Bobcats Run Past SFA, Into FCS Semifinals

Friday, December 12

7 pm

Montana State University

12-2 , 8-0

Stephen F. Austin

11-3 , 8-0

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

SFA

Montana St.

Bobcats Run Past SFA, Into FCS Semifinals Image

Caden Dowler

Photo by: Bobcat Creative Services

12/13/2025 1:04:00 AM | Football

Box Score

Cats post impressive numbers against third-ranked Lumberjacks rush defense

By: Bill Lamberty

BOZEMAN, Mont. (Dec. 12, 2025) – Sophomore running back Adam Jones rushed for 114 yards and senior Julius Davis added 96, leading Montana State to a 44-28 win over Stephen F. Austin in and NCAA Division I FCS Quarterfinal showdown in Bobcats Stadium on Friday.

Those individual efforts allowed the Bobcats to ramble for 227 yards on the ground against the third-ranked rush defense (87.8 yards per game allowed entering the contest) in the FCS. Montana State's 44 points was 27 more than the Lumberjacks allow on average, and the 473 total yards was more than 200 over SFA's season average.

After an impressive display from the Lumberjacks defense on the game's opening drive, Montana State's responded. After SFA drove to the Bobcat 28-yard line, Kenneth Eiden IV's strip-sack terminated the drive.

It was foreshadowing. On the day the Bozeman native graduated from Montana State, he registered three sacks and forced two fumbles. He was hardly alone. Fellow defensive end Zac Crews logged 1.5 sacks and also recovered a fumble.

Incredibly, safety Caden Dowler's late-season surge continued. He led the Cats with eight tackles, which included one for a loss, and extended his streak with at least one interception to five games with a red zone interception. "In my opinion he's the best defensive player in the country," Eiden said of the 2025 Big Sky Defensive Player of the Year.

After Eiden's sack slammed the door on SFA's promising opening drive, the Cats capped a 65-yard scoring march when Jones plunged in form one yard out. On Stephen F. Austin's ensuing possession, the Lumberjacks moved into Bobcat territory again. That's when Dowler ended the drive with an interception near the goal line, then set up another Bobcat score by returning the ball 37 yards.

Jones started that scoring drive with a 14-yard reception, and ended it with a 21-yard touchdown catch. "That's a play that we like," said Lamson, who finished the night 20-for-26 passing for 246 yards and two touchdowns. He threw only his third interception of the season.

Myles Sansted's 47-yard field goal extended MSU's lead to 17-0 with 1:50 to play in the first half, and on the next play Eiden hammered SFA quarterback Sam Vidlak from behind, forcing another fumble. Carson Williams returned the fumble to the three-yard line, and Lamson feathered a pass to Luvens Valcin for a touchdown.

With the competitive portion of the game teetering, SFA regrouped. The Lumberjacks drove 75-yards in just 1:28 an scored on Vidlak's short pass to Clayton Wayland. Wayland caught the two-point conversion, and the Cats led 24-8 entering the intermission.

The Lumberjacks edged closer coming out of halftime. SFA drove 76 yards in 14 plays, chewing up 5:56, and scored on a five-yard run by Jaylen Jenkins. Vidlak's pass attempt failed, and MSU led 24-14.

"It was important to avoid empty possessions and keep scoring points," Vigen said, and the Cats did that on their first drive of the third quarter. A 42-yard pass from Lamson to Dane Steel set MSU up deep in Lumberjacks territory, and Myles Sansted hit his second field goal to extend MSU's lead to 27-14. The Bobcats reestablished a three-scored lead with 3:04 to play in the third quarter when Lamson bulled his way into the end zone for a 34-14 cushion.

Vidlak wasn't finished. He engineered another scoring drive in the third quarter, capped on a Jenkins six-yard run, and SFA trailed 34-21. On the next drive, though, the Cats essentially salted the game away. Julius Davis dashed 69 yards for an apparent touchdown, but was called for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty near the goal line. The set the Cats back to the 20, but on the second play of the fourth quarter Adam Jones scored on a 16-yard run, and MSU led 41-24.

SFA marched 77 yards for a touchdown, and the Cats took over with 10:05 to play. Montana State proceeded to play keepaway, running the ball 11 times while salting away more than eight minutes of game time. The drive's important play was a 34-yard run by Jones, and Sansted kicked his third field goal of the game for the winning margin, 44-28.

"A lot of credit goes to Stephen F. Austin," Vigen said, "that's a really good football team. And the numbers bear that out. The 28 points SFA scored matches the most by an FCS opponent in regulation time this season.

But Montana State's tenacious takeaway trait asserted itself again on Friday night. The Cats recovered two SFA fumbles and intercepted a pass while turning it over only once. Montana State has now been positive in turnover margin in six straight games, and during the current 12-game win streak has been negative in turnover margin only once. That happened in a blowout win against San Diego in game three.

Montana State's reward is to host a school-record 10^th game next week, squaring off against either South Dakota or UM with a berth in the FCS Championship Game on the line. Kickoff will be announced later this weekend.

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