Aggies overwhelm Montana, set up decisive battle at home with Montana State
Aggies overwhelm Montana, set up decisive battle at home with Montana State
Defense shines as UC Davis posts impressive 30-14 win before sellout crowd
MISSOULA, Montana ... No. 4 UC Davis dominated the second half to take a hard-earned 30-14 win over No. 7 Montana to virtually lock up an FCS playoff bid and set up a potential Big Sky Conference championship game next Saturday in Davis against No. 2 Montana State, a 49-7 winner over Sacramento State.
The Aggies, winners of nine straight, are now 9-1 overall and 6-0 in the Big Sky, while Montana slips to 7-3 and 4-2.
The game was played before a crowd of 26,012 at Washington-Grizzly Stadium, the 16th straight sellout at one of the toughest venues in college football at any level.
The giant scoreboard at the south end of Washington-Grizzly noted in a pregame message that Montana is 234-36 in their familiar home.
Make that 234-37.
“I can’t really put it into words right now,” said Aggie head coach Tim Plough.
“I’m just so proud of them. They just play together so well. I didn’t know we’d have this much success so soon.”
The Aggies led, 13-7, at half, but Montana was not about to go quietly into the chilly night, taking a 14-13 lead midway through the third quarter on a three-yard run by quarterback Keali'i Ah Yat.
UCD retook the lead on a 22-yard pass from Miles Hastings to Ian Simpson and the Aggies never looked back.
