Griz seek third national title against Jackrabbits
Montana's magical postseason run reaches its zenith this week as the 2023 Griz have the chance to etch themselves in the history books as national champions.
The Griz head to Frisco, Texas in search of the program's third FCS/1-AA title. They'll take on the No. 1 ranked South Dakota State Jackrabbits. Kickoff from Frisco is set for noon, mountain time.
The championship game will be broadcast live and free of charge to millions of TV sets nationwide on ABC, with a stream available on ESPN+. The game marks Montana's first-ever appearance on national network TV.
Roy Philpott will have the play-by-play call, Roddy Jones will serve as the analyst and Taylor McGregor will report from the sidelines at Toyota Stadium.
Ranked No. 2 in the nation after rattling off 10 straight wins, six of which were over ranked opponents, Montana (13-1) enters the title match with a full head of steam, buoyed by a pair of epic overtime wins in the quarterfinal and semifinal.
They'll need all that momentum in Frisco, however, as they collide with the No. 1 seed and undefeated South Dakota State Jackrabbits (14-0, 8-0 MVFC), the defending national champions and winners of 28 straight games. Their last loss was in the 2022 season opener – a 7-3 battle royale against the Big 10's Iowa Hawkeyes.
At times, the Jackrabbits have made it look easy this season as well, pitching three shutouts and averaging nearly 40 points per game. They also eked out a win over Montana State 20-16 at home in September, the same Bobcat team the Griz trounced 37-7 in Missoula.
It sets up a national championship game between two of the bluest of FCS blueblood programs and a heavyweight bout that pits strength on strength in all three phases of the game.
SDSU is led by star QB Mark Gronowski who leads the nation in pass efficiency at 182.7 and is averaging an FCS-best 10.08 yards per completion. He'll have to contend, however, with Montana's pass efficiency defense which is third in the FCS at 110.25. And consider this: the last four starting QB's Montana has faced, arguably some of the best in the FCS, have completed an average of just 28 percent of their passes and none have passed for more than 200 yards.
Montana's defense has also been stellar on third down, forcing NDSU to go 3-for-13, helping lead to UM's third-ranked third down percentage which allows opponents to convert just 29 percent of their opportunities. SDSU, however, leads the nation in third down conversion percentage, moving the chains 55 percent of the time.
Offensively the Griz are ultra-balanced, are veteran up front, have weapons at receiver and in the run game, and are guided by a dual-threat QB that keeps defenses honest with his arm and his legs.
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