 |
GRIZ RADIO: Veteran Mick Holien calls the play-by-play for his 19th season in a row in 2011. Former Griz receiver Scott Gurnsey and Greg Sundberg will provide in-booth color. The 2011 Grizzly Football Network is listed on add 12 of the weekly release.
TV: There is no television coverage of the game. It is available only on ESPN3, the internet platform for ESPN. Ryan Rose calls the play-by-play and Adam Archuleta provides color commentary.
GRIZ IN THE PLAYOFFS: This is Montana’s 21st appearance in the FCS (Division I-AA) playoffs, and 18th in the last 19 seasons. The Griz have a 30-18 record in the playoffs and are 27-6 at home; 2-8 on the road, and 1-4 at neutral sites. Montana is 17-1 in the playoff games at home in December.
SECOND ROUND FCS GAMES (Saturday, Dec., 3/All Times Mountain):
Stony Brook (9-3) at Sam Houston St. (11-0), 1: p.m.
New Hampshire (8-3) at Montana St. (9-2), 1:00 p.m.
Wofford (8-3) at Northern Iowa (9-2), 3:00 p.m.
Old Dominion (10-2) at Georgia Southern (9-2), 11:00 am
Maine (8-3) at Appalachian State (8-3), Noon
Lehigh (10-1) at Towson (9-2), 1:30 p.m.
James Madison (8-4) at N. Dakota St. (10-1), 2:00 p.m.
Central Arkansas (9-3) at Montana (9-2), Noon
NOTE: A 2011 NCAA playoff bracket is attached on last page of this release
NEXT?: If the Griz win this Saturday they would host the winner of the Wofford at Northern Iowa game on either Friday or Saturday, Dec. 9-10 at a time to be determined.
LAST GAME (Nov. 19) : Montana 36, at Montana State 10: The seventh-ranked Grizzlies had two players rush for more than 100 yards, and the defense stymied MSU’s potent offense en route to its seventh straight won. It was the 111th Griz-Cat game, and the 70th Montana victory in the storied rivalry. Montana has won 22 of the past 26 games, and leads the series 70-36-5.
LEAGUE CHAMPS: Montana’s victory at MSU gave the Grizzlies the Big Sky’s regular-season championship and the automatic berth into the FCS playoffs that comes along with that title.
HEAVY ON THE DEFENSE & GROUND GAME: The Grizzly defense held MSU’s offense, which had averaged 459 yards and 36.6 points going into the game and was ranked fifth in the nation in both categories, to 250 total yards, 13 first downs, and 10 points. UM rushed 47 times for 309 yards and two scores in the MSU win. Griz junior running backs Peter Nguyen and Dan Moore rushed for 123 and 116 yards, respectively.
MCKNIGHT SETS CONSECUTIVE FG RECORD: With his two field goals at MSU, McKnight has now made 14 in a row, breaking the record of 13 set by Dan Carpenter in 2005.
MCSURDY NAMED BIG SKY’S DEFENSIVE POY: A 6-1, 252-pounder from Boise, Idaho, McSurdy, who leads the Griz with 114 tackles, was named the Big Sky’s “Defensive Player of the Year.” He averages 10.36 tackles per game, which ranks him 24th (tie) in the nation. McSurdy is the Grizzlies’ defensive captain this season. Montana’s list of 2011 Big Sky selections is on add 12.
COACH PFLUGRAD RECOGNIZED: Montana head football coach Robin Pflugrad was chosen by his fellow league coaches as the 2011 Big Sky Conference Coach of the Year, the conference announced recently. Pflugrad is also one of 20 finalists for the 25th Eddie Robinson Award, which honors the national coach of the year in the Football Championship Subdivision.
26 WINNING SEASONS IN A ROW: The victory at Northern Arizona on October 22nd was Montana’s sixth of the season -- giving the Griz their 26th straight winning season (since 1986).
BEARS’ LAST GAME: UCA senior quarterback Nathan Dick, a 6-4, 222-pound transfer from Arkansas, passed for 319 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for another as the Bears defeated host Tennessee Tech 34-14 in a first round game last Saturday (Nov. 26).
ABOUT THE BEARS: UCA finished second in the Southland Conference with a 6-1 record, and its only league loss (31-10) was on the road to No. 1 seed and top-ranked Sam Houston State (11-0). The Bears’ other two losses were 53-24 at Arkansas State, the Sun Belt champion, and 48-42 (OT at Louisiana Tech, the Western Athletic Champion). The three teams UCA lost to have a combined record of 27-6 overall and 19-1 in their respective conferences. With their playoff win the Bears have now won eight games in a row. (UM-UCA national stat ranking comparison on add 6 of the weekly release).
THE SERIES: This is the first meeting between the teams.
No comments:
Post a Comment