CATS IN CAMP DAY NINE: Isaiah Ifanse Finds End Zone Three Times in Initial Scrimmage

Isaiah Ifanse and Mitch Brott celebrat a touchdown

Photo by: Andrew Pedersen

CATS IN CAMP DAY NINE: Isaiah Ifanse Finds End Zone Three Times in Initial Scrimmage

8/10/2019 8:41:00 PM | Football

Offense, defense each provide positives in first preseason scrimmage

By: Bill Lamberty

BOZEMAN, Montana – Isaiah Ifanse rushed for three touchdowns and Montana State's defense forced three turnovers during the Bobcats' first scrimmage of preseason camp in Bobcat Stadium on Saturday.

"I thought it was a really good first scrimmage," said Bobcat head coach Jeff Choate. "I thought it was a really balanced day. Defensively there were some guys who stepped up, I thought there were some really good things in our red zone and short yardage periods, some guys (getting stops). We had a fourth-and-one challenge that the defense did a really nice job in. Offensively we were able to push the ball down the field on occasion, the defense had (three) takeaways, and that's always one of our goals as a team."

The talk of camp has been the battle between sophomore Tucker Rovig and redshirt freshman Casey Bauman for starting quarterback honors, and Choate addressed that situation up front. "I can't really give you that answer right now," he said. "That's going to come through us sitting down as a staff and going through it in a very detailed fashion and evaluating that. If we're ready to make a decision we'll make that announcement on Monday, and if we're not we won't make that announcement."

Neither Rovig nor Bauman wore red jerseys on Saturday. "They were live and I think it was good for them," Choate said. Rovig was drilled from behind by senior linebacker Walker Cozzie on one play, but Choate was pleased with how he responded. "Tuck picked himself up, dusted himself off and went right back to work. That's what we were looking for. I thought it was important for those quarterbacks to be live today so they could see what it's like and give us a chance for a more balanced evaluation."

Bauman finished 6-for-11 with two interceptions for 77 yards. He threw a three-yard pass to Kevin Kassis for the days final touchdown. Kassis caught five passes for 45 yards, and Isaiah Ifanse carried 11 times for 44 yards and three scoring runs. "Isaiah ran the ball really well today," Choate said.

The day wasn't without its drawbacks. In addition to the turnovers, penalties plagued the offense occasionally. "We had a few penalties, it was the first time we had officials here, (there were) some holds, I think we had a chop clock called, and it's going to be a really good learning opportunity. Both those plays came on second down play where we (gained) a first down. So we went from a second-and-five so now it would be first-and-10 but instead it's second-and-15, so those are great learning opportunities and how that can impact a drive."

At the day's end, evaluating the quarterback stood out as a key component of the day. "I thought they both showed good poise. There was some short-yardage stuff where I was standing back behind the huddle and heard, 'Let's go get this done,' and that's the right demeanor you want from them."

Montana State returns to practice at 10:30 am in Bobcat Stadium.

RUSHING LEADERS
Isaiah Ifanse 11-44-3, DeMareus Hosey 5-25-0, Travis Jonsen 3-19-0, Karl Tucker II 3-17-0.

PASSING LEADERS
Casey Bauman 6-11-2, 77, 1; Tucker Rovig 3-7-1, 14, 0; Ruben Beltran 3-3-0, 42, 0.

RECEIVING LEADERS
Kevin Kassis 5-45-1, Travis Jonsen 2-43-0, Coy Steel 1-30-0, Mark Estes 1-9-0, DeMareus Hosey 1-2-0, Willie Patterson 1-4-0, Tyrone Marshall 1-9-0.

DEFENSIVE HIGHLIGHTS
Interceptions: Greg Filer-1, Jahque Alleyne-1, Ty Okada-1.
Pass Breakups: Amandre Williams-1, Walker Cozzie-1.
Tackles-for-Loss: Nolan Askelson-1.
Forced Fumble: Eric Zambrano-1.

SCORING PLAYS
Tristan Bailey 34 FG
Tristan Bailey 42 FG
Isaiah Ifanse 3 run (no PAT)
Isaiah Ifanse (13 run (no PAT)
Isaiah Ifanse 8 run (Tristan Bailey)
Caleb Mancini 23 FG
Kevin Kassis 3 pass from Casey Bauman