Grizzlies win big
Mariani leads Montana to victory
Marc Mariani caught four touchdown passes Saturday to lead Montana to a 46-10 victory over Southern Utah in Missoula.
Mariani, who tied a school record for most touchdown catches in a game, finished with eight receptions for 208 yards to propel the Grizzlies (2-0) past the Thunderbirds (1-2).
“You dream of games like this,” Mariani said.
The Grizzlies got four touchdown passes from backup quarterback Andrew Selle and two interceptions from true freshman cornerback Trumaine Johnson as they won their home opener in front of a stadium-record crowd of 25,056.
Montana’s offense sputtered in a scoreless first quarter as freshman kicker Russell Schey had a 24-yard field-goal attempt blocked and badly missed another field-goal try from 47 yards.
Southern Utah “came in with a couple of completely different looks that took us some time to get a handle on,” Montana coach Bobby Hauck said.
The Grizzlies finally got on the board with 8:07 to play in the second quarter when Schey’s 30-yard field-goal try was partially blocked, but deflected through the upright.
Montana struck again with 6:51 to play in the half when Cole Bergquist connected with Mariani on a 14-yard touchdown pass to put the Grizzlies up 10-0.
Montana’s defense recorded six sacks on the day and was led by defensive linemen Austin Mullins, with 10 tackles.
Southern Utah’s defense was paced by linebacker DJ Senter, who recorded 17 tackles and an interception.
Minnesota 35, Montana State 23: At Minneapolis, Eric Decker had nine catches for 157 yards and a touchdown to lead the Golden Gophers (3-0) to a victory over the Bobcats (1-2).
It took a while for Minnesota to get going, but once Adam Weber started getting the ball to Decker, Montana State didn’t have an answer.
Sacramento State 27, Southern Oregon 16: At Sacramento, Calif., McLeod Bethel-Thompson threw for 255 yards and one touchdown and ran for another score to lead the Hornets (2-1) to a victory over the Raiders (1-2).
Weber State 44, Dixie State 7: At Ogden, Utah, Cameron Higgins threw for a career-high five touchdowns as the Wildcats (2-1) defeated the Rebels (1-2).
UC Davis 38, Portland State 24: At Davis, Calif., sophomore running back Joe Trombetta ran for 156 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Aggies (1-2) to a victory over the Vikings (1-1).