No. 23/20 North Dakota scores 20 unanswered points to defeat No. 4 Montana, 27-24

GRAND FORKS, N.D. – In a game where No. 23/20 North Dakota (1-1) trailed Montana 24-7 at intermission, UND scored 20 unanswered points in the second half to upend No. 4 UM (1-1), 27-24, on Saturday night inside the Alerus Center.

Early in the fourth quarter, C.J. Elrichs booted home a 19-yard field goal to knot the game up at 24-24 with 11:12 left in the game. On the ensuing possession for the Grizzlies, the Fighting Hawk defense stood tall and forced a punt from the Griz 33.

NoDak received the ball at its own 34 with 10 minutes remaining in the contest. The Hawks chewed up the clock and went 14 plays for 43 yards, eating up 7:44 of possession before Elrich drilled what would be the game-winning field goal from 40 yards out with 2:16 left on the clock.

Montana received the ball at its own 29 and went 34 yards before attempting a game-tying field goal from 54 yards out, which landed short. Wyatt Pedigo recorded a sack with less than a minute remaining which helped decide the ball game.

At intermission, the Fighting Hawks trailed 24-7 and came out with an intent to run the ball in the second half. UND had a 10-play, 75-yard drive after intermission which was capped by Gaven Ziebarth two-yard touchdown, which sent him diving over the pile to trim the deficit to 24-14 with 9:28 left in the third quarter.

On its next drive, the Hawks had a short, two-minute drive that ended with a 19-yard touchdown rush from Simon Romfo on a broken play. Romfo’s rush set up the fireworks in the final quarter.

In the game, North Dakota rushed 49 times for 243 yards. In the second half alone, the Hawks rushed for 161 yards. Ziebarth paced the Hawks on the ground, toting the rock 22 times for 88 yards and a touchdown. He was trailed by Romfo, rushing seven times for 57 yards and a score.

The Fighting Hawk defense had a stellar game and sacked the Montana quarterbacks six times. Pedigo, Craig Orlando and Josh Navratil each had two sacks apiece. Pedigo also led the defense with seven total tackles, six of them being solo.

Montana led 24-7 at intermission. At the midway point of the first quarter, the Griz held a 14-0 lead before a 30-yard touchdown run from Isaiah Smith, which trimmed the deficit to 14-7. With just over one minute left in the opening stanza, UM scored on an 18-yard rush before closing the half with a 30-yard field goal to cap a 12-play, 65-yard drive.

In the opening 30 minutes, Montana had 286 yards of offense with 151 yards passing and 135 yards rushing. Comparatively, North Dakota recorded 136 yards of offense, led by 82 yards on the ground. The UND defense had three sacks in the opening half.

North Dakota will host Idaho State on Saturday. The Fighting Hawks and Bengals are set to battle inside the Alerus Center at 1 p.m. The game will air on Midco Sports and will be carried on the Fighting Hawks Radio Network.

Postgame Notes

• North Dakota is now 16-9-1 all-time in the series with Montana.
• The win extends UND’s nation leading home opening win streak to 38 wins.
• It was the largest comeback win for North Dakota since Nov. 12, 2016, vs. Northern Arizona (W, 38-31). The Hawks trailed by 21 points in the third quarter against the Lumberjacks.
• The victory gives NoDak its second-highest ranked win and highest-ranked win over a non-conference foe in UND’s Division I history. The highest ranked win in UND’s Division I history came on Feb. 27, 2021, a 28-17 win over No. 3 South Dakota State.
• Coach Schweigert is now 11-10 in games starting after 5 p.m. in his coaching career at UND.
• Simon Romfo was the second-best rusher for UND in the game, rushing seven times for 57 yards. He finished the day 11-for-24 for 97 yards and surrendered one interception. The Grizzlies only sacked the elusive QB once.
• Romfo had the most rushing yards by a NoDak quarterback since Keaton Studsrud rushed for 97 yards on Oct. 7, 2017, in a 48-38 win over Northern Colorado.
• Bo Belquist was the top receiver for the Hawks, hauling in four grabs for 33 yards. He is now tied for UND’s Division I record for receptions in a career with Greg Hardin (2010-13). Both Belquist and Hardin sit tied for the record with 216 grabs in their careers.
• On the game-winning drive, NoDak faced fourth-and-short at the Montana 44 and Quincy Vaughn picked up the first down to extend the drive.
• Montana was outgained by a 204-34 margin in total yardage in the second half. The Griz had only 17 offensive plays over four drives in the final 30 minutes. Their final drive went 34 yards and included their lone first down of the half, after their first three possessions netted zero yards of offense.

How It Happened
First Quarter
11:08 – UM | Xavier Harris scores on a 37-yard pass from Keali’I Ah Yat. (Ty Morrison kick). 4 plays, 56 yards, 1:20.
6:28 – UM | Eli Gillman scores on a 63-yard rush. (Morrison kick). 2 plays, 70 yards, 0:44.
4:15 – UND | Isaiah Smith scores on a 30-yard rush. (C.J. Elrichs kick). 5 plays, 70 yards, 2:07.
1:08 – UM | Aaron Fontes scores on an 18-yard rush. (Morrison kick). 7 plays, 65 yards, 3:07.
Second Quarter
0:00 – UM | Morrison connects on a 30-yard field goal. 11 plays, 65 yards, 1:51.
Third Quarter
9:28 – UND | Gaven Ziebarth scores on a two-yard rush. (Elrichs kick). 10 plays, 75 yards, 5:32.
6:32 – UND | Simon Romfo scores on a 19-yard rush. (Elrichs kick). 5 plays, 58 yards, 2:01.
Fourth Quarter
11:12 – UND | Elrichs connects on a 19-yard field goal. 16 plays, 67 yards, 8:11.
2:16 – UND | Elrichs connects on a 40-yard field goal. 14 plays, 43 yards, 7:44.

Game Recap: Football | 9/7/2024 10:39:00 PM | Tyler Wells, FightingHawks.com