Gary Marshall

Football October 15, 2026 Claire Gay, UMW Sports Information

Montana Western Football Takes On #1 College of Idaho Saturday

GAME NOTES (PDF)

DILLON, Mont. – The Montana Western football team (2-4, 0-2 FC) plays host to #1 College of Idaho (5-0, 1-0 FC) Saturday afternoon.

GAME COVERAGE
College of Idaho – 1 p.m. MT | Live Stats | Watch Live
*The game will be also available to watch on SWX

LAST WEEK ON...
Montana Western fell to #12 Carroll 52-10 last week in Helena.

The Bulldogs registered 236 yards of total offense (183 passing, 53 rushing), one touchdown, one field goal, and 12 first downs in the game.

Kaden LaPlaunt threw for 157 passing yards on 17 completions, including a long of 45.

Aidan Lammers led the Bulldogs on the ground with 38 yards on 10 carries and one rushing touchdown.

Eli Nourse caught five passes for 92 yards including a long of 37.

The Bulldog defense posted for 76 total tackles, including 22 solo efforts, 1.0 tackles-for-loss, two pass-breakups, and one QB hurry.

Cormack Batt led the team in both total (eight) and solo (six) tackles. Thomas Avery tied for the game-high in total takedowns with eight as well.

Tyler Schoen recorded TFL for UMW while Connor Dunlea and Carter Petre both posted one breakup. Cole Flugge was credited with the QB hurry.

Maclain Burckley was 1-for-1 on both field goals (22 yards) and extra points.

FROM THE DAWG HOUSE
The Bulldogs are averaging 27.7 points, 459.3 yards of total offense, 306.8 passing yards, and 152.5 rushing yards per game on the campaign. They have put up 21 touchdowns and 133 first downs.

Western has scored on 15-of-21 red zone attempts and converted on 35.2 percent of third downs.

The defense has posted 57.3 total tackles, 2.1 tackles-for-loss and 0.83 sacks per game. They have also tallied three safeties, four forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries, two interceptions, 16 pass breakups, and six QB hurries on the campaign.

RUN FOR IT
Aidan Lammers leads the Bulldogs with three rushing touchdowns and 54.8 rush yards per game. He has posted a touchdown in back-to back games this season.

DYNAMIC DUO
Wide receivers Eli Nourse and Seth Shook share the team lead with seven touchdowns each this season. Moreover, both players' longest catch of the season is over 70 yards (75 and 79, respectively.)

MAKE ROOM FOR THE ROOKS
True freshman Thomas Avery and Cormack Batt tied for the team-high with eight tackles apiece against Carroll. Batt also posted a team-best six solo takedowns.

NOT 'DUN' YET
Connor Dunlea leads Western in both total tackles (40.0) and solos (24). He is the first Bulldog to eclipse 20 solo tackles this season.

RACK 'EM UP
Western posted a season-high 76 total tackles against Carroll, the most single-game tackles since Oct. 25 last year when the Bulldogs earned 77 against Simpson.

SPREADING THE WEALTH
13 Bulldogs have reached double-digits in tackles this season, with seven recording 20 or more.

BULLDOGS IN THE RANKINGS
As a team, the Bulldogs rank fifth in the nation in passing yards per game (307.2), 13th in total yards per game (459.2), and 19th in yards of total offense (2,755).

Individually, Kaden LaPlaunt is ranked ninth in both passing touchdowns (15) and total passing yards (1629).
Eli Nourse sits 10th in total receptions (38), 11th in total receiving yards (625) and tied for 11th in receiving touchdowns (seven). Seth Shook is also tied for 11th in receiving touchdowns (seven).

THE OPPONENTS
The top-ranked Yotes are putting up 50.0 points, 489.4 yards, 277.4 rushing yards, and 212.0 passing yards per game in 2026.

They have posted 34 touchdowns, 133 first downs, and have a 58.5 third down conversion percentage.

Nationally, College of Idaho ranks third in points per game (50.0), fourth in both rushing yards per game (277.4) and third-down percentage (58%), seventh in total yards per game (489.4), and 10th in total points 250.

Caden Young has held the bulk of the quarterback duties for CI, averaging 183. 8 yards per game with a 69.9 completion percentage and six passing touchdowns. Rex Larson has also tossed three touchdowns on 11 completions.

Rylie Byington leads the Yotes on the ground with 110.0 rush yards per game and 12 touchdowns on the year. Young averages 87.0 yards per game and has posted five TDs. Ryken EchoHawk (four), Noah Burnham (one), and Trey Gibson (one) also have recorded rushing touchdowns this season.

Brandon Smith is averaging a team-best 60.7 receiving yards per game, followed by Travis Marieiro at 59.6. Marieiro leads the team in touchdown catches with three while Smith, Gibson, EchoHawk, Burnham, Trezell Patterson, and Shane Runyeon each have one TD reception.

Chase Brown paces the Yotes defense with 24.0 total tackles while Tanner Steele (22.0), Trey Jordensen (21.0) and Aleki Noyes (21.0) have all surpassed 20.0 tackles on the season.

Noyes and Tucker French are tied for the team lead in tackles-for-loss with 4.0 each. French also tops the team in sacks with 3.0.

Five different players have snagged one interception each for College of Idaho while Noyes, Tucker, and Jack Dennis have all recovered one fumble. Amari Bluford has recovered one fumble for the Yotes.

Josh Horn is 4-for-5 on field goals and 34-for-34 on PATs.

Jorgensen and Patterson have returned a punt and a kickoff for a touchdown, respectively.

SERIES HISTORY
Western is 10-9 all-time against College of Idaho. Last season, the Yotes earned the 28-21 win in Caldwell, Idaho.

UP NEXT
The Bulldogs are back home next weekend against Simpson. It is the final home game of the 2026 regular season and will serve as "Senior Day."

For complete coverage of UMW Football, be sure to follow us on social media at @umw_football (Instagram), @UMW_Football (X), and @Montana Western Football (Facebook) or visit our official website at UMWBulldogs.com.

#GOBULLDOGS!

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Players Mentioned

#18 Eli Nourse: WR; 5' 10"; Senior

#29 Carter Petre: DB; 5' 9"; Redshirt Freshman

#9 Seth Shook: WR; 5' 10"; Redshirt Junior

#6 Maclain Burckley: K/P; 6' 1"; Redshirt Sophomore

#20 Connor Dunlea: DB; 6' 0"; Redshirt Sophomore

#54 Cole Flugge: DL; 6' 2"; Redshirt Freshman

#37 Aidan Lammers: RB; 5' 11"; Redshirt Sophomore

#4 Kaden LaPlaunt: QB; 6' 1"; Sophomore

#45 Tyler Schoen: DL; 6' 0"; Redshirt Junior

#36 Thomas Avery: LB; 6' 2"; Freshman

#31 Cormack Batt: DB; 6' 2"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

#18 Eli Nourse
: 5' 10"; Senior
: WR

#29 Carter Petre
: 5' 9"; Redshirt Freshman
: DB

#9 Seth Shook
: 5' 10"; Redshirt Junior
: WR

#6 Maclain Burckley
: 6' 1"; Redshirt Sophomore
: K/P

#20 Connor Dunlea
: 6' 0"; Redshirt Sophomore
: DB

#54 Cole Flugge
: 6' 2"; Redshirt Freshman
: DL

#37 Aidan Lammers
: 5' 11"; Redshirt Sophomore
: RB

#4 Kaden LaPlaunt
: 6' 1"; Sophomore
: QB

#45 Tyler Schoen
: 6' 0"; Redshirt Junior
: DL

#36 Thomas Avery
: 6' 2"; Freshman
: LB

#31 Cormack Batt
: 6' 2"; Freshman
: DB