The result is second-ranked Montana's “Ton of Fun.”
They dropped a combined 1,996 pounds of muscled and marbled beef on the McNeese State Cowboys Saturday at Washington-Grizzly Stadium, and when the squishing was done, the Grizzlies had a 31-6 victory in the opening round of the Division I-AA football playoffs.
“We knew exactly what they were going to do and we put our nose to the grindstone and showed them we were better,” Balogh said after UM won for the 11th straight time, earning a home quarterfinal date next weekend against Southern Illinois.
Montana came into the freezing but sunny afternoon dead last among 122 I-AA teams in sacks allowed, with 41. And McNeese State had heralded defensive end Bryan Smith, the Southland Conference “sack master,” whose school-record 12fi sacks put him second in the nation.
But Smith, usually working against Balogh or Dow or a tight end, recorded only one sack all day. McNeese's other sack came in the fourth quarter, when the outcome was decided.
To maximize blocking, UM often lined up with one running back and two tight ends. Eric Michel, a 6-6, 285-pound junior, shared time with Hillesland, and 218-pound H-back Kevin Klaboe also got in some timely licks.
“Our ‘12 package' was something we liked against their defense,” said Griz coach Bobby Hauck. “... Their defensive ends are really talented. No. 93 (Smith) is so fast. We wanted to run the ball at him because he's such a dynamic pass rusher. We wanted to make sure that we made him play the run some, which would slow down the pass rush to a degree.”
Swogger, like most quarterbacks, is right-handed. That means his blind side is protected by Balogh, at left tackle, who has to be strong enough to thwart bull rushes, yet nimble enough to handle twists and spins. Watching Smith try to elude Balogh, in a small but critical corner of the melee, was worth the price of admission all by itself.
Smith's sack came late in the third quarter, with Montana threatening inside the McNeese 10-yard line. The 6-3, 217-pounder from Newton, Texas, beat Balogh on an inside move and dropped Swogger for a 3-yard loss. But on the next play, Balogh shoved Smith harmlessly to the ground, allowing Swogger to roll out and find receiver Craig Chambers alone at the back of the end zone to close out the scoring.
“Smith is a really good player,” said Balogh, a junior from Steilacoom, Wash., who started as a freshman on UM's 2004 national runner-up squad. “On that first play, he got me. So I knew I had to come back, because we had a chance to put the nails in the coffin. I came off to the sideline and my coach (Pete Kaligis) said, ‘You did good. And you did bad.' ''
Such is the life of an O-lineman.
Smith was more grudging in his assessment, offering a compliment straight from Lake Wobegon.
“They weren't the best (line) I've faced all year, but they were better than average,” he said after racking up a grand total of four tackles.
The Griz made McNeese pay for its aggressive style by, wonder of wonders, working their backs and tight ends into the game plan. Running back Brady Green doubled his season reception total, picking up 42 yards on a couple of nifty screen passes, while Beaudin, Pfahler and Klaboe combined for five catches for 81 yards. Beaudin, the pride of tiny Noxon, gave the Griz an early lift by powering through two would-be tacklers on a 50-yard TD, the first of his young career.
That helped the strong-armed Swogger, bouncing back from an erratic effort in last week's win over Montana State, complete 18-of-26 passes for 259 yards in just three quarters of play.
Montana's secondary, coupled with pressure from ends Kroy Biermann, Mike Murphy and Dustin Dlouhy, once again led a banner day for the defense. But it was the play of UM's offense that was most heartening to Griz fans.
“What they did a good job of, is they were able to run the football,” said McNeese coach Matt Viator. “And then they were able to use a lot of their play-action (fakes), a lot of their max protection schemes, which helps.”
UM's offensive line has taken its lumps, chipped by injuries and schooled by more experienced foes, taking advantage of a group whose only seniors are Marshall and backup center Ryan Wells. The challenge became even greater when the Griz lost their best player, running back Lex Hilliard, to a preseason Achilles injury.
“You stay the course and keep banging away. I'm proud of those guys,” Hauck said, before adding: “I like the talent on the offensive line. How far can they go? Well, today was a pretty good step forward.”
And a ton of fun to boot.
Rial Cummings can be reached at 523-5255 or rcummings@missoulian.com. His column appears Sundays.
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