Montana Grizzlies return to FCS semifinals with win over Furman

Grizzlies' Junior Bergen (5) celebrates after a 35-28 overtime win over Furman in an FCS Playoff game at Washington-Grizzly Stadium on Friday, Dec. 8. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
Casey Kreider

Grizzlies wide receiver Keelan White (6) catches the game-winning 13-yard touchdown reception in overtime of an FCS Playoff game against Furman at Washington-Grizzly Stadium on Friday, Dec. 8. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
Casey Kreider

Grizzlies kick returner Junior Bergen (5) takes the opening kickoff 99-yards for a touchdown in an FCS Playoff game against Furman at Washington-Grizzly Stadium on Friday, Dec. 8. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
Casey Kreider

Grizzlies cornerback Trevin Gradney (27) knocks down a fourth-down pass attempt to Furman wide receiver Kyndel Dean (11) in overtime of an FCS Playoff game against Furman at Washington-Grizzly Stadium on Friday, Dec. 8. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
Casey Kreider

Grizzlies quarterback Clifton McDowell (17) scores a touchdown on an 8-yard run in the first quarter of an FCS Playoff game against Furman at Washington-Grizzly Stadium on Friday, Dec. 8. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
Casey Kreider

Grizzlies defensive end Kale Edwards (0) sacks Furman quarterback Tyler Huff (6) in the first quarter of an FCS Playoff game at Washington-Grizzly Stadium on Friday, Dec. 8. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
Casey Kreider

Grizzlies wide receiver Junior Bergen (5) picks up yardage on a 9-yard reception in the first quarter of an FCS Playoff game against Furman at Washington-Grizzly Stadium on Friday, Dec. 8. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
Casey Kreider

Grizzlies defenders TraJon Cotton (3), Trevin Gradney and Braxton Hill (35) celebrate after Cotton's interception in the fourth quarter of an FCS Playoff game against Furman at Washington-Grizzly Stadium on Friday, Dec. 8. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
Casey Kreider

Grizzlies safety TraJon Cotton (3) points to a sign in the stands after a 35-28 overtime win over Furman in an FCS Playoff game against Furman at Washington-Grizzly Stadium on Friday, Dec. 8. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
Casey Kreider

Grizzlies linebacker Riley Wilson (42) sacks Furman quarterback Tyler Huff (6) in the second quarter of an FCS Playoff game against Furman at Washington-Grizzly Stadium on Friday, Dec. 8. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
Casey Kreider

Grizzlies quarterback Clifton McDowell (17) completes a 9-yard pass to wide receiver Junior Bergen in the first quarter of an FCS Playoff game against Furman at Washington-Grizzly Stadium on Friday, Dec. 8. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
Casey Kreider

Fireworks explode over Washington-Grizzly Stadium before the start of the Montana Grizzlies FCS playoff matchup with the Furman Paladins on Friday, Dec. 8. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
Casey Kreider

by FRITZ NEIGHBOR
Daily Inter Lake | December 9, 2023 8:59 AM

MISSOULA — To get to their first semifinal home game in 14 seasons, Montana needed Junior Bergen to do something no Griz had done in 21.

There were other big plays made in the Grizzlies’ 35-28 overtime win over Furman Friday at Washington-Grizzly Stadium, including Clifton McDowell’s 13-yard dart to Keelan White for the winning touchdown.

But without Bergen’s 99-yard kickoff return and 59-yard punt return for scores — he now has four punt return TDs, a school record — then McDowell and White don’t get a chance to hook up, and the Griz defense doesn’t get to make a final stand.

“Sometimes games don’t go as smoothly as you like,” Montana coach Bobby Hauck said after his team improved to 12-1 and earned another home playoff game (they’ll find out the opponent, date and time Saturday). “We haven’t had a close game for quite a long time and it was probably good for us to be in a game like that.

“I would say this as well: Good teams find a way to win, but great teams find a way to win when they don’t have their A game and aren’t playing their best. … That is a championship effort by the Montana Grizzlies.”

McDowell was a difference-maker as well, rushing for 118 yards and throwing for 208 against a stalwart Furman defense. His 40-yard burst after a short Furman punt set up his own 8-yard touchdown run for a 14-7 lead.

That was part of a frenetic first quarter that saw the Paladins (10-3) answer Montana’s first two touchdowns with ones of their own, each in less than 90 seconds. McDowell scored at the 6:44 mark; Furman quarterback Tyler Huff tore off a 53-yard touchdown run at 5:21.

Bergen’s first touchdown came on the opening kickoff — working a new return scheme installed Wednesday — and three snaps later Huff hit Colton Hinton for a 70-yard catch and run. That led to Dominic Roberto’s 1-yard run at 13:22 of the first quarter.

The last 50 or so minutes of the game, then, were mostly defense. The teams combined for 21 punts. Montana kept better field position, but after Nico Ramos hit two second-quarter field goals to put the Griz up 20-14, he missed one in the second quarter and another in the third.

In between, Furman’s Micah Robinson picked off a McDowell pass and returned it 34 yards to Montana’s 19. Soon Roberto had his second 1-yard scoring run, and the Paladins led 21-20.

It was a worst-case scenario for the Grizzlies, who saw Jerry Rice Award winner Eli Gillman held to 2 yards on 10 carries.

Momentum came back to UM after Travis Benham pinned Furman at its 3-yard line with a punt, with 11:22 left in the game. Four plays later it was Paladin Ryan Leavy’s turn and he got off a boomer out of his own end zone that chased Bergan back to his 41.

The junior fielded it, darted left and found the left sideline walled off. He matched Jefferson Heidelberger’s punt-kickoff tandem on Nov. 30, 2002, in a 45-14 playoff win over Northwestern State..

“It’s certainly disappointing,” Furman coach Clay Hendrix said. “We’d been so good on special teams. To give up two returns… those were just really huge, huge plays in the game. It’s hard to win a game when you do that.”

McDowell then hit Sawyer Racanelli with a 2-point PAT pass to make it 28-21 with 9:40 left. It wasn’t over, of course. Furman’s next three possessions ended: punt, interception by TraJon Cotton and, incredibly, game-tying touchdown with 13 seconds left.

Huff repeatedly went to giant tight end Mason Pline on a 57-yard drive, ending with a fourth-down, 13-yard, heavily rushed throw that the 6-foot-7 senior hauled down in the back of the end zone.

Huff ran for 71 yards and finished 16 of 47 passing for 188 yards, including three incompletions in OT.

“Probably not the best night he’s had all season,” Hauck said. “And I think that’s probably our defense causing a lot of that. Even though he wasn’t having much success you know he made a couple throws there at the end. … On the fourth-and-10 he threw it up to the right guy, and the guy made the play.”

The Paladins were out of jousts. Their defense wilted in overtime, and their OT possession started with a 5-yard loss, Montana’s Alex Gubner blowing up an end-around to Ben Ferguson. Eventually it ended, sending some 20,000 Griz fans home happy.

“I thought we handled the environment,” Hendrix said. “I knew we could go toe-to-toe with them. Not many people expected us to do that. They just made one play more than we did.”

“It’s a little different when you have a 10-year-old kid calling you fat for four quarters,” cracked Matt Sochovka, Furman’s 296-pound D-tackle. “It was definitely a cool environment. Wish we could have got it done, but it was an awesome experience.”

QUICK KICKS: Montana was penalized seven times for 90 yards and Furman had three flags, all false starts. One negated a failed two-point PAT attempt after Pline’s TD, and the Paladins then kicked the point-after. … Linebacker Braxton Hill had a team-high 10 tackles. … Eureka’s Garrett Graves had five stops. … Glacier High product Henry Nuce, who had to have a pectoral muscle repaired in August, had a sack among his three tackles. … Three Griz have three career punt return TDs: Jerry Louie-McGee (2016-19), Marc Mariani (2006-09) and Levander Segars (2001-04). … UM will play the winner of Saturday’s North Dakota State-South Dakota quarterfinal. … The Grizzlies’ last home semifinal was a snowy, 24-17 win over Appalachian State in 2009.