass, but was sacked by Brandon McGowan and Jermaine Walker.

The Bulldogs' field-goal attempt sailed wide to the left, and Maine took
over on the 20.

After two rushes lost 5 yards, Whitcomb tried to go long, but his pass was
intercepted by Jeramie Johnson, who returned it to the Maine 11.

The Bulldogs gained 3 yards before Conner found Butler inside the 5, but
Agean Robinson forced Butler to fumble and recovered the ball himself at the
4.

But after a short gain by Marcus Williams, the Bulldogs held and Maine was
forced to punt at its 5.

Mississippi rushed for 36 yards on four plays, reaching Maine's 15.

On third-and-9, Baumgartner intercepted a pass at the 2 to stop yet another
Mississippi State threat.

"That really saved us," said Cosgrove. "We were happy to go into the second
half down 7-0."

Maine got on the board in the third quarter. McMahan returned a punt to the
Maine 47. Whitcomb connected with Gordon for a gain of 9 yards before
Williams broke two tackles on a 24-yard run down the left flank, getting
Maine to the Mississippi State 21.

Maine moved inside the 10 and had two attempts at third-and-7 because of
offsetting penalties before Mellow's 31-yarder on fourth-and-3 from the left
hash mark.

NOTES: Maine was escorted by state troopers from the airport in Columbus,
Miss., to the team hotel in two buses, bypassing stop signs and traffic
lights. . . . It appeared to be mandatory to wear maroon on game day in
Starkville. From the early-morning hours, Mississippi State faithful were
covered in maroon T-shirts or button-downs, nylon V-neck pullovers and tank
tops. Women wore golden broaches on their sweaters or pins on their collars.
Girls wore miniature cheerleading costumes, and boys wore replica jerseys. .
. . There are upwards of 60 parking lots or grassy knolls for tailgating
prior to games at Mississippi State. Starting Friday night, giant smokers
and barbecues dotted the campus in preparation for the festivities Saturday
morning.


*** ***


I-AA Review: Week Three

David Coulson, I-AA.org

http://www.i-aa.org/article.asp?articleid=60728



The Curse Of The First

Just call it the curse of the first. For the third straight week in I-AA
football, the No. 1 ranked team in the country lost.

In week one, it was defending national champion Delaware going down to New
Hampshire, 24-21.

Last week, Southern Illinois had a two-point conversion pass dropped in a
23-22 loss to I-A Northern Illinois.

And this Saturday it was Montana's turn to feel the pain.

While the losses by Delaware and Southern Illinois could be somewhat
explained, it's doubtful that many folks outside of Huntsville, Texas would
have predicted Sam Houston State's dismantling of the mighty Grizzlies.

New Hampshire was much improved and was one of the hottest teams in the
Atlantic 10 at the end of last season, winning three of its last four games.
And Delaware had some big questions on offense after the I-AA.org national
offensive player of the year, quarterback Andy Hall matriculated.

And Southern Illinois gave everything it had in falling one play short
against a I-A school that had been ranked in the Associated Press top 25
last season.

Montana, on the other hand, was coming off a pair of impressive home wins
over two A-10 squads, Maine and Hofstra.

Sam Houston State came into the game flying under the radar. The Bearkats
were just 3-8 last season after playing with 20 freshmen and 10 sophomores
on their two-deep depth chart.

Of course, the Bearkats do have the wisdom of Ron Randleman, who is
208-163-6 in 35 years as a head coach. And SHSU also features seven
preseason All-Southland Conference players.

But it wasn't simply that the Bearkats won, it was how they won. Sam Houston
State built a 41-10 lead early in the fourth quarter before Montana closed
the final margin to 41-29 in what was basically garbage time.

Dustin Long hit 26-of-33 passes for 329 yards and two TDs and Stevie Smith
rushed 23 times for 113 yards and two more scores for the Bearkats.

Remember The Maine

There was no doubt heading into the 2004 season that Maine was one of the
most talented teams in I-AA. The bigger question for the Black Bears was
whether they would be able to withstand a brutal early schedule before
embarking on the typically tough A-10 campaign.

After Saturday's 9-7 victory on the road over Southeastern Conference
opponent Mississippi State, consider that inquest a success.

Maine's aggressive defense allowed an early touchdown to the Bulldogs and
then shut MSU down the rest of the way, keeping the Black Bears in the game
until its offense could wear down the opponent. Three turnovers deep in
Maine territory killed MSU's hopes.

A 17-yard pass from Ron Whitcomb to Kevin McMahan with 2:55 left put Maine
in front.

The Black Bears traveled across country to play Montana in their season
opener, dropping a tough 27-20 decision that many observers thought could
have easily gone the other way.

Maine rebounded with a 49-0 crushing of then-ranked Northern Colorado last
week at home and completed the challenge with a I-A win.

The Black Bears get a well deserved rest next week before starting A-10 play
at Delaware on Oct. 2.

Target Practice

Wofford probably knew it would have a big target on its chest when it won
the Southern Conference title and advanced to the I-AA semifinals last
season. Such is the problem when you go from underdogs to champions.

But the No. 3 ranked Terriers learned just how big that target was Saturday
night when they paid a visit to Statesboro, Ga. After losing two straight
years to Wofford, Georgia Southern was looking for some revenge and exacted
it early and often on the way to a 58-14 victory.

The No. 8 Eagles steamrolled to a 17-0 lead in the first quarter and led
38-0 by the half.

What was surprising was how Georgia Southern sliced the Terriers apart. GSU
quarterback Chaz Williams, usually one of the most scatter-armed passers in
I-AA, completed a sprintout pass on the first play from scrimmage and then
fired two touchdown passes to Teddy Craft in the first period.

Once Williams had established the pass against the suspect Wofford
secondary, the speedier Eagles were able to run roughshod over the rest of
the Terrier defense.

Williams was 6-of-8 for 158 yards passing on a night where GSU piled up 501
yards of total offense -- 313 yards on the ground. Brandon Andrews, starting
at fullback in place of an injured Jermaine Austin (ankle sprain), rushed 10
times for 113 yards.

A year ago, Wofford turned a season-opening 49-0 loss at Air Force into the
catalyst for the rest of its sparkling campaign. The Terriers rededicated
themselves and won 12 straight games before losing 24-9 to eventual national
champion Delaware.

This time the task might be more difficult.

The Terriers haven't found an adequate replacement for free safety Matt
Nelson, the Southern Conference defensive player of the year in 2003.

And if you are getting burned by an option-oriented Georgia Southern team,
it doesn't bode well for the future against powerful passing squads like
Furman, Appalachian State and Western Carolina.

The Terriers struggled to beat a South Carolina State squad last week that
is picked to finish in the middle of the pack in the MEAC. Wofford needed a
defensive stop on a two-point conversion pass late in the game to hang on
for a 24-22 victory.

The Terriers get a break with a game against Johnson C. Smith -- the squad
Georgia Southern beat 84-3 the previous week -- next Saturday and then face
SoCon bottom feeders Chattanooga and Elon before beginning the meat of their
schedule.

Georgia Southern, meanwhile, appears to have regained its championship
swagger. The Eagles played surprisingly well against Georgia in their season
opener and have crushed Johnson C. Smith and Wofford by a combined 142-17
score.

That should make for some interesting games in the SoCon when the Eagles
host No. 20 Appalachian State on Oct. 16 and travel to Furman on Nov. 6.

The Mighty Have Fallen

It was a day of surprises in I-AA, with eight members of the top 25 falling.

Besides the losses for No. 1 Montana and No. 3 Wofford, No. 5 Villanova fell
17-0 at home to James Madison, No. 7 Northern Iowa dropped a 24-21 decision
at home to No. 13 Stephen F. Austin, No. 9 Massachusetts lost to Richmond
24-14, No. 10 New Hampshire crashed against William & Mary 9-7, No. 14
Montana State stumbled 27-14 at home to No. 22 Cal Poly and No. 16 Western
Illinois was shocked 40-20 on the road by Hampton.

Three different ranked A-10 teams not only lost, but lost at home in their
conference openers. And you think the A-10 race has been wild in the past?

In New Hampshire's case, the Wildcats had beaten No. 1 ranked Delaware and
I-A Rutgers on the road for back-to-back upsets before losing at home.

Ricky Santos, the freshman quarterback who had won several national player
of the week awards last week, led the Wildcats to a first-quarter touchdown
before the offense was blanked the rest of the way. Santos was 12-of-21 for
just 103 yards passing.

William & Mary had blown a fourth-quarter lead to lose 49-38 to I-A North
Carolina in its opener two weeks ago, but used the extra preparation time of
an off-week to great effect against UNH.

Villanova had struggled offensively in two wins, but couldn't overcome
minus-two rushing yardage and 91 yards of total offense against JMU.

Villanova made a change at quarterback, with last season's starter Joe
Casamento back in the saddle, but Casamento struggled to a 7-of-18 afternoon
for 53 yards and two interceptions before being replaced.

Marvin Burroughs, who had started the first two games for the Wildcats this
season, wasn't much better, hitting just 4-of-11 passes for 40 yards.

UMass jumped out to a 14-7 lead after one quarter, but failed to score again
on a rain-soaked day. Richmond quarterback Stacy Tutt controlled the ball
for the Spiders, rushing 18 times for 117 yards and a 41-yard TD and passing
for 132 yards and two more scores.

In one of the best games of the day, Stephen F. Austin established its
playoff credentials with a narrow win at the loud UNI Dome as quarterback
Michael Williams came back from last week's thumb injury to complete
17-of-24 passes for 225 yards and two TDs.

Williams also rushed 17 times for 56 yards and the SFA defense limited the
Panthers' strong running attack to just 77 yards.

Cal Poly scored its second win over a Big Sky Conference team this season as
its option attack piled up 377 yards of total offense. The Mustangs had
beaten Idaho State last week.

Montana State quarterback Travis Lulay was only 17-of-38 for 162 yards and
two interceptions.

A week removed from an embarrassing 98-7 victory over out-manned Cheyney,
Western Illinois's defense was torched by Hampton.

A 99-yard kickoff return and a 60-yard TD reception by Jerome Mathis sparked
the Pirates, who scored 33 straight points after falling behind 3-0 late in
the first quarter.