Photo by: R. Dean Hendrickson
BOBCAT CALENDAR: Montana State Earned a Signature Win at Weber State Today in 2009
10/3/2020 10:00:00 AM | Football
Michael Rider spurred a goal-line stand for the ages
A day-by-day look at Bobcat football history...
October 3
SPOTLIGHT: Every great coaching run at a school features at least one signature win. For Rob Ash, his first leading the Bobcat program came on October 3,
It was anything but a fait acompli that the Bobcats would rise to the occasion that day in Stewart Stadium. Weber State entered that day's action 2-2, but had dropped close games at Wyoming and Colorado State before pounding Idaho State and edging Portland State. The Wildcats were ranked 11th nationally when the day dawned, and were considered a legitimate Big Sky title contender under Ron McBride.
The 25th-ranked Bobcats proved a worthy opponent early. After a quick WSU field goal, CJ Palmer and Aaron Mason scored touchdowns to stake the Bobcats to a 14-3 lead. A field goal and safety late in the first quarter drew WSU withing 14-8 at the intermission, and a 68-yard Cameron Higgins scoring pass just before halftime sent the Bobcats into the intermission trailing 15-14.
Mason's one-yard leap gave the Bobcats a short-lived third quarter lead, but another scoring strike from Cameron Higgins, this time from 16 yards, gave the Wildcats a 26-21 advantage at the end of the third quarter. Palmer's six-yard run early in the fourth quarter pushed MSU back in front, this time by 26-21.
After punting on their next two possessions, the Wildcats took over at their own 20 with 3:09 to play. A defensive pass interference, a 27-yard pass from Higgins, and a personal foul on MSU set the Wildcats up with first-and-goal at the six with just seconds remaining.
At this point, a back-and-forth ball game was just about to go from interesting to amazing. And senior safety Michael Rider was in the middle of it all.
On first down, Rider tackled WSU star running back at the eight for a two-yard loss. Higgins found Derek Cosper for a four-yard gain on second down, setting up third-and-goal. Smith took the handoff up the middle and appeared headed for paydirt when Rider's lunging tackle stopped him at the one. After a time out, facing fourth-and-goal from a yard away, Higgins used Smith as a decoy and pitched the ball to Bo Bolen.
The play fooled no one. Strung out by a pursuing MSU defense, Jordan Craney and Rider collaborated to bring Bolen down and end essentially end the game with 20 seconds to play.
The jubilant celebration was a window into the significance of that win to the Bobcat program, although the traction didn't necessarily last long. The Cats lost a Homecoming tilt to NAU next time out, and dropped two more conference contests along the way to finish 7-4.
Still, the victory marked an improvement from the 7-5 mark of 2008. It also set the stage for a run to the 2010 Big Sky championship and a three-year stretch of football that led to a 30-8 record and three straight FCS Playoff appearances.
GAMES ON TODAY'S DATE
2015 - at NAU 49, MSU 41
2009 - MSU 26, at Weber State 21
1992 - NAU 13, MSU 9 HC
1987 - at Boise State 35, MSU 13
1981 - Weber State 28, MSU 20
1970 - Boise St ate17, MSU 10
1964 - San Jose St 20, MSU 14
1959 - at Arizona State 31, MSU 14
1953 - MSU 14, Western St 13
1937 - at BYU 19, MSU 0
1931 - at Utah State 21, MSU 6
1922 - MSU 46, Billings Independents 6
1914 - MSU 21, Billings Senior 0
1905 - MSU 40, Fort Shaw Indians 11
October 3
SPOTLIGHT: Every great coaching run at a school features at least one signature win. For Rob Ash, his first leading the Bobcat program came on October 3,
It was anything but a fait acompli that the Bobcats would rise to the occasion that day in Stewart Stadium. Weber State entered that day's action 2-2, but had dropped close games at Wyoming and Colorado State before pounding Idaho State and edging Portland State. The Wildcats were ranked 11th nationally when the day dawned, and were considered a legitimate Big Sky title contender under Ron McBride.
The 25th-ranked Bobcats proved a worthy opponent early. After a quick WSU field goal, CJ Palmer and Aaron Mason scored touchdowns to stake the Bobcats to a 14-3 lead. A field goal and safety late in the first quarter drew WSU withing 14-8 at the intermission, and a 68-yard Cameron Higgins scoring pass just before halftime sent the Bobcats into the intermission trailing 15-14.
Mason's one-yard leap gave the Bobcats a short-lived third quarter lead, but another scoring strike from Cameron Higgins, this time from 16 yards, gave the Wildcats a 26-21 advantage at the end of the third quarter. Palmer's six-yard run early in the fourth quarter pushed MSU back in front, this time by 26-21.
After punting on their next two possessions, the Wildcats took over at their own 20 with 3:09 to play. A defensive pass interference, a 27-yard pass from Higgins, and a personal foul on MSU set the Wildcats up with first-and-goal at the six with just seconds remaining.
At this point, a back-and-forth ball game was just about to go from interesting to amazing. And senior safety Michael Rider was in the middle of it all.
On first down, Rider tackled WSU star running back at the eight for a two-yard loss. Higgins found Derek Cosper for a four-yard gain on second down, setting up third-and-goal. Smith took the handoff up the middle and appeared headed for paydirt when Rider's lunging tackle stopped him at the one. After a time out, facing fourth-and-goal from a yard away, Higgins used Smith as a decoy and pitched the ball to Bo Bolen.
The play fooled no one. Strung out by a pursuing MSU defense, Jordan Craney and Rider collaborated to bring Bolen down and end essentially end the game with 20 seconds to play.
The jubilant celebration was a window into the significance of that win to the Bobcat program, although the traction didn't necessarily last long. The Cats lost a Homecoming tilt to NAU next time out, and dropped two more conference contests along the way to finish 7-4.
Still, the victory marked an improvement from the 7-5 mark of 2008. It also set the stage for a run to the 2010 Big Sky championship and a three-year stretch of football that led to a 30-8 record and three straight FCS Playoff appearances.
GAMES ON TODAY'S DATE
2015 - at NAU 49, MSU 41
2009 - MSU 26, at Weber State 21
1992 - NAU 13, MSU 9 HC
1987 - at Boise State 35, MSU 13
1981 - Weber State 28, MSU 20
1970 - Boise St ate17, MSU 10
1964 - San Jose St 20, MSU 14
1959 - at Arizona State 31, MSU 14
1953 - MSU 14, Western St 13
1937 - at BYU 19, MSU 0
1931 - at Utah State 21, MSU 6
1922 - MSU 46, Billings Independents 6
1914 - MSU 21, Billings Senior 0
1905 - MSU 40, Fort Shaw Indians 11
Thursday, July 31
Monday, May 19
Wednesday, May 03
Wednesday, May 03
