Montana State Preview

The Yale Bulldogs head to Bozeman, Montana for a showdown versus the Montana State Bobcats in the second round of the FCS Playoffs. Kickoff is slated for 2 PM EST and the game will air on ESPN+.

The Bobcats are the second ranked squad in the FCS and are on a 10-game winning streak following early season losses to Oregon and South Dakota State. Montana State will be well rested after a bye week and the team is carrying strong momentum from a win over their archrival, Montana, in the Brawl of the Wild in Missoula. In terms of talent, Yale hasn’t faced athletes as fast and physical as those from Montana State since the loss to UConn in 2021. Coaching across the board is excellent with the Bobcats making very few critical mistakes.

Montana State’s offense is led by junior QB Justin Lamson (6’2”, 210 lbs.) who is far more seasoned than his class year would indicate as he spent two years at Syracuse and another two years at Stanford prior to the transfer to MSU. Lamson is a true dual threat quarterback with the ability to beat teams with his arm or legs. Lamson has completed 72.4% of his passes for 20 touchdowns and only 2 interceptions. In the ground game, Lamson averages 4.4 yards per carry and leads the Bobcats with 11 rushing touchdowns. Senior RB Julius Davis (5’10”, 210 lbs.) is an explosive, strong back who is averaging 7.3 yards per carry and has become adept at leaping over defenders in the open field. Sophomore RB Adam Jones (6’1”, 200 lbs.) is a team captain as an underclassman and has had an impressive 5.6 yards per carry with 10 rushing touchdowns. Jones is also a threat on passing downs with 25 receptions on the season. Junior WR Taco Dowler (5’9”, 170 lbs.) is an electric athlete who was named a 2nd Team All-Big Sky wideout and a 1st Team All-Big Sky punt returner. The Bobcats love to move Dowler around to find favorable matchups and he’s torched defenses for 59 receptions for 745 yards and 5 receiving touchdowns. Redshirt freshman WR Dane Steel (5’10”, 178 lbs.) has been excellent in his first collegiate season with 30 catches for 355 receiving yards and two touchdowns. Redshirt freshman TE Rocky Lencioni (6’3”, 220 lbs.) is another receiving weapon who is often targeted in the redzone with 5 touchdown receptions, while sophomore TE Rylan Schlepp (6’4”, 235 lbs.) is a solid run blocker who is occasionally targeted in the passing game. MSU’s offensive line averages 298.0 lbs. across the board and is far superior to any offensive line faced in recent memory. Junior OT Titan Fleischmann (6’4”, 300 lbs.) is the leader of the Bobcats’ offensive line and was named a 1^st Team All-Big Sky offensive lineman in 2025. Lamson has only been sacked 26 times through 12 games and typically is undisturbed in the pocket. The big men up front for the Bobcats have worn down opposing defensive fronts as they paved the way for 5.8 yards per carry. Success defensively for the Bulldogs will need to start up front with disruption at the line of scrimmage on rushing plays and pressure on Lamson on passing downs. Lamson will be eager to run on the Elis after watching film from the first half of last week’s contest and the Bulldogs will need defenders to deliver crushing blows on Lamson in the open field to make him think twice about departing the pocket. Blitzes will need to be heavily disguised as Lamson had made teams pay when showing blitz packages. In the secondary, the focus has to be on shutting down Taco Dowler as he has almost twice the number of receptions as the next leading receiver.

MSU’s defense is even more impressive than its offense led by the Big Sky Defensive Player of the Year, junior S Caden Dowler (6’0”, 205 lbs.). Dowler has racked up 78 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, 4 interceptions, and 2 forced fumbles over a very impressive season to date. The Bobcats’ entire starting defensive front earned All-Big Sky honors with seniors Paul Brott (6’3”, 300 lbs.) and Kenneth Eiden IV (6’1”, 250 lbs.) earning 1^st Team nods while seniors Alec Eckert (6’2”, 285 lbs.) and Hunter Parsons (6’4”, 245 lbs.) earned Honorable Mention nominations. Sophomore LB Cole Taylor (6’3”, 230 lbs.) is second on the team with 66 tackles and was named as a 2^nd Team All-Big Sky linebacker. Sophomore DB Tayden Gray (6’0”, 185 lbs.) was also a 2^nd Team All-Big Sky defender and can make plays across the field from his nickel position. The Bobcats have only allowed 116.6 rushing yards per game and 3.8 rushing yards per carry, so getting Pitsenberger rolling in the running game will not be as simple as last week. MSU is also very stingy on 3^rd downs as they have only allowed opponents to convert on 31.4% of 3^rd down attempts. The Bobcats will be laser focused on shutting down Pitsenberger, so the Elis will need to establish a credible passing threat to keep the box from being stacked on every down. The offensive line faces their toughest task of the season and must find a way to provide Reno with some breathing room in the pocket even if it requires Pitsenberger to stay in the pocket to pass protect. The offensive coaching staff will once again need to dig deep into their bag of tricks with creative plays to keep defenders guessing. Teams such as Montana found some success attacking the edges with speed, so well-timed jet sweeps or quick hitting outside routes could be viable options.

Sophomore K Myles Sansted (6’3”, 188 lbs.) is 14 of 18 on field goal attempts with a long of 48 yards. Freshman P Colby Frokjer (6’3”, 185 lbs.) averages 43.6 yards per punt and has placed 13 punts inside the redzone. Taco Dowler could be the best punt returner in FCS and freshman WR Jabez Woods (5’11”, 178 lbs.) has the speed to burn kickoff coverage units for large gains.

Go Bulldogs! Beat the Bobcats!