Montana State University
5-6 , 3-5
MONTANA
7-4 , 6-2
Bobcats fall to Grizzlies in season finale
11/21/2015 4:18:00 PM | Football, General
On MSU's first possession, Prukop found a wide-open Beau Sandland for a 46-yard touchdown to give the Bobcats an early lead. But the Grizzlies responded with 31-unanswered points to win the Brawl of the Wild for the third straight year.
Prukop's contribution on four touchdowns gives him 39 in the 2015 campaign, a single-season Bobcat record. The junior quarterback got the Bobcats back in the endzone in the second quarter with a 2-yard scamper, but the Bobcats trailed 37-14 at halftime. The Bobcats close out the season at 5-6, their first finish below .500 since 2001.
Junior Chad Newell, who finished with 92 yards rushing, opened the second half with a touchdown dash. In the fourth quarter, Prukop hit Brandon Brown from 1-yard out and tossed a 22-yarder to Sandland, cutting the deficit to 44-35. But UM's Brady Gustafson threw his third touchdown pass to Jamal Jones to finally put the game out of reach. Prukop finished 21 of 39 for 313 yards and the three scores. Sandland, a senior, hauled in seven balls for 163 yards.
Gustafson moved the Grizzlies (7-4) closer to a playoff berth by completing 23 of 39 passes for 353 yards. In addition to the three scoring connections with Jones, he also found Ellis Henderson from 49 yards out. Jeremy Calhoun contributed with a pair of rushing touchdowns, while John Nguyen gained 134 yards on the ground. Jones caught nine passes for 132 yards.
MSU's young linebacking trio of Grant Collins, Blake Braun and Mac Bignell combined for 38 tackles and Jesse Clark recorded the only sack of Gustafson. Trace Trimmer, playing in his final MSU game, recorded an interception. Meanwhile, offensive tackle John Weidenaar started his 49th straight game, the most ever by a Bobcat.
The game was played in bright sunshine after a week of snow in Bozeman, and 20,507 fans were on hand for the 115th game between these two rivals.
Team Stats
UM 0, MSU 7
MSU - Beau Sandland 46 yd pass from Dakota Prukop (Luke Daly kick) 5 plays, 88 yards, TOP 2:03
UM 3, MSU 7
UM - Daniel Sullivan 44 yd field goal 9 plays, 43 yards, TOP 2:49
UM 10, MSU 7
UM - Jamaal Jones 8 yd pass from Brady Gustafson (Daniel Sullivan kick) 8 plays, 38 yards, TOP 2:32
UM 17, MSU 7
UM - Jeremy Calhoun 11 yd run (Daniel Sullivan kick), 3 plays, 18 yards, TOP 0:53
UM 24, MSU 7
UM - Jamaal Jones 54 yd pass from Brady Gustafson (Daniel Sullivan kick) 1 plays, 40 yards, TOP 0:08
UM 31, MSU 7
UM - Ellis Henderson 49 yd pass from Brady Gustafson (Daniel Sullivan kick) 5 plays, 71 yards, TOP 1:32
UM 31, MSU 14
MSU - Dakota Prukop 2 yd run (Luke Daly kick), 10 plays, 75 yards, TOP 3:31
UM 34, MSU 14
UM - Daniel Sullivan 32 yd field goal 8 plays, 40 yards, TOP 1:58
UM 37, MSU 14
UM - Daniel Sullivan 24 yd field goal 7 plays, 57 yards, TOP 1:11
UM 37, MSU 22
MSU - Chad Newell 4 yd run (Austin Barth pass), 4 plays, 31 yards, TOP 1:45
UM 44, MSU 22
UM - Jeremy Calhoun 10 yd run (Daniel Sullivan kick), 10 plays, 60 yards, TOP 2:01
UM 44, MSU 29
MSU - Brandon Brown 11 yd pass from Dakota Prukop (Luke Daly kick) 7 plays, 73 yards, TOP 2:11
UM 44, MSU 35
MSU - Beau Sandland 22 yd pass from Dakota Prukop (Dakota Prukop passfailed) 4 plays, 75 yards, TOP 1:21
UM 51, MSU 35
UM - Jamaal Jones 17 yd pass from Brady Gustafson (Daniel Sullivan kick) 8 plays, 75 yards, TOP 3:05
UM 54, MSU 35
UM - Daniel Sullivan 35 yd field goal 9 plays, 52 yards, TOP 3:05
