MISSOULA — Washington-Grizzly Stadium was a wintry playoff wonderland for Montana on Saturday night.

The No. 2-seeded Grizzlies took care of business with a 49-19 second-round victory in the at-times driving snow versus visiting Delaware to advance to the quarterfinals, where they will host seventh-seeded Furman next week.

The win improved UM’s record to 11-1, its most wins in a season since 2009. FBS-bound Delaware, playing in its final FCS postseason game, finished its season with a 9-4 record.

Making his FCS playoff debut, Griz quarterback Clifton McDowell remained unflappable despite throwing an interception on UM’s first possession. McDowell accounted for three touchdowns and managed the elements in the first half to help the Grizzlies build a big cushion.

Montana led 16-0 early in the second quarter after a Nico Ramos field goal, a 27-yard touchdown run by Xavier Harris and a 35-yard TD run by Nick Ostmo.

The advantage grew to 35-12 by halftime as McDowell threw a 45-yard touchdown pass to Keelan White and and later ran one in from 20 yards. Ramos added another field goal in that stretch, and the Griz also scored a safety on an air-mailed punt snap that went out of the back of the end zone.

If the nail hadn’t already been driven into the coffin by then, safety Jaxon Lee returned a fumble 48 yards for another touchdown early in the third quarter to put Montana up 42-12.

Delaware quarterback Ryan O’Connor put together a gutsy performance, accounting for 197 yards and had a hand in three TDs but it wasn’t nearly enough for the Blue Hens.

James Dobson / MTN Sports

Turning point: Leading 3-0 in the first quarter following a 43-yard field goal by Nico Ramos, the Grizzlies made a huge special teams play when Sawyer Racanelli blocked a punt by Ryan Kost to set up their offense at the 27 yard line.

On the next play, Harris took a handoff to the right, shed a tackle and found the end zone from 27-yards to help put Montana ahead 10-0. It was an uphill climb for Delaware from there.

Stat of the game: Again, Montana’s defense stood tallest on the “money downs,” holding Delaware to a 5-for-16 success rate on third down and 3 for 7 on fourth downs. Five of the Blue Hens’ 23 first downs came by way of penalty.

Grizzly game balls: QB Clifton McDowell (Offense). McDowell, who also threw a second-half TD pass to tight end Evan Shafer, had 186 passing yards with two touchdowns and rushed for 51 and another score in a balanced effort.

DL Alex Gubner (Defense). Gubner, the Big Sky Conference defensive player of the year, doesn’t light up the stat sheet but his presence is always felt in the interior line. That was no different Saturday, and he was a thorn in Delaware’s side all night.

WR Sawyer Racanelli (Special teams). Racanelli has made some big plays on offense this season but his fully extended blocked punt made a huge impact early helping the Griz take a two-score lead that the Blue Hens couldn’t come back from.

What’s next: Montana will welcome Furman to Washington-Grizzly Stadium for a quarterfinal game, which will be played either Friday or Saturday. The Paladins (10-2) beat Chattanooga 26-7 in the second-round on Saturday. The winner will earn a berth in the semifinals.

The Grizzlies and Paladins have met just once before, and it was a significant game in Montana football history. The Griz defeated Furman 13-6 in the 2001 Division I-AA national championship game in Chattanooga, Tenn., the second of the program’s two national titles.

Steve Alford often praises the Nevada team’s defense and the defense was outstanding, again, on Saturday night.

The Wolf Pack cruised past Loyola Marymount, 73-59, in front of 7,851 fans at Lawlor Events Center on Saturday, thanks largely to holding the Lions to 33 percent shooting from the field (23-59).

Jarod Lucas led the Wolf Pack with 20 points, Nick Davidson added 12 and Tre Coleman had 10 as Nevada improved to 6-0. The Pack dished out 17 assists and had just five turnovers.

Nevada lost at Loyola Marymount last season.

“I loved our energy,” Alford said after Saturday’s win. “I loved our attention to detail defensively. We really defended. We worked the last 48 hours working on ball pressure because we didn’t like what it was against Montana.”

Nevada beat Montana, 77-66, on Nov. 29,

Nevada is one of 16 remaining unbeaten Division I teams in the nation. Nevada has trailed for just 3:52 of game time this the season.

Getting defensive

Alford was happy the Pack guarded well without fouling, committing 15 foul, to 27 for the Lions.

“We really imposed our will defensively, and that’s what we’ve got to be able to do,” he said. “It was across the board defensively. Daniel Foster was terrific. Tre did a lot of great things defensively.”

Nevada made just two from the 3-point line, out of eight attempts, while the Lions were 9-30 from the arc.

Free Ones

The Wolf Pack hit 21-of-27 from the free throw line, Davidson hit 6-6 and Lucas hit 5-6; while the Lions were 10-14 from the line.

The Lions were 10-14 from the free throw line.

“We’re not shooting the ball lights out, but it’s another double-figure win because of dominating at the free throw line,” Alford said. “That’s usually an indicator sign your offense is being physical and attacking the paint.”

The Pack outscored LMU, 36-16, in the paint.

Tylan Update

Alford said Tylan Pope is about two weeks away from returning. Pope, who transferred from Tulane, suffered a hand injury before this season.

“He’s another big guard who is athletic and he ls a shot blocker. He’s a rebounder,” Alford said of the 6-foot-6, 220-pound Pope. “His gift is his physical strength.”

Series History

Nevada and LMU have played 31 times as Division I opponents, with the Lions holding a 17-14 advantage over the Pack.

Up Next

Nevada hosts UC Davis (3-3) at 6 p.m. Wednesday. The Aggies are coming off a 71-59 loss at Oregon State on Thursday.

Former Nevada player Kane Milling is a senior guard for the Aggies.

Nevada’s Upcoming Games

• Dec. 6, vs UC Davis, 6 p.m.
• Dec. 9, vs. Drake at Henderson, Nevada, 4:30 p.m.
• Dec. 13, vs. Weber State, 7 p.m.
• Dec. 17, at Hawaii, 7 p.m.
• Dec. 21, vs Temple, at Honolulu, noon
• Dec. 22, vs TCU/Old Dominion, at Honolulu
• Dec. 24, vs TBA, at Honolulu
• Dec. 30, vs. Fresno Pacific, 7 p.m.

ALBUQUERQUE, New Mexico (KVIA) — On Saturday, the Lobos and Aggies clashed for the first time in nearly two years. The home team fed off the energy from its sellout crowd all night, soundly defeating the visiting Aggies 106-62. NM State was led by Femi Odukale, who drew 12 fouls to finish with 18 points and seven rebounds. The Lobos rode a hot first half from veteran guard Jaelen House to improve to 7-1 on the season. With the loss, the Aggies are now 4-6. The two teams will meet again in just 13 days at the Pan American Center on Dec. 15. 

First Half

Jaylin Jackson-Posey knocked down the first bucket of the game from beyond the arc. However, there wasn’t much action on the offensive end immediately after. In the first nine minutes of the game, NM State only put up six shots. Luckily for the Aggies, five of the six fell, keeping them in the mix early. A media timeout came with UNM ahead 19-13 at the 10:17 mark, effectively marking the end of the first quarter of action. At that point, Christian Cook and Jackson-Posey were both two-for-two on field goals and accounted for 10 of the Aggies’ 13 points. 

After being forced to play with four men against Louisville less than a week ago, fouls plagued the Aggies once again. As a team, they committed 18 fouls in the first 20 minutes, and their 10th foul put the Lobos in the double bonus for the final 9:20 of the half. A 9-0 Lobo run swelled the lead to 40-24, forcing a timeout from Head Coach Jason Hooten with 4:24 left. The run would continue to 14-0, giving UNM a 45-24 lead before Kaosi Ezeagu hit a pair of free throws to stop the bleeding. The Aggies went nearly a fifth of the game without a field goal, being held to only nine free throws between the 9:29 and 1:33 marks. 

55 first-half Lobo points were the most by NM State or any opponent this season. The last time the Aggies allowed at least 55 points in a half was against Southern Utah on Jan. 19, 2023. The Thunderbirds dropped 58 in the first half of a 111-76 victory. UNM was led by Jaelen House, who dropped in an efficient 26 points. The graduate guard was 8-9 from the field, 5-5 from deep, and 5-5 at the free throw line in the first 20 minutes. 

Second Half

Things wouldn’t get much better for the defense after the break. UNM came out of the locker room and scored 14 points before the next media timeout, pulling ahead 69-38. Jaylin Jackson-Posey picked up his fifth foul with 10:29 remaining, sending him to the bench for the remainder of the game. The Aggies were outscored 51-30 in the second half, and shot just 33.3% from the field. Keylon Dorsey hit the team’s lone three pointer out of 10 attempts. UNM put together another 9-0 run that concluded with 3:37 left on the clock. The burst pushed the Lobos over 100, heading into the final media timeout with a 101-58 advantage. 

The two sides were comparable in most second half statistical categories. The Aggies outrebounded the Lobos 18-16, each side had four steals and the teams were only separated by one foul. The difference in the half was shotmaking, and the quality of offensive opportunities. The home team hoisted 14 three-point attempts in the final 20 minutes, and knocked down seven of them. The Lobos canned 18 of their 28 total field goals and made eight free throws. NM State couldn’t force their opponents away from their spots, and UNM took advantage, hanging another 50-plus point half.

Numbers of Note

• The last time the Aggies allowed 106 or more points was Jan. 19, 2023, when Southern Utah scored 111. 
• UNM’s 44-point margin of victory is its largest in at least the last 40 years of the rivalry series.
• NM State coughed it up 17 times to UNM’s seven. Saturday marked the second-most turnovers in a game this season, and the most since the regular-season opener at Kentucky. 
• UNM’s bench outscored NM State’s reserves 51-15. Tru Washington (21) single-handedly scored more than the Aggies’ bench unit. 
• No Aggies were positive in their minutes. All Aggies that played at least five minutes were -10 or worse. 

Up Next

The Aggies will have more than a week off before returning home to the Pan American Center. The Aggies will welcome two consecutive in-state rivals, starting with Northern NM before a rematch with New Mexico. The matchup with the Eagles is set to tip off at 7:30 PM MT on Tuesday, Dec. 12. The game will be streamed live on ESPN+ and available to follow via StatBroadcast.