Bobby Hauck, Montana's fourth-year head coach, takes a look at the Southland Conference champion Cowboys' standout defensive ends, their balanced offense and explosive special teams and expects more of the same.
“They play hard in the kicking game,” said Hauck, whose Griz open their record 14th straight I-AA postseason Saturday at 12:05 p.m. inside Washington-Grizzly Stadium. “With their kicker hitting the ball well, that should be a matchup.
The home team won the previous playoff matchups as well as two nonconference games - UM beat McNeese 45-22 at home in 1990 and lost 31-3 at Lake Charles, La., in 1991 - and Missoula could have a nice blanket of snow by Saturday morning.
Of course the cold won't necessarily slow down Joseph and Bryan Smith on the edge, keep Derrick Fourroux from being a mobile quarterback or make receiver/return man Steven Whitehead any less dangerous.
“He's awfully good,” Hauck said of Whitehead, who averages 12.9 yards a catch, 6.3 yards per rush and 17.6 yards a punt return. “They get him the ball, but he's not the only receiver. They've got good skill. Everybody this time of year is pretty darned good.”
Fourroux has the most rushing attempts for McNeese, which will be without leading rusher Jamie Leonard for Saturday's game. Fourroux, a redshirt freshman, often runs out of shotgun formation. The Cowboys welcomed back senior fullback Jason Miller back from a broken leg last week, but they've run very little two-back stuff.
Chris Thomas, who has 250 yards and 65 carries, is the likely starter at tailback against a UM defense that allowed the fewest rushing yards in the Big Sky. The Grizzlies will also have to contend with Carlese Franklin, who has a team-high six receiving touchdowns. Fourroux's mobility is key.
“That does change things a little bit,” said Griz defensive end Mike Murphy. “You can't be as reckless on the pass rush, you have to stay in your lanes. That's going to be a main concern.”
Another main ingredient in the formula for both teams has been turnovers. Both rank in the top 16 in Division I-AA in margin, and McNeese is seventh. The Griz fell to a tie for 13th after splitting eight turnovers with Montana State last week, in UM's 13-7 win.
Matt Viator, who took over for Tommy Tate as McNeese State's head coach in midseason, is impressed with the Grizzlies in every facet, but starts with their offense.
“The balance is the first thing that catches your eye,” said Viator, who like Hauck is coaching his alma mater, but didn't play college football. “They've always had the ability to have the power run game and be able to throw down the field.
“It looks like (UM's Josh Swogger) throws the ball very well against both man (coverage) and zone. They have good running backs, but it starts with their line. They have big linemen, like they always do.”
Swogger has spread the ball nicely among Ryan Bagley, Eric Allen, Craig Chambers and Mike Ferriter. Bagley, Allen and Chambers each have four touchdowns. The running game has been centered around Reggie Bradshaw, who has 533 yards and 10 TDs, and Brady Green, who has 449 and six scores. But Thomas Brooks-Fletcher, a redshirt freshman, has had the hottest feet the last two weeks. All three will likely play Saturday.
McNeese will bring an eight-man front and employ three safeties. Joseph and Smith are in the backfield a lot, Smith to the tune of 12.5 sacks. Sophomore linebacker Allen Nelson is credited with 100 tackles; Trey Bennett has 80 and is a special teams demon.
Hauck again noted the relative squeeze on preparation for the game - the teams exchanged five tapes, while generally Montana has every game tape of its Big Sky Conference opponents - and found the game hard to predict.
“We just need to play hard,” said Hauck. “And things will take care of themselves.”
McNeese will have to deal with some weather and some 19,000 fans, but is looking forward to it. The game, that is. Montana's climate didn't have a warming effect on the Cowboys, when they found out their draw on Sunday.
“I just started shivering,” Whitehead said. “It's cold. They say you all have a big crowd up there, so I'm excited.”
It'll be more than twice as large as McNeese's last visit. There were 8,419 fans in WGS when the Grizzlies got a 37-yard field goal from Andy Larson with eight seconds - through the snow - to beat the Cowboys 30-28 in a 1994 quarterfinal game.
A dozen years later a similar outcome, right down to the snow, could be in store.
“We've done an excellent job to this point of taking care of business,” said UM's Murphy. “We're sitting right where we want to be right now, and we just have to continue to go out there and play really hard.
“We're just not ready to be done playing.”
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