The South Dakota State football team ended its season Saturday with a 50-29 loss to the Montana Grizzlies in the second round of the FCS playoffs.
“We had an opportunity early to almost open up a three-score game,” head coach Dan Jackson said in a postgame radio interview. “We just didn’t make the plays then. And then when Montana got rolling … and gave their defense some confidence, we became a little one-dimensional there on offense because of the score.”
Quarterback Chase Mason threw for 356 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions in the loss. Mason completed 19 of 36 passes. He also added two touchdowns on the ground on seven carries.
“From the day that I got here, he’s been a rock,” Jackson said of Mason. “The first thing he told me in the locker room is that he could play better. That’s who you want leading your team and your program.”
Mason’s lone touchdown pass was to Grahm Goering, who hauled in four passes for a game-high 137 yards and the score.
Senior Alex Bullock also had a big day with six catches for 116 yards, averaging more than 19 yards per catch.
The leading rusher for the Jacks was Josiah Johnson, who had 10 carries for 44 yards. James Basinger found the end zone on one carry from 4 yards out.
For the Grizzlies, quarterback Keali’i Ah Yat threw for 360 yards and four touchdowns while completing 29 of 37 passes.
Montana running back Eli Gillman ran for 135 yards and found the end zone twice on 24 rushing attempts.
Michael Wortham was the leading receiver for the Grizzlies, catching eight passes for 113 yards and one touchdown.
The game started with a bang for the Jackrabbits, but not in a good way. On the opening drive, Mason dropped back and was intercepted by Montana safety T.J. Rausch.
Montana took over and drove down the field. On fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line, the offense stayed on the field, but the Jackrabbit defense stood tall as Logan Greene tackled Malae Fonoti in the backfield for a 3-yard loss.
After a 1-yard gain for the Jackrabbits on first down, SDSU faced a second-and-9 from its own 5-yard line. Mason found Goering over the middle, and Goering outran everyone 95 yards for a touchdown to put the Jacks up 7-0.
“I think it’s just a clear picture of what this team is made of,” Jackson said. “Goal-line stands don’t happen very often. And for those guys to rise up and do it assertively and set the offense up there was huge.”
It didn’t take Montana long to respond. On third-and-4, Ah Yat threw a 45-yard touchdown to Stevie Rocker Jr. Montana scored but missed the extra point, allowing SDSU to maintain a 7-6 lead.
South Dakota State drove down the field, aided by a 30-yard Mason-to-Bullock connection. Mason punched in a 1-yard rushing touchdown to put the Jacks up 14-6.
Montana once again drove the field, but the SDSU defense stood strong and held the Grizzlies to a field goal that cut the lead to 14-9.
SDSU went three-and-out, and Montana capitalized with a 5-yard touchdown run by Gillman. Montana went for two and was denied, making the score 15-14 Grizzlies.
SDSU punted, followed by a Montana punt and another SDSU punt. Montana took advantage this time, and Ah Yat threw a 5-yard touchdown to Rocker Jr. Montana went into halftime up 22-14.
Montana and SDSU traded punts coming out of the half before Montana got back on the board with an 80-yard drive, capped by a 29-yard touchdown connection from Ah Yat to Drew Deck to make it 29-14.
The Jackrabbit offense once again came up empty with another punt, and the Grizzlies offense kept rolling with another score, this time a 28-yard touchdown pass from Ah Yat to Wortham to give the Grizzlies a comfortable 36-14 lead.
The next four possessions all ended in touchdowns: a Mason rushing touchdown for the Jacks, a Gillman rushing touchdown for Montana, a Basinger rushing touchdown and a Fonoti rushing touchdown.
Mason was intercepted on the next drive, and the game ended with a final score of 50-29.
Despite the loss ending its season, Jackson remained optimistic about the trajectory of the program.
“I think the foundation was laid this year and it was laid really strong,” Jackson said. “This group showed that South Dakota State football is not going anywhere. And if anything, I know exactly where it’s going, and it’s going up.”
