Montana State University
Sacramento State
Bobcats Play First Road Game in a Month at Sac State Saturday
9/30/2016 8:14:00 AM | Football
MSU faces test against athletic Hornets
If there's truth in old football adages such as a team never improves more in a season than from the first game to the second, there's also wisdom to be found in the idea that a team is never so desperate as when it has one conference loss. Two such teams get together in Hornet Stadium Saturday when Montana State visits Sacramento State.
Each of Saturday's combatants enter Hornet Stadium for the 7 pm MT/6 pm PT kickoff after narrow league-opening losses a week ago. Sacramento State dropped the third of its three consecutive road game, 42-34 at Idaho State, while MSU lost to North Dakota 17-15 in the third of three straight home games after winning the previous two.
First-year Bobcat head coach Jeff Choate, who takes his team on the road for a conference game for the first time this weekend, is impressed with Sacramento State. "They're kind of what I would expect them to be," he said. "You've got a team from the largest metropolitan area in the conference so they have access to a lot of skill players. They are very good at the skill positions."
Quarterback Nate Ketteringham, a sophomore, catches Choate's eye. "Their quarterback is a good player," he said. "They take a lot of shots down the field, they do stretch defenses well. He's probably at his best when he's using his legs, he's a very good scrambler. They design specific runs for him, quarterback draws, zone read, things of that nature. He gets out of the pocket and scrambles well, we'll have to leverage him. He had a very, very good game against Idaho State on Saturday."
The Hornets rely on three primary offensive weapons to complement Ketteringham. Running backs Jordan Robinson (182 yards rushing, 133 yards receiving) and Demetrius Warren (team-high 217 rushing yards) are versatile contributors on the ground, while Isiah Hennie's 21 catches and 256 receiving yards are team highs in those categories. Hennie is also a dangerous return specialist. Choate calls Robinson a "smart, tough runner" and says Hennie is "very elusive."
Choate praised Sacramento State's defense for keeping the team in games. "On the defensive side, it's been an interesting year" for the Hornets, he said. "You look at the Fresno State game it's a one possession game in the fourth quarter, 10-3, and then Fresno State opens up a lead on them in the fourth quarter. The Weber State game was a 7-7 ball game with about seven minutes to play. So they've played some very good defense at times."
While Choate said the sting of last week's loss – "I felt it was an opportunity for us early in this process to have a defining moment, to beat a good team at home," he said – the team has moved on. "I think these guys know that we'll put a good plan in front of us, they trust us, and they've responded well."
The decisive factor in Saturday's loss was Montana State's five turnovers, which Choate called "the one glaring problem." He said a renewed emphasis on taking care of the football began not too many hours after Saturday's defeat. "We started it on Sunday with some reminders about how valuable (the football) is, about not pressing and letting the game come to you, make good decisions with the football" he said.
One bright spot was the return of Chad Newell after missing a pair of games. He rambled for 100 yards, his second with at least that many this season. The Bobcat defense was also good on Saturday, allowing less than 25 points for the fourth straight game to open the season. That is the longest such streak in four years.
Regardless of the positives, Choate knows his team is in for a challenge Saturday night. "I like the group of guys (Sacramento State has)," he said. "They've given up some explosive plays at times, and they've been hurt by turnovers, not unlike us against UND. They're a dangerous, dangerous outfit, and they're playing better football week-by-week. They've had three tough games on the road, and now they're at home. We've got to go into a very tough environment."
Kickoff is 7 pm MT Saturday, and is televised around the state on SWX Montana stations. Check local listings for stations.
