Portland State limited 13th-ranked Montana State to field goals in the first half, but the Bobcats broke through for three touchdowns in the second half and pulled away to beat the Vikings 30-17 in the teams’ Big Sky opener Saturday at Hillsboro Stadium.
The Vikings (1-3, 0-1 Big Sky) led 10-9 at halftime and went ahead 17-16 late in the third quarter. But Montana State then seized control of the game with sustained drives on offense and timely plays on defense.
Quarterback Matthew McKay led the Bobcats (3-1, 1-0) on consecutive touchdown drives of 75 and 70 yards. Meanwhile, the Bobcats defense got to PSU quarterback Davis Alexander for three sacks in the fourth quarter. On the first one, Alexander fumbled the ball away to end a potential Vikings scoring threat. Later, with the Vikings in the red zone, Montana State came up with consecutive sacks to force a turnover on downs.
From there, McKay and the Bobcats drained the final 6:30 off the clock.
Montana State running back Isaiah Ifanse ran 30 times for 217 yards and a touchdown, and Lance McCutcheon had eight catches for 161 yards and a score for the Bobcats.
Alexander passed for 266 yards with a touchdown and an interception. Six of his throws went to Beau Kelly, who finished with 83 receiving yards.
Malik Walker had 14 carries for 43 yards and a touchdown, but Montana State held PSU to 54 rushing yards.
After the teams traded field goals in the first quarter, Alexander found a leaping Nate Bennett for a 10-yard touchdown pass that gave Portland State a 10-3 lead.
Montana State’s Blake Glessner trimmed the lead to 10-9 with second-quarter field goals of 41 and 39 yards.
The Bobcats led for the first time early in the third quarter when Ifanse scored on a nine-yard run to put Montana State up 16-10. The Vikings answered on Walker’s one-yard run but wouldn’t score again.
Next up: Portland State at Southern Utah, 5 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 2 (ESPN+).
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