Yet the Bears certainly have talent, which you'd expect from a program nestled just an hour north of Denver in Greeley, Colo. That recruiting base helped bring UNC two national titles in 1995-96 when the Bears were Division II.
Talent and a series of near-misses have Montana coach Bobby Hauck concerned, as his eighth-ranked Grizzlies gear up for Saturday's Big Sky Conference game with the Bears at 12:05 p.m.
“That's a long-winded way of saying they're a better football team than they've been in the past.”
Chesla, an all-Big Sky pick a year ago, leads the team in receptions. He's one of nine upperclassmen who start on an offense that has been off and on. Waggener, a 240-pound junior, has thrown for 1,335 yards, with 402 coming against North Texas.
“He's just better,” Hauck said of Waggener. “He's more accurate. He can throw the ball down the field accurately. He gets them into the right plays and when things break down he makes plays with his feet.”
The Griz answer that with senior quarterback Cole Bergquist, who is coming off possibly his best game. Bergquist and big-play receivers Mike Ferriter and Marc Mariani (17 touchdowns between them) spark the offense, which has rotated running backs. Chase Reynolds, a sophomore, leads the team on the ground with 273 yards and four touchdowns.
“They've been running the ball effectively,” noted UNC coach Scott Downing. “Montana is a prime example of a very, very solid, very, very well-coached football team. They lose a senior, but they replace him with a senior or junior who really performs.”
Enter Ferriter, who was in fact the team's leading receiver in 2007, and Mariani, who is on pace to break several UM receiving records as a junior.
“These were the same guys I was looking at a year ago,” said Downing. “They're stepping up and making plays. Cole Bergquist is stepping up and sharing a big part of the load.”
Montana's offense will deal with a defense ranked near the middle of the Big Sky in yards allowed. It bent and didn't break, much, in a 17-10 loss to conference-leading Weber State a week ago. Of course that didn't help the Bears' offense.
“It was really a field position game,” said Downing. “Several times we gained a turnover, but we gained a turnover at our 2-yard line. It's kind of hard to drive 98 yards to score.
“But to be honest, I thought Weber State played great defense against us.”
Northern Colorado's defense is led by middle linebacker Cristian Sarmento, who has 70 tackles, eight of them for losses. The senior had 17 tackles against UM a year ago.
“I'm not sure what that means,” Hauck said. “One of the things I see him do is not only play his responsibility, but he chases the ball hard. Once he sees his gap's canceled, he goes.”
There is much to like about UNC's senior-laden linebacker group as well as its experienced secondary, with Quincy Wofford, Eric Brown and Myles Hayes at corner, and sophomore Max Hewitt at safety.
“They've got a lot of interceptions,” Hauck noted. “That means they're doing something right in the back end. Oftentimes, that means they're getting some pressure.”
And Hauck also likes UNC's front, even with six underclassmen on the two-deep. The Bears will fill the box and at times leave only the nose tackle in a three-point stance.
“They're moving around and you don't know where everybody's going,” Hauck said.
The Bears can be problematic on offense as well. Sarmento says of 5-foot-7 running back D.C. Wilson, “Genetically, he's a freak,” and two years ago a no-huddle look gave UM some problems.
“They do things with formations and personnel groups,” said Hauck. “I'll give you a for-instance: Two years ago they came out with a group that had two backs and eight offensive linemen. They were either in that or they were in five-wides (receivers). We hadn't seen it; we had to adjust.”
The crux is that Montana isn't planning on a cakewalk against a squad that owns just two Big Sky wins in its brief history in the league. The Bears, meanwhile, are getting amped.
“I relish the opportunity,” said Sarmento. “It's my last year. I consider myself a good player, and the good players want to test themselves against the good teams.”
“We're the new guys on the block in this league, and we still have to prove ourselves,” added Downing. “Every game is a big game.
“Certainly you look forward to playing a team like Montana because of the challenges and the competitiveness and attitude they bring to the table.”
No. 8 Montana at Northern Colorado
Kickoff: 12:05 p.m. MDT
Venue: Nottingham Stadium (8,500, grass)
Forecast: 60 degrees at kickoff with a chance of showers.
TV: Live on KPAX-TV and its MTN affiliates (Phil Buck, Dave Guffey)
Radio: KXGZ 101.5 FM (Mick Holien, Scott Gurnsey)
On the net: www.bigskytv.org and www.montanagrizzlies.com
Records: Montana is 2-1 in the Big Sky Conference, 6-1 overall. Northern Colorado is 1-2 and 1-5.
Series history: Montana leads 7-1.
Coaches: Bobby Hauck is 58-15 in his sixth season at Montana. Scott Downing is 3-26 in his third season with UNC.
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