No. 2/3 Montana pulls away from the Sycamores on Saturday afternoon, 49-14

By Press release submission

Sep 23, 2022

Montana pulled away from Indiana State in the second half as the Sycamores were unable to keep pace in falling to the No. 2/3 Grizzlies at Memorial Stadium on Saturday afternoon, 42-14.

The Sycamores (1-2) kept the game close throughout the first half thanks to a strong ground game paced by Justin Dinka's 96 rushing yards at the break. The redshirt sophomore added a career-best 54-yard rushing touchdown on the Sycamores' second drive to tie the game up at 7-7.

Montana (3-0) was able to bottle up the Indiana State run game in the second half and quarterback Lucas Johnson accounted for four touchdowns (three passing, one rushing) in leading a relentless Grizzly offense. Montana finished with 406 yards of total offense, 336 through the air, in the win.

Dinka paced the Indiana State offense on the game as the Flower Mound, Texas native posted career-highs in both carries (20) and yards (87) in the loss. Dawson Basinger added eight carries for 25 yards in his first extended action of the fall.

Gavin Screws went 11-for-22 through the air for 115 yards in the Sycamore loss. His favorite targets on the afternoon included Dante Hendrix (3 catches, 36 yards), Harry Van Dyne (3 catches, 27 yards), and Kevin Barnett (3 catches, 20 yards).

Five different Sycamores finished with five tackles in the game to highlight a complete team effort on the defensive side of the ball. Johnathan Edwards led the way with five solo stops and a pass breakup, while Michael Lufile and Micah Hauser both added a career-high five tackles. Maddix Blackwell added a sack and a forced fumble that led to a 15-yard scoop-and-score from Lucas Hunter.

Johnson paced a Montana offense that took to the air early and often in the win. The quarterback went 18-for-30 for 232 yards and a trio of touchdowns to Cole Grossman, Keelan White, and Ryan Simpson. Aaron Fontes led the way with eight catches for 93 yards to pace nine different Griz receivers that recorded a catch.

Robby Hauck led all players on the day with 11 tackles and added a pass breakup in the win. Linebacker Patrick O'Connell added nine tackles, 2.5 sacks, and 3.0 tackles for loss, as well as a forced fumble that led directly to Montana's first points in the game.

How They Scored

A strip sack from Montana's Patrick O'Connell results in a Grizzlies touchdown as Kale Edwards scooped up the loose ball at the Indiana State 48 and took it into the end zone at the 11:05 mark to give Montana the early 7-0 lead.
The Sycamores answered on the ensuing drive as Justin Dinka took the handoff and went untouched through the right side of the line for the 54-yard touchdown run at the 10:51 mark to tie the game up at 7-7.
Montana dove into their playbook to retake the lead at the 8:13 mark in the first quarter as Junior Bergen took the backwards pass and found Malik Flowers for the 27-yard touchdown pass to cap a 6-play, 75-yard drive highlighted by a 26-yard completion from Lucas Johnson to Mitch Roberts on 3rd-and-16.
Montana added to their lead with 3:11 left in the first half as Johnson found Cole Grossman for the 18-yard touchdown pass down the left sideline to cap an 11-play, 89-yard drive.
The Grizzlies scored on their first drive of the second half as Johnson found Keelan White over the middle of the field for the eight-yard touchdown pass to put Montana up 28-7 with 12:50 remaining in the third quarter.
Johnson called his own number on the one-yard quarterback keeper to put Montana ahead 35-7 with 9:43 to play in the third. The keeper capped a 7-play, 49-yard drive.
Johnson posted his third touchdown pass of the contest with an 11-yard pass to Ryan Simpson to put Montana up 42-7 with 14:55 remaining in the fourth quarter to cap a 12-play, 52-yard drive.
Maddix Blackwell came through the backfield on the blitz and stripped Montana QB Kris Brown right to Lucas Hunter and the Sycamore defensive lineman rumbled for the 15-yard scoop-and-score to cut the Montana lead down to 42-14 with 8:33 to play in the contest.
Montana's Colter Janacaro scored on the two-yard touchdown plunge with 1:36 remaining in the fourth quarter to cap the scoring at 49-14.

Inside the Numbers

Indiana State finished the contest with 219 total offensive yards in the game, including 101 rushing yards.
The Sycamores posted 14 first downs and went 5-of-18 on third down conversions
Indiana State won the time of possession battle holding onto the ball for 31:09 to 28:51 in the contest.
Both teams scored on a fumble return in the contest.
Montana finished the game with 406 total offensive yards, including 336 passing yards.
The Grizzlies posted 28 total first downs in the game and held onto the ball for 18:17 in the second half.

News & Notes

Indiana State running back Justin Dinka set career-highs in rushing attempts (20) and rushing yards (87), while scoring his first collegiate touchdown with the Sycamores in Saturday's contest.
Redshirt senior wide receiver Dante Hendrix added to his catch streak with three catches for 36 yards. The streak extended to 29 consecutive games with a grab dating back to the 2018 season.
Gianini Belizaire and Maddix Blackwell both recorded sacks in the game giving Indiana State 10.0 sacks at home in the 2022 season. Blackwell's sack was the first of his career.
Lucas Hunter scored his first touchdown at Indiana State as the junior scooped and scored on the 15-yard fumble recovery in the fourth quarter. It was ISU's first defensive touchdown of the season and first since Hunter Lunsford scored on a five-yard recovery against Eastern Kentucky back on Sept. 18, 2021.
Kale Edwards' 20-yard fumble recovery for a score was the first time Indiana State had allowed a fumble recovery for a touchdown since 2012 when Western Illinois' David McDaniel recovered the ball in the end zone in ISU's 23-7 win over the Leathernecks.
Anthony Beacom connected on a season-best 65-yard punt in the fourth quarter. It marked Indiana State's longest punt since October 21, 2017 when Thomas Bouldin connected on a 90-yard attempt against Southern Illinois.
The Sycamores fall to 0-1 all-time against the Big Sky Conference in their first foray into the MVFC-Big Sky Challenge.