Adam Pearson, USD

17

South Dakota
USD

11-3, 7-1

31

winner

Montana St.
MSU

15-0, 8-0

South Dakota
USD

11-3, 7-1

17

31

Montana St.
MSU

15-0, 8-0

winner

Points by quarters

team	1	2	3	4	F
USD South Dakota	7	7	3	0	17
MSU Montana St.	14	10	7	0	31

Match Review: Football | 12/21/2024 | Steve Carlson, deputy AD for communications

BOZEMAN, Mont. — On an unseasonably mild day in mid-December in Big Sky country, it was the top-ranked Montana State Bobcats (15-0, 8-0 Big Sky) defending home stadium as the No. 4 seed South Dakota Coyotes (11-3, 7-1 MVFC) Season ends with a 31-17 loss in the FCS semifinals.

The offense was king in the first 30 minutes of play at Bobcat Stadium, with the two teams combining for five touchdowns and 38 points in the first half.

South Dakota won the coin toss and elected to postpone until the second half. The Bobcats opened the game with the ball and quickly advanced into Coyote territory. On his second pass attempt of the day, Tommy Mellott hit Taco Dowler for a 34-yard touchdown strike to take an early 7-0 lead.

The Coyote offense would get its first chance of the afternoon Travis Theis (Sr., Pratt, Kan.) ran 55 yards on a throw to quickly tie the contest at 7-7, recording his longest rush of his USD career.

The two defenses began to align as both teams traded punts on their second possession. Montana State turned the ball over again near the end of the first quarter and took a 14-7 lead heading into the second quarter.

On the way to the start of the second, Charles Pierre Jr. (So., Orlando, Fla.) broke off a 45-yard dash on the first play of the quarter that led to the second 45+ yard touchdown run of the day, again tying the game at 14-14.

The Bobcats would use their running game to force the ball back into USD territory, eventually back into the red zone. Montana State scored its third goal of the day midway through the second quarter to make it 21-14.

With less than a minute left in the half, Montana State would advance into the red zone, but the USD defense stood firm and forced a field goal as the Bobcats took a 24-14 lead into the Bobcat Stadium locker room.

The Bobcats would extend their lead on their first possession of the second half when Mellott dropped the third down snap, caught it and ran it 41 yards for a 31-14 lead with 10:30 to play in the third quarter to take over.

When they needed it most, the Yote defense forced a three-pointer and pinned the Bobcats inside their own 10-yard line. South Dakota would take plus territory at the MSU 48-yard line with five minutes to play in the third. Aidan Bouman (Jr., Buffalo, Minn.) would find Carter Bell (Sr., Bettendorf, Iowa) on the drag route for a 24-yard gain.

Will Leyland (Jr., Souderton, Pa.) converted a 46-yard field goal attempt to cut the lead to 31-17 late in the third quarter. The field goal marked a new season for the junior kicker.

The Coyote defense would again quickly run the Bobcats off the field with a three-and-out. The Bobcat punter got a leg on the punt and turned the field over as the ball landed at the USD 20-yard line while Bouman and Co. took the field again with two minutes left in the third quarter.

The three running backs got touchdowns on the drive to end the frame, Bouman notes L.J. Phillips Jr. (R-Fr., Wichita, Kan.) out of the backfield for seven yards and a first down to send the game to the fourth. On the drive, Theis recorded his fifth 100-yard rushing game.

Bouman would then find it JJ Galbreath (Sr., Arvada, Colo.) in front of the Coyote bench on the opposite side for a 23-yard gain as the Yotes would continue their march into the red zone. Up until a fourth down and long, the Yotes, just one yard short, would turn the ball over on downs inside MSU’s five-yard line.

The Bobcats would take the lead by a score of 31-17 with 8:42 to play. Despite the Yotes’ push, the score remained 31-17 at the final whistle, with top-seeded Montana State remaining undefeated and advancing to Frisco.

The Coyotes finish their season with an 11-3 overall record and a 7-1 record in the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC), securing a share of the Valley title for the first time in program history. With 11 wins, South Dakota also tied the program record for most wins in a single season (1986 season) and advanced to the furthest FCS playoff berth (semifinals) in program history for the second straight season.