Troy Andersen had a day on Saturday
Photo by: Garrett Becker
BOBCAT FOOTBALL SUNDAY NOTEBOOK #4: Troy Andersen Makes History on Saturday
9/23/2018 8:04:00 PM | Football
In return to quarterback, MSU sophomore sets school record for rushing yards at that position
A look back at Montana State's 43-23 win over Portland State last weekend...
PLAYER OF THE WEEK NOMINATIONS
OFFENSE: Troy Andersen, QB (6-3, 225, So, Dillon, MT) – After playing a limited role the last two weeks – with zero snaps at quarterback since the season opener – due to a hand injury, Troy Andersen resumed his starting role behind center against Portland State with authority. The Bobcat sophomore gained 211 yards rushing, setting an MSU rushing record for quarterbacks with 207 yards (he gained four yards as a running back) and two touchdowns. He also threw for 107 yards and a touchdown, and perhaps his most important single play was a 32-yard reception (thrown by Tucker Rovig). In the early moments of the second quarter, Rovig took the helm at quarterback with the game tied 6-6, and on the first play of the drive found Andersen on a wheel route. That play set MSU up at the Portland State 29, and three plays later the Cats scored. The game would never be tied again. Andersen logged his career long run (a 66-yard touchdown) and pass (a 53-yard TD to Kevin Kassis) on Saturday, along with the second-longest reception of his career (32 yards). In addition to being the school rushing record for a quarterback, his 211 yards was ninth-most in school history. In his career, Andersen has gained 938 rushing yards with 10 touchdowns in 15 games despite spending time on defense intermittently. Andersen's 207 rushing yards as a quarterback is second-most in Big Sky history, behind Chris Brown's 226 yards against Montana in 2014.
DEFENSE: Bryce Sterk, DE (6-5, 250, Jr, Lynden, WA) – Bobcat junior Bryce Sterk led Montana State's effort to harass elusive Portland State quarterback Davis Alexander throughout Saturday's 43-23 MSU win over the Vikings. Stark logged six tackles, 2.5 for a loss, with two sacks. His five sacks and 8.5 TFL each lead the team. And his 1.25 sacks and 2.12 tackles-for-loss per game each lead the Big Sky Conference, as well.
SPECIAL TEAMS: none
FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK: Isaiah Ifanse, RB (5-10, 190, Fr, Tacoma, WA) – Following his breakout 146-yard rushing day against Wagner in week three, Isaiah Ifanse made Bobcat history on Saturday by rushing for 100 yards on 19 carries Saturday, and also scored two touchdowns. Ifanse two-yard score on MSU's first drive pushed the Bobcats into the lead, and his second score early in the second quarter broke a tie and boosted the Cats into the lead they would never relinquish. Ifanse became the first Bobcat freshman in history to rush for at least 100 yards in two of his first four games, and the second to do so in back-to-back games (Aaron Mason accomplished that in 2006). His 261 rushing yards in 2018 is just shy of MSU's freshman top 10 list.
POST-GAME NEWS & NOTES
Injury Report: Out Indefinitely – LB Balue Chapman, LB Josh Hill, WR Jabarri Johnson, RB Logan Jones.
• Troy Andersen rushed for 211 yards Saturday, ninth-most in Bobcat history, and his 207 yards from the quarterback position is a school record.
• Andersen's 66-yard run was his career-long, his 53-yard touchdown pass to Kevin Kassis was a career long, and his 32-yard reception from Tucker Rovig was the second-longest of his career.
• In 15 career games, Andersen has rushed for 938 yards and 10 touchdowns – and he has spent time on defense and limited by a hand injury during that time.
• Isiah Ifanse became the first Bobcat freshman in history to rush for at least 100 yards in two of his first four games, and the second to string together back-to-back 100-yard rushing games, by gaining 100 against Portland State on Saturday. He also scored two touchdowns.
• Of Montana State's 756 rushing yards through four games, Troy Andersen has gained 423 (55.9%) and Isaiah Ifanse 261 (33.2%). The 684 combined rushing yards from Andersen and Ifanse accounts for 90.4% of the team's total.
• The Bobcat defense continued its fourth-quarter excellence Saturday, shutting out Portland State in the final period. The Bobcats have allowed 10 fourth-quarter points this season, 68 over the last two seasons (4.5 per game covering 15 games), and 136 in Ty Gregorak's 26 games coordinating the MSU defense (5.2 per game).
• The Cats have surrendered just two sacks in 2018, and at 0.5 per game stands 14th in the FCS and second in the Big Sky.
• Junior end Bryce Sterk leads the Big Sky with 1.25 sacks per game and 2.12 tackles-for-loss per game.
• Tristan Bailey stayed perfect on field goals Saturday, connecting on a 29-yarder, to run his string to 7-for-7. He did, however, miss a PAT, and is now 11-for-14 in that category this season.
• When opening Big Sky Conference play on the road, Montana State has now won eight straight games and 11 of its last 12.
• Only six of Jered Padmos' 23 punts have been returned this season, and on Saturday only three of Tristan Bailey's eight kickoffs were returned (the rest resulted in fair catches).
• The Cats have scored 40 points in consecutive games for the first time since opening 2015 with four straight such contests.
The Bobcats rushed for 323 yards on Saturday, the seventh time the team has surpassed the 300-yard rushing mark in a game in Jeff Choate's 26 games as MSU's head coach.
• The Bobcats have lost just four fumbles in the last 15 games.
STAT SNIPPETS
Montana State is second in the Big Sky in tackles-for-loss and fourth in sacks, while Eastern Washington is second in sacks allowed… Troy Andersen (51 carries) and Isaiah Ifanse (50 carries) have each accounted for one-third of Montana State's rushing attempts this season… Eastern Washington is fifth in the FCS in scoring offense (45.8 points a game), while the Cats stand 54th in scoring defense (28.8)… MSU is eighth nationally in tackles-for-loss allowed per game, 10th in sacks allowed per game.
PLAYER OF THE WEEK NOMINATIONS
OFFENSE: Troy Andersen, QB (6-3, 225, So, Dillon, MT) – After playing a limited role the last two weeks – with zero snaps at quarterback since the season opener – due to a hand injury, Troy Andersen resumed his starting role behind center against Portland State with authority. The Bobcat sophomore gained 211 yards rushing, setting an MSU rushing record for quarterbacks with 207 yards (he gained four yards as a running back) and two touchdowns. He also threw for 107 yards and a touchdown, and perhaps his most important single play was a 32-yard reception (thrown by Tucker Rovig). In the early moments of the second quarter, Rovig took the helm at quarterback with the game tied 6-6, and on the first play of the drive found Andersen on a wheel route. That play set MSU up at the Portland State 29, and three plays later the Cats scored. The game would never be tied again. Andersen logged his career long run (a 66-yard touchdown) and pass (a 53-yard TD to Kevin Kassis) on Saturday, along with the second-longest reception of his career (32 yards). In addition to being the school rushing record for a quarterback, his 211 yards was ninth-most in school history. In his career, Andersen has gained 938 rushing yards with 10 touchdowns in 15 games despite spending time on defense intermittently. Andersen's 207 rushing yards as a quarterback is second-most in Big Sky history, behind Chris Brown's 226 yards against Montana in 2014.
DEFENSE: Bryce Sterk, DE (6-5, 250, Jr, Lynden, WA) – Bobcat junior Bryce Sterk led Montana State's effort to harass elusive Portland State quarterback Davis Alexander throughout Saturday's 43-23 MSU win over the Vikings. Stark logged six tackles, 2.5 for a loss, with two sacks. His five sacks and 8.5 TFL each lead the team. And his 1.25 sacks and 2.12 tackles-for-loss per game each lead the Big Sky Conference, as well.
SPECIAL TEAMS: none
FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK: Isaiah Ifanse, RB (5-10, 190, Fr, Tacoma, WA) – Following his breakout 146-yard rushing day against Wagner in week three, Isaiah Ifanse made Bobcat history on Saturday by rushing for 100 yards on 19 carries Saturday, and also scored two touchdowns. Ifanse two-yard score on MSU's first drive pushed the Bobcats into the lead, and his second score early in the second quarter broke a tie and boosted the Cats into the lead they would never relinquish. Ifanse became the first Bobcat freshman in history to rush for at least 100 yards in two of his first four games, and the second to do so in back-to-back games (Aaron Mason accomplished that in 2006). His 261 rushing yards in 2018 is just shy of MSU's freshman top 10 list.
POST-GAME NEWS & NOTES
Injury Report: Out Indefinitely – LB Balue Chapman, LB Josh Hill, WR Jabarri Johnson, RB Logan Jones.
• Troy Andersen rushed for 211 yards Saturday, ninth-most in Bobcat history, and his 207 yards from the quarterback position is a school record.
• Andersen's 66-yard run was his career-long, his 53-yard touchdown pass to Kevin Kassis was a career long, and his 32-yard reception from Tucker Rovig was the second-longest of his career.
• In 15 career games, Andersen has rushed for 938 yards and 10 touchdowns – and he has spent time on defense and limited by a hand injury during that time.
• Isiah Ifanse became the first Bobcat freshman in history to rush for at least 100 yards in two of his first four games, and the second to string together back-to-back 100-yard rushing games, by gaining 100 against Portland State on Saturday. He also scored two touchdowns.
• Of Montana State's 756 rushing yards through four games, Troy Andersen has gained 423 (55.9%) and Isaiah Ifanse 261 (33.2%). The 684 combined rushing yards from Andersen and Ifanse accounts for 90.4% of the team's total.
• The Bobcat defense continued its fourth-quarter excellence Saturday, shutting out Portland State in the final period. The Bobcats have allowed 10 fourth-quarter points this season, 68 over the last two seasons (4.5 per game covering 15 games), and 136 in Ty Gregorak's 26 games coordinating the MSU defense (5.2 per game).
• The Cats have surrendered just two sacks in 2018, and at 0.5 per game stands 14th in the FCS and second in the Big Sky.
• Junior end Bryce Sterk leads the Big Sky with 1.25 sacks per game and 2.12 tackles-for-loss per game.
• Tristan Bailey stayed perfect on field goals Saturday, connecting on a 29-yarder, to run his string to 7-for-7. He did, however, miss a PAT, and is now 11-for-14 in that category this season.
• When opening Big Sky Conference play on the road, Montana State has now won eight straight games and 11 of its last 12.
• Only six of Jered Padmos' 23 punts have been returned this season, and on Saturday only three of Tristan Bailey's eight kickoffs were returned (the rest resulted in fair catches).
• The Cats have scored 40 points in consecutive games for the first time since opening 2015 with four straight such contests.
The Bobcats rushed for 323 yards on Saturday, the seventh time the team has surpassed the 300-yard rushing mark in a game in Jeff Choate's 26 games as MSU's head coach.
• The Bobcats have lost just four fumbles in the last 15 games.
STAT SNIPPETS
Montana State is second in the Big Sky in tackles-for-loss and fourth in sacks, while Eastern Washington is second in sacks allowed… Troy Andersen (51 carries) and Isaiah Ifanse (50 carries) have each accounted for one-third of Montana State's rushing attempts this season… Eastern Washington is fifth in the FCS in scoring offense (45.8 points a game), while the Cats stand 54th in scoring defense (28.8)… MSU is eighth nationally in tackles-for-loss allowed per game, 10th in sacks allowed per game.
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