CHENEY, Wash. — Fifth-ranked Montana State was a little slow returning from its open week, but the Bobcats — with quarterback Justin Lamson, running back Adam Jones and safety Caden Dowler back in the lineup — found their footing and rolled to a 56-20 Big Sky Conference football win Saturday over Eastern Washington at Roos Field.
The Bobcats improved to 6-1 overall and 3-1 in the Big Sky. Eastern Washington, which has played a gauntlet of a schedule, fell to 2-6 overall and 1-4 in the Big Sky.
WATCH THE HIGHLIGHTS:
The Eagles couldn't capitalize on Montana State's slow start. EWU quarterback Nate Bell threw a first-quarter interception, and, with the ball deep in MSU's red zone, the Eagles mishandled an option and lost 24 yards on a fumble they recovered. Eastern settled for a field goal and led 3-0.
The Bobcats didn't get their first first down of the game until late in the first quarter, but Adam Jones sprinted into the end zone early in the second to give MSU a 7-3 lead. Jared White, who has seen increased action at running back while the Bobcats have managed injuries to Jones and now Colson Coon, ran in another touchdown later in the period.
Eastern tacked on another field goal to make it 14-6 and appeared poised to go into halftime still in contention. But the wheels came off for the Eagles in the final two minutes of the first half.
Bell was intercepted by Cole Taylor, who returned the ball inside EWU's 10-yard line. Two plays later, Jones ran in his second TD of the game.
But Taylor wasn't finished. On the Eagles' next possession, the Great Falls product intercepted Bell again. This time, though, he returned it 61 yards for a touchdown, and suddenly Montana State led 28-6.
Lamson, rarely utilized in the first half, ran in a 41-yard touchdown on MSU's first possession of the second half, and — despite Eastern trying to make it interesting with back-to-back touchdowns later in the third — the Bobcats coasted to their sixth consecutive win over the Eagles.
WELCOME BACK, MR. JONES: Jones, who missed Montana State's last game against Idaho and most of the previous game against Northern Arizona, returned to the lineup and immediately made an impact. Offensively, it was a bit of a slog for the Bobcats in the early going, but Jones' 32-yard touchdown run early in the second quarter broke the seal.
He added a 29-yard run on MSU's next possession that ended in White's TD. All told, Jones finished with 84 yards and three touchdowns on just 12 carries. He now has 41 career touchdowns, surpassing Tommy Mellott for second-most in Bobcat history. Cody Kirk owns Montana State's all-time mark with 48 total TDs.
REST UP, BOBCAT DEFENSE: Incredibly, Eastern Washington possessed the ball for 41 minutes, ran 105 plays on offense and achieved 31 first downs. Bell threw 53 passes, completing 35 of them for 282 yards, one touchdown and three interceptions.
The Eagles added 157 rushing yards on 52 carries, giving them 439 yards of total offense. They faced 24 third downs and converted 11, but mistakes doomed them. Eastern twice had to settle for field goals in the red zone, and Montana State turned the three INTs into 14 points.
INJURIES MOUNTING: Jones, Lamson and Caden Dowler were back in action Saturday for Montana State, but Taco Dowler missed his third straight game. And senior safety Taki Uluilakepa, fifth-year offensive guard Burke Mastel and senior running back Colson Coon were sidelined.
Carter Dahlke again started in place of Taco Dowler and again delivered with five catches for 112 yards and a 55-yard touchdown.
WHAT'S NEXT: Montana State returns to Bozeman to host red-hot Weber State. The Wildcats, under first-year coach Eric Kjar, have won three straight games to vault to the top of the Big Sky standings with a 4-1 mark in league play.
Weber State (5-3 overall) defeated Idaho State 27-20 on Saturday with Spencer Ferguson scoring the go-ahead touchdown with 1:10 remaining in the game.
