Montana drops Eastern to 0-3
<p>Eastern Washington quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell (9) is sacked by Montana linebacker John Kanongata'a (52) during the second half Saturday in Missoula, Mont.</p>
Jordan Johnson did a lot with his feet Saturday. But it was one of the few plays the Montana quarterback made with his arm that propelled the Grizzlies to a 17-14 win over Eastern Washington at Missoula, Mont.
Johnson carried the ball 10 times for 102 yards in the Big Sky Conference opener for both teams. He only threw for 34 yards, but he sealed Montana's victory with a 1-yard touchdown pass to Gerald Kemp with 6:14 to play in the third quarter.
"I felt like we really ran the ball well today," Johnson said. "We couldn't get much going passing, but the one touchdown was big."
Montana (2-1), which never trailed in the game, snuffed out a last-gasp Eagles rally when linebacker John Kanongata picked off a Bo Levi Mitchell pass with 25 seconds to play in the game.
"When I saw the ball in the air, my eyes got wide open and I just went up and got it," Kanongata said.
Eastern Washington (0-3), the defending FCS national champion, outgained Montana 376 to 350 but couldn't translate those numbers into a win.
"We're disappointed we're 0-3," said Eastern Washington coach Beau Baldwin. "It's not an easy pill to swallow. But there's a reason their record is what it is here. They're a very good football team."
Johnson was 11 for 19 passing for 34 yards, but the Grizzlies' rushing attack made up for that with 316 yards in the game.
"They have a good offensive line with size up front and a couple of quality running backs who do a good job of running the ball and a quarterback who makes it happen," Baldwin said.
Idaho State 50, Northern Colorado 20: At Pocatello, Kevin Yost passed for 508 yards and four touchdowns as Idaho State (2-1, 1-0 Big Sky) defeated Northern Colorado (0-3, 0-1).
Redlands 30, Whitworth 20: At Spokane, Chad Hurst passed for 268 yards and four touchdowns, and rushed for 77 yards on five carries to lead the visiting Pirates (2-0), ranked 17th in the latest D3football.com poll, at the Pine Bowl.
Former Lakeland High standout Scott Carr had a third-quarter interception to set up a touchdown for Whitworth (1-2).