UND scores 20 unanswered points to stun No. 4 Montana 27-24

GRAND FORKS — The UND football program broke out its legends Saturday night in the 2024 home opener against No. 4 Montana.

Minnesota Vikings veteran Jim Kleinsasser flipped the coin toss. Canadian Football League Hall of Famer Weston Dressler was recognized at a first-half timeout.

In the second half against the Griz, UND’s current roster turned in a performance befitting of the decorated guests.

UND rattled off 20 unanswered second-half points and C.J. Elrichs’ 40-yard field goal with 2 minutes, 16 seconds left gave the No. 23 Fighting Hawks a 27-24 win over No. 4 Montana.

UND won a national-best 38th consecutive home opener.

“Great win for our guys and our program,” UND coach Bubba Schweigert said. “I was really proud of our guys. We did not play well in the first half. We came out and responded. Our offensive line took control of the game.”

UND trailed 24-7 at halftime and Simon Romfo, making his first Grand Forks start, was just 5-for-14 for 54 yards and an interception.

The Griz, meanwhile, had 286 yards of offense at halftime and freshman quarterback Keali’i Ah Yat had 151 passing yards on 17-for-22 passing.

“We just kept it together as a team,” said UND nose guard Craig Orlando, who had two quarterback sacks. “First half, we came out slow. Second half, we knew we had to achieve greatness.”

The UND comeback started quick in the second half.

The Hawks opened with a scoring drive, jump-started by a Simon Romfo 17-yard run and a defensive pass interference in the end zone. Gaven Ziebarth capped the drive with a 2-yard run to trim the lead to 24-14.

After a quick three-and-out thanks to a third down breakup from corner Devin Hembry, UND scored a second time in the quarter on just five plays. On the scoring play, Romfo fumbled the snap, picked it up in the backfield and buried ahead for a 19-yard touchdown run in which he carried a defender the final few yards into the end zone. Romfo’s touchdown run cut the Griz lead to 24-21.

The Griz countered with another three-and-out thanks to a Josh Navratil sack on third down.

UND again went on a long drive, a staple through two weeks of the season. On the 17th play of the drive, Schweigert elected to kick a short field goal on fourth-and-goal from the 2 to tie the game at 24.

Once again, UND’s defense turned in a three-and-out. This time, UND linebacker Dylan Boecker broke through the line of scrimmage on third down to force an incompletion.

UND then chewed up more than seven minutes of clock as an inexperienced offensive line once again went to work.

On fourth-and-3 from the 24, Elrichs, who missed a kick last week at Iowa State, nailed the 40-yarder to take the lead.

“I knew there was a really good chance to go to a field goal,” Elrichs said. “Great snap by David. Great hold by Simon. The line was blocking great. It was a really cool moment.”

The Griz, however, had plenty of time to respond. Montana started its drive at its own 29.

On fourth-and-1 from the Griz 39, Ah Yat broke through the line for a 31-yard scamper to put pressure on the UND defense.

After an incompletion on first down, UND linebacker Wyatt Pedigo sacked Ah Yat. On third down, UND busted up a screen pass.

On fourth-and17, Montana attempted a 54-yard field goal with 39 seconds left and missed.

“Great job by (Schweigert) and what a great win for their program,” Montana coach Bobby Hauck said. “Obviously, not very good job by us. Can’t do what we did in the second half and hope to hold on to a big lead or win whatsoever. That starts with me. I have to do a better job figuring out how to get a first down.”