There were some tasty bites at the beginning and the end. But a big hole in the middle kept Griz fans nervous. But the Montana Grizzlies had just enough punch early and late in the game to take care of business, with a 23-14 homecoming victory over the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks in front of yet another 26,000+ crowd at Washington-Grizzly Stadium.

Montana scored a touchdown on its opening possession and forced a fumble on the ensuing kickoff. Even though the Griz had to settle for a field goal on that drive, it was a quick 10-0 punch, and Northern Arizona struggled against the Montana defense the entire first half. UM added two more field goals and seemed to be cruising, 16-0 at halftime.

Early in the third quarter, NAU didn't do much to make fans think they were capable of catching up. But then, boom! Two quick touchdowns on long passes and the Griz found themselves clinging to a 16-14 lead going into the fourth quarter.

It took a nifty, time-consuming 61-yard drive for a touchdown to put the game of reach with less than five minutes to go, and NAU was not able to mount another threat.

So, we'll take it and be excited to be 1-0 in Big Sky Conference play. It's on to Cal Davis next Saturday, October 3, at 2:00 p.m. See you on the radio at Noon, Griz fans!   DB

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