BOBCAT FOOTBALL SUNDAY NOTEBOOK: Chris Murray Makes More History

Saturday, October 15

Ogden, UT

1:30 pm

Montana State University

2-5 , 0-4

Weber State

4-2 , 3-0

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

Montana State

Weber State

Photo by: Brian Morse

BOBCAT FOOTBALL SUNDAY NOTEBOOK: Chris Murray Makes More History

10/16/2016 1:05:00 PM | Football

Box Score

MSU freshman quarterback piling up milestones

By: Bill Lamberty

Weber State scored three touchdown in the game's first 10-and-a-half minutes and crossed the goal line on its first six possessions, using that quick start to beat Montana State 45-27 in Ogden on Saturday. Wildcats quarterback Jadrian Clark threw four touchdown passes, nearly matching his season's total entering Saturday's the game of six, and threw for 266 yards while rumbling for another 40 on the ground. Weber extended its own winning streak to four with the victory, and pushed MSU's losing streak to four.

Big Sky & National Player of the Week Nominees
Offense – none; Defense – none; Special Teams – none; Freshman of the Week – none; Offensive Lineman of the Week – none

Statistical Rankings
Top 20 in NCAA Team Rankings – 10. Blocked Punts (1). 11. Fumbles recovered (7). 17. Passes Intercepted (9).
4. Fumbles Recovered (7), 4. Passes Intercepted (9), 8. Blocked Punts (1), 11. Red Zone Offense (.957), 15. Blocked Kicks (2), 15. Scoring Defense (20.3), 17. Team Passing Efficiency Defense (107.45), 19. Red Zone Defense (.722).
Top 20 in NCAA Individual Rankings – Mac Bignell: 10^th in Solo Tackles (6.1, which leads the Big Sky); Fletcher Collins: 4^th in Fumbles Recovered (2, which leads the Big Sky); Chris Murray: 17^th in Rushing Touchdowns (7); Kevin Kassis: 20^th in Punt Returns (11.2).

Post-Game News and Notes
Injury Report: Out for Season – DE Devin Jeffries, DT Robert Wilcox, DE Tyrone Fa'anono, WR Brandon Brown.

• Senior RB Chad Newell rushed for 30 yards and a touchdown Saturday at Weber State, leaving him 10^th in school history in rushing yards (1,796, 359 from ninth), fourth in rushing touchdowns (27, tied for third), and second in total touchdowns (30, 18 from Cody Kirk's school record).
• Freshman quarterback Chris Murray rushed for 131 yards on 19 carries Saturday, and is now Montana State's leading rusher on the season with 440 yards. That total is third-best in school history among freshmen (behind Aaron Mason's 645 in 2006 and Dave Alt's 455 in 1956).
• Chris Murray became the second Bobcat on record (joining Joe Volek in 1990) to throw three touchdowns in his starting debut for the Cats – Volek, a junior college transfer, threw five against NAU in 1990.
• Chris Murray's 199 passing yards vs. Weber State is ninth-best in school history among players making their starting debut, but third among freshmen behind Travis Lulay's 262 yards (at Idaho State, 2002) and Mark Fisher's 204 yards (vs. Idaho, 1991).
• MSU averages 9.0 pass completions over the last three games, but in Saturday's game at Weber State threw for 19.9 yards per completion.
• Montana State has failed to take the ball away from its opponent in two straight games, the first such contests this season.
• Saturday's loss was Montana State's first at Weber State since 1996, and was the Bobcats' first to the Wildcats anywhere since 2008, a five-game streak.

First Look: Montana State vs. Eastern Washington
Game Details: Date – Saturday, October 22 Kickoff – 12 noon Audio – Statewide on the Bobcat Radio Network and msubobcats.com Video – Regionally on ROOT Sports Northwest, nationally on DirecTV's Audience Network. There is no video streaming available.

At A Glance: CAUTION: Looking too closely at Eastern Washington's season stats may be hazardous to the sleep pattern of upcoming opponents. The Eagles, who MSU hosts on Saturday at 12 noon in the ROOT Sports Big Sky Game of the Week, lead the FCS in passing offense with 433.2 yards a game and stand second in total offense (565.2) and scoring offense (47.5 points a game). The tormenters are both familiar – reigning Offensive Player of the Year Cooper Kupp, a senior receiver, leads the FCS with 142.4 receiving yards per game – and new to the scene – sophomore quarterback Gage Gubrud leads the nation in passing yards with 391.8 a game.