The Montana Grizzlies and Northern Arizona Lumberjacks meet today

by ANDREW HINKELMAN The Daily Inter Lake
| November 6, 2004 1:00 AM

The Montana Grizzlies and Northern Arizona Lumberjacks meet today trying to bounce back from equally stinging but very different defeats.

The Griz had a plethora of problems offensively and on special teams in the first half at Portland State, but still were in the game to the end, eventually losing by a field goal after a late rally

The Lumberjacks had even more problems in every phase of the game versus Montana State and trailed 53-0 at the half.

"We put a similar beating on them a year ago (59-21) and they rallied and won three or four straight," UM coach Bobby Hauck said Tuesday. "And that included a win over No. 1-ranked McNeese State in the playoffs. I expect them to rally."

NAU certainly has the weapons to rebound. Quarterback Jason Murrietta and running back Roger Robinson had had much success going into last week's debacle.

"They've got a guy I consider to be the top offensive player in the conference in Roger Robinson," Hauck said. "They've got plenty of tools to get it done.

"We need to stop Roger Robinson. Eastern Washington did a great job of that, and we need to model ourselves after them a little bit."

The Grizzlies (and their fans) should not expect another offensive bonanza like Montana State experienced last week. What happened in Flagstaff was a fluke, and the NAU defense is not nearly that bad.

"They gave up points everywhere, not just on defense," Hauck said. "Their defense didn't play as well as they would have liked, but they gave up points everywhere."

For Montana, the key will not to defeat itself. The Griz had two turnovers and two punts of less than 10 yards in the first half, digging themselves a hole they would not climb out of.

"We need to run our offense," Hauck said. "We have the tools to be successful. We just need to do what we do."

Kickoff from Washington Grizzly Stadium - the first of three straight home games to close out the regular season - is scheduled for noon. The game can be seen locally on KAJ-TV, cable channel 8, over the air on channel 18.