HILLSBORO, Ore. — Another game, another step toward a potentially historic season for the Montana State football program.
After dominating Idaho in a nationally televised game last week, the third-ranked Bobcats quickly put to rest any thoughts of a letdown Saturday at Hillsboro Stadium, rolling to a 44-14 win over Portland State. Montana State is now 8-0 for the first time since 1956.
Scottre Humphrey set the tone early for the Bobcats, scoring on an easy 7-yard touchdown run on the game's first possession. It was just the beginning of a dominant first half.
Tommy Mellott threw three second-quarter touchdown passes and Humphrey added another scoring run, as Montana State rolled up more than 400 yards of offense en route to a 35-0 lead at the halftime break. Mellott's TDs went for 57 yards to Taco Dowler, 24 yards to Jared White and 48 yards to Rohan Jones.
The Jones TD was especially devastating for Portland State. Mellott and White connected for their touchdown with just 1:55 to play in the first half.
But the Bobcat defense forced a Portland State punt to get the ball back with 51 seconds left in the half. The Montana State offense needed just 21 seconds to score another touchdown, with Mellott finding an open Jones, who shrugged off multiple tacklers before diving into the end zone for the TD.
Mellott finished the game 15-of-20 passing for 239 yards and three touchdowns. He added 34 yards on four carries, while Humphrey totaled 160 yards and his two TDs on only 14 carries. Montana State finished with 607 yards of offense — 323 rushing and 284 passing.
A week after both rushing and passing for 200-plus yards, Portland State quarterback Dante Chachere struggled to find any room against Montana State. He was 10-of-17 passing for just 65 yards and an interception. He had seven carries for 4 yards.
The Vikings totaled 236 yards, with just 87 coming in the air.
Turning point: Dowler's 57-yard touchdown early in the second quarter. Portland State hung tough in the early going and entered the second quarter trailing just 7-0, but Dowler's long touchdown broke the game open. Montana State dominated the rest of the way.
Stat of the game: The Montana State defense, which has given up just 14 total points in the first half in seven games against FCS opponents this season, was again dominant. The Bobcats held Portland State to 87 passing yards in the game, shutting down Chachere and the Vikings' offense.
Bobcat game balls: RB Scottre Humphrey (Offense). This could easily be Mellott, who again played a near-flawless game at quarterback. But Humphrey established the Bobcats' run game early with a 35-yard run on the first possession and then led the Bobcats to 210 rushing yards on 21 carries in the first half alone.
LB Neil Daly (Defense). Daly acclimated himself well at linebacker, stepping in for the injured Danny Uluilakepa. Daly led the team with six total tackles, including a sack and two tackles-for-loss, but the entire defensive unit deserves credit for again holding an opponent scoreless in the first half.
PK Myles Sansted (Special teams). Sansted wasn't needed much, but when his name was called in the second half, he made all three of his field goal attempts. He was good fro 28, 25 and 45 yards.
What's next: Montana State (8-0 overall, 4-0 Big Sky) and Portland Stare (1-6, 1-3) are idle next week before heading into the homestretch of the regular season. Both teams return to the field Nov. 2 — Montana State at Eastern Washington and Portland State at Sacramento State.
