BOZEMAN — No. 1-seeded Montana State punched its ticket to the FCS national championship game in Frisco, Texas, by beating No. 4-seeded South Dakota 31-17 on Saturday in Bobcat Stadium.
"It’s absolutely a blessing to keep playing football into January, and that’s what we’re all about here at Montana State," Montana State quarterback Tommy Mellott said. "That’s what we’ve been about for four years. You know, we came up short there two years ago, and obviously last year didn’t go the way we wanted to. But, we’re back to where we belong, and that’s what we’re all about."
Bobcat postgame: Brent Vigen, players break down Montana State's 31-17 semifinal win against South Dakota
Mellott had another career moment against South Dakota, turning a fumbled snap into a 41-yard touchdown in the third quarter. He had 259 total yards and three total touchdowns in the win.
"If he’s not the most impactful player in our division — I know we’re going to see the other one down in Frisco (referring to North Dakota State quarterback Cam Miller), and we could settle it on the field, I suppose — but I know Tommy does so much for us, and that play, you know, the unscripted, the competitive nature, I mean, he certainly could’ve went down on that play," Montana State coach Brent Vigen said. "Somehow he kept his balance, and I’m sure they were wondering, 'What the heck just happened.'"
On the defensive side of the ball, despite giving up two explosive touchdowns to the Coyotes early, the Bobcats didn’t let up more than a field goal in the second half.
Senior captain and defensive end Brody Grebe came up with the game-clinching fumble recovery to send his team to the national championship.
"They’ve got good players," Grebe said. "They had some explosive runs early. We knew we had to get those out because besides that, they weren’t having a ton of success. They were getting a couple yards a pop. That’s going to happen in those heavy personnels and stuff like that. But getting those big plays stopped, those explosive plays, that’s what helped us in the second half ultimately."
Photos: Montana State punches ticket to Frisco with win over South Dakota
Despite how bittersweet a final game was in Bobcat Stadium for the group of 24 seniors, their attention is still on winning one more game this season.
"Let’s look at it, we maxed out our opportunities here," Vigen said. "Let’s not get too sentimental. We want another game on the other side, so what you’ve done is you’ve created every possible opportunity in the ‘24 season to play in front of this crowd. Certainly soak it all in but know that there’s a bigger prize out there that we’re after, and I think this group gets that part."
The championship game will be against second-seeded North Dakota State, which put an end to the Bobcats' season last year in the second round by blocking an extra point in overtime, winning 35-34.
"Pretty excited, I’m glad it’s NDSU," Grebe said. "We got something to prove there."
"Yeah, I can’t wait to play them," Mellott said.
