DILLON, Mont. - The Montana Western football team topped No. 16 ranked Dickinson State Saturday afternoon by a score of 35-14. The Bulldog defense shined as they recorded six sacks and nine tackles for loss.
Jon Jund led the Bulldog offense with 269 passing and 70 rushing yards, three touchdowns in the air, and two rushing.
"We prepared well this week and one of the things we talked about is that playing at your optimum doesn't mean it always looks good or looks pretty. You have to win how you have to win and we got an ugly win today. I feel like we under-performed, but we saw guys like
Jon Jund and most of our defense really step up and start making football plays for us when we needed them. It's a win and we move on to the next one up in Havre." Coach
Ryan Nourse said.
How It Happened
The Bulldog defense set the tone of the game by forcing a Dickinson State three and out on the opening drive. The offense then followed up with a 10-play drive that ended in a 19-yard touchdown run by
Jon Jund to put the first points on the board of the game. On the next DSU drive,
James Aragon forced and recovered a fumble that put the Bulldog offense in scoring position. The Bulldogs capitalized on the play scoring another touchdown on a Jund 25-yard touchdown pass to
Dylan Shipley. Dickinson State then got the ball after a fumble on UMW's 36-yard line and a 22-yard rush by Blue Hawk running back Riley Linder led to DSU's first score of the game. Just before the end of the first quarter, Dickinson's Isaiah Kludt returned a punt for a 77-yard touchdown run to tie the game 14. With 1:26 remaining in the half, the Bulldogs struck again with a Jund touchdown pass to
Reese Neville to give the Bulldogs the lead at 21-14. The Bulldog defense had four three and outs in the first half.
The Bulldogs would hold Dickinson State scoreless for the remainder of the game while adding two touchdowns of their own. After a three and out forced by the DSU defense, the Bulldog special teams made a big play when
Pete Gibson recovered a muffed punt on the Dickinson 34-yard line. The Bulldogs answered quickly by scoring on the next play on a Jund touchdown pass to Shipley. The Bulldog defense made a big play on fourth down when Aragon sacked DSU quarterback Aaron White for a turnover on downs. The Bulldog offense then put up their final points of the game off of a Jund four-yard rushing touchdown that capped off a 7-play 68-yard drive. The Montana Western defense continued to stifle the DSU offense as the Bulldogs finished off their victory over #16 Dickinson State 35-14.
"Coming into this game and knowing that they are a ranked opponent, we knew they would bring the energy into our place. We wanted to protect our home turf as best as we can. There was a time we got down as a defense when we let up one touchdown, but we bounced back and that was all we gave them. Getting this win was big for us going into next week and back into conference play." junior linebacker
Braden Smith said.
Notables
- The Bulldog defense held DSU to just 74 rushing yards on 29 attempts, while the Bulldog offense recorded 414 total yards.
- Jon Jund led the Bulldog offense with 269 passing and 70 rushing yards, three touchdowns in the air, and two rushing.
- Braden Smith led the defense with 11 tackles, including two tackles for loss and two sacks.
- Shipley had five receptions for 111 yards and two touchdowns.
- Cody Whalen capped off the game with an interception that he ran back for 62 yards.
Up next
The Bulldogs will be on the road next week to Havre, Mont. where they will face MSU-Northern at 1 PM on Saturday Sept. 17
th.
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