Grizzlies relying on hustle, toughness
Montana coach Bobby Hauck always likes to stress that his players need to play hard and with emotion.
No play typified that mantra more than Jon Talmage's 50-yard reception in the second quarter Saturday, setting up the Grizzlies' first touchdown.
On second-and-12, Craig Ochs dropped back to pass. Finding no one open, he started to move up in the pocket, looking like he was ready to run. Then Talmage, who was running left-to-right, curled back to the left and Ochs dumped off a short pass.
Talmage turned upfield with some running room, but what made the play was running back Justin Green, who had been in the left flat, sprinting hard down the left sideline to run interference for Talmage and make a downfield block.
It was Green's hustle that turned what would have maybe been a 20-yard gain into a 50-yard pickup.
"Our effort and physicalness is what's carrying us right now," Hauck said Tuesday.
"That's what we do," he said of Green's play.
"That's what every guy does at every position. That's what every guy should do on every play."
- FORTUNATE SEATING ASSIGNMENT: Sitting next to the Big Sky Conference observer, you can learn some interesting tidbits about officials, rules and protocol.
For instance, the widely held belief - by fans, newspaper reporters and broadcasters - that a quarter, half or game can't end only on a defensive penalty is not entirely accurate (at least in college).
This came to light at the end of the game Saturday when Northern Colorado scored a touchdown as time expired, but got flagged for offensive pass interference (which appeared to be a bad call anyway).
Reporters in the press box (and on TV) assumed the game was over, but officials marked off 15 yards and one untimed down was played.
The conference observer explained that a game can't end on an accepted penalty, defensive, offensive or special teams. Montana could have declined the penalty and given UNC the points, but did not.
The misconception comes from the fact that the rule usually only comes into play when the trailing team is on offense late in the game. In that scenario, the offense would almost always accept a penalty on the defense (thus extending the game) while the defense would decline a flag on the offense (thus ending the game).
Saturday was one of those strange circumstances that didn't fit the norm, and the actual rule was revealed.
- PUNCH, COUNTER-PUNCH: One of the reasons Montana was victorious Saturday despite allowing over 500 yards of offense was its ability to answer each Northern Colorado score with one of its own.
UNC kicked a field goal, the Griz scored a touchdown on the next drive. The Bears scored a touchdown near the end of the first half, UM scored on the first drive of the second half.
Northern Colorado found the end zone in the third, the Grizzlies responded in kind on the next possession. A fourth-quarter field goal by UNC was answered with a touchdown … yes, on the next drive.