Taking on the total package

For senior linebacker Andy Schantz, Saturday’s matchup with No. 5 Montana is the perfect example of why he plays college football.

“If you don’t feel something different in these kind of games, you’re probably playing the wrong sport,” Schantz said.

Portland State squaring off against Montana at 1:05 p.m. Saturday at PGE Park is a matchup that has all of the makings of an epic bout.

History. Rivalry. Buildup. Mutual respect. Distaste. Fierce competitiveness. It is all there.

Montana is so different than any other opponent that head coach Jerry Glanville instructed his team to split up into two groups Wednesday–with one group comprising of those who have played the Grizzlies and the other containing all the players who have not.

“Don’t you dare take the field unless you talk to someone who has played against them,” Glanville said he told the players. “It is different.”

Unfortunately for Glanville and Co., only a handful of the current Vikings were around last season when Portland State fell just short of knocking off the heralded Grizzlies, with a 34-31 defeat in Missoula, Mont. But, regardless, Glanville maintains that when the Vikings face off against Montana, “That is when our kids play the best.”

Much of the panache of playing Montana stems from the fact that the Grizzlies have held at least a share of the Big Sky title every year for the last 10 years.

“They are the best,” Glanville said.

Schantz echoes his coach’s sentiment despite Montana currently looking up at Weber State, who handed them their only loss in the Big Sky standings.

“Year in and year out they’re the top team in the conference, so there is going to be some added incentive,” Schantz said. “But that’s where it stops.”

Glanville said what the Vikings can expect to see against Montana is a team that looks a lot like the one they lost to last Saturday, Weber State.

Montana employs a balanced pro-style offense that is potent with either the run or pass.

Glanville warns that when the Grizzlies are lined up in a “Blue” formation–three receivers, one tight end and one running back–their No. 1 play is an option similar to the one Weber State runs.

“We have to make them one dimensional early,” Schantz said. “That’s is going to be key.”

Schantz said the Vikings would prefer to eliminate the passing game and force Montana to beat them through the air. But based on how the defense has performed this season, it will be a formidable challenge to stop the Grizzlies on either front.

Behind a rushing attack that amasses 148 yards per contest and a passing game that racks up a hefty 267 yards per outing, Montana leads the Big Sky in scoring with a touch over 37 points per game.

Glanville said the Vikings have to watch out for all Montana’s skill players, but a few in particular.

Senior quarterback Cole Bergquist has an efficiency rating that is off the charts at over 180 and he has thrown for 22 touchdowns with only four interceptions in nine games.

“He is pretty dead accurate,” Schantz said of Bergquist.

Portland State must also keep an eye on running backs Chase Reynolds and Andrew Schmidt, who have combined for 11 touchdowns and average almost 100 yards per game.

To follow suit with what offensive coordinator Mouse Davis claims is a “good, solid team,” Montana is the complete package on defense.

The Grizzlies own the second best total defense in the conference, allowing a league-low 207 passing yards and giving up a second-best 20.2 points per game.

Davis said Montana likes to show a variety of looks, but typically employs some version of a cover two or cover three.

“It’s not so much the plan but the guys they’re playing with,” Davis said.

One of Montana’s stars is senior safety Colt Anderson, who leads all secondary players and is ninth in the Big Sky with 66 tackles. Anderson also has two inceptions and three pass breakups this season.

Davis has yet to decide which quarterback will go toe to toe with Anderson and the rest of the stellar Montana defense, but he has whittled his options down to two: Drew Hubel and Tygue Howland.

The competition is neck and neck, and Davis said he would make a determination this morning after calculating the two quarterback’s performance at practice this week.

Either way, Davis knows Montana will be a challenging game–one Glanville is content with playing at home because the Vikings are 3-0 at PGE Park this year. But he is not against exploring other options.

“You just like to play them anywhere,” Glanville said of Montana. “I’ll even play them in the parking lot at Wal-Mart.”