Saturday, October 17
Cheney, WA
5:00 pm MT
Montana State University
at
Eastern Washington
Justin Lamson
Photo by: Bobcat Creative Services
GAME #7: Bobcats Look to Bounce Back Against Eastern Washington
10/14/2026 8:24:00 AM | Football
Montana State faces explosive Eagles fresh off home win
BOZEMAN, Mont. (Oct. 12, 2026) – After a week spent focusing internally, Brent Vigen said the path for his fifth-ranked Montana State football team as it prepares to visit Eastern Washington on Saturday is clear.
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"For us to take a step forward as a team is what this week is all about," Vigen said after his Bobcats lost for the first time in 2026 on Oct. 2 at Idaho, then spent last week without a scheduled game. "You move forward, you learn from it."
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While MSU (5-1 overall, 2-1 Big Sky) lost its most recent game, the Eagles (2-5, 1-3 Big Sky) enter this week's showdown after a 31-22 home win against Northern Colorado last week. Eastern Washington is 1-3 at home this season, and the Bobcats play their second straight game in the Palouse.
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The environs are familiar for Vigen's Bobcats. "This will be the fourth time in six years we've gone out to Eastern," he said. "Each one of those games we've come out on the right side, but each of them have had their moments."
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The Bobcats own a program-best five-game winning streak in this series, but Vigen said the task facing this season's team is tall. "They're led by a quarterback that has come so far," Vigen said of EWU signal caller Nate Bell. "He played a bunch against us last year, I know he didn't finish the season as their quarterback, but as a pure quarterback he's much more than he was at this time last year."
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A 5-10 fourth-year player, Bell sparks the Eagles offense. He throws for 275.9 yards a game, chucking the ball 272 times this season. He also leads Eastern in rushing, averaging 47.9 yards per game. He has thrown for 15 touchdowns and rushed for seven.
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"Credit goes to him and the work he's put in," Vigen said of Bell. "They've built their offense around his skill set. He's throwing the ball at a pretty high clip, and he's also their leading rusher."
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Three others balance EWU's ground game. Malik Dotson gains 33.0 yards per game, Jaxon Bell 22.7 and Kevin Allen III 21.0. Wesley Garrett leads Eastern receivers with 34 catches for 473 yards, while Drew Carlson has 26 catches for 298 yards. Ten different Eagles have touchdown catches, none more than Garrett's three.
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Linebacker Myles Mayovsky leads the Eagles defense, logging a team-high 64 tackles, 2.5 for loss. He has broken up four passes with two quarterback hurries. Defensive lineman Gauge Larsen has two sacks, and safety Jaylon Jenkins has three of the team's nine interceptions.
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Montana State's open week allowed the team much-needed healing. Safety Caden Dowler, running back Adam Jones and quarterback Justin Lamson, all fifth-years, are expected to return to action after missing time with injuries. The return to health of three All-Americas – half of the team's captains – combines with the work done during the open week to please Vigen.
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"I think our guys took the right approach, a mature approach," he said of the work his team accomplished. "I thought we had some really competitive aspects to our practice on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday last week, and now we've entirely turned the page to Eastern."
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Montana State and the Eagles kick off at 5 pm MT on Saturday at Cheney's Roos Field. The game airs throughout Montana on CBS stations. Local station information is here.
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#GoCatsGo
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"For us to take a step forward as a team is what this week is all about," Vigen said after his Bobcats lost for the first time in 2026 on Oct. 2 at Idaho, then spent last week without a scheduled game. "You move forward, you learn from it."
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While MSU (5-1 overall, 2-1 Big Sky) lost its most recent game, the Eagles (2-5, 1-3 Big Sky) enter this week's showdown after a 31-22 home win against Northern Colorado last week. Eastern Washington is 1-3 at home this season, and the Bobcats play their second straight game in the Palouse.
Â
The environs are familiar for Vigen's Bobcats. "This will be the fourth time in six years we've gone out to Eastern," he said. "Each one of those games we've come out on the right side, but each of them have had their moments."
Â
The Bobcats own a program-best five-game winning streak in this series, but Vigen said the task facing this season's team is tall. "They're led by a quarterback that has come so far," Vigen said of EWU signal caller Nate Bell. "He played a bunch against us last year, I know he didn't finish the season as their quarterback, but as a pure quarterback he's much more than he was at this time last year."
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A 5-10 fourth-year player, Bell sparks the Eagles offense. He throws for 275.9 yards a game, chucking the ball 272 times this season. He also leads Eastern in rushing, averaging 47.9 yards per game. He has thrown for 15 touchdowns and rushed for seven.
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"Credit goes to him and the work he's put in," Vigen said of Bell. "They've built their offense around his skill set. He's throwing the ball at a pretty high clip, and he's also their leading rusher."
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Three others balance EWU's ground game. Malik Dotson gains 33.0 yards per game, Jaxon Bell 22.7 and Kevin Allen III 21.0. Wesley Garrett leads Eastern receivers with 34 catches for 473 yards, while Drew Carlson has 26 catches for 298 yards. Ten different Eagles have touchdown catches, none more than Garrett's three.
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Linebacker Myles Mayovsky leads the Eagles defense, logging a team-high 64 tackles, 2.5 for loss. He has broken up four passes with two quarterback hurries. Defensive lineman Gauge Larsen has two sacks, and safety Jaylon Jenkins has three of the team's nine interceptions.
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Montana State's open week allowed the team much-needed healing. Safety Caden Dowler, running back Adam Jones and quarterback Justin Lamson, all fifth-years, are expected to return to action after missing time with injuries. The return to health of three All-Americas – half of the team's captains – combines with the work done during the open week to please Vigen.
Â
"I think our guys took the right approach, a mature approach," he said of the work his team accomplished. "I thought we had some really competitive aspects to our practice on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday last week, and now we've entirely turned the page to Eastern."
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Montana State and the Eagles kick off at 5 pm MT on Saturday at Cheney's Roos Field. The game airs throughout Montana on CBS stations. Local station information is here.
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#GoCatsGo
Players Mentioned
Thursday, July 31
Monday, May 19
Wednesday, May 03
Wednesday, May 03
