Replacing a quarterback is never easy. Replacing one that won the Walter Payton Award is especially difficult. That is the job that Montana State head coach Brent Vigen and his staff were tasked with, though, entering this season. Tommy Mellott was a household name in Bozeman by the team he graduated and rightfully so. Mellott, a home-grown talent, took the QB position by storm during his illustrious career, guiding MSU to the national championship game twice and setting a bunch of school records
along the way. Last season was almost a storybook for Mellott, save for the ending, has he helped orchestrate a 15-1 season. That only loss was in the final game.
Fast forward to now and in the first season post-Mellott Montana State has hardly missed a beat despite so many questions hovering over the program 11 months ago following his departure. The Bobcats are right back in the familiar spot of preparing for a national championship game again and have a pretty solid chance to win it this year. It, of course, has been a team effort for Vigen’s squad but an undeniable huge part of that effort has come from the young man they found to come in and take over for Mellott.
It hasn’t taken Justin Lamson long at all to ingratiate himself to MSU fans. A former backup at Stanford and Syracuse, Lamson joined the ‘Cats last offseason via the transfer portal but, despite his FBS experience, did not expect anything as far as a starting role was concerned according to Vigen.
“He came here and didn’t assume anything,” Vigen said of his team’s quarterback following last week’s win in the semifinals. “He just came and worked and became one of the guys and as the season’s progressed I think we’ve clearly seen the type of competitor he is.”
That status as a competitor has never been in question and it was evident from the start of the season just how valuable Lamson would be to Montana State. In their season-opening loss on the road at Oregon, he showed tremendous poise in the face of going up against a Big Ten defense as fast and as physical as that of the Ducks. He took shot after shot and yet still completed 74.2% of his passes and had no turnovers. That game, even though it ended in an expected blowout loss, would end up being a microcosm of what Lamson has brought to the table.
He is tough, accurate and very careful with the ball. On the year Lamson has thrown for 2,892 yards, 24 touchdowns and just three interceptions. He has been laser-sharp for MSU in its biggest games as well, completing his passes at a rate of over 70% along with four touchdowns since the playoffs began. Last week in what was arguably the biggest game in school history against arch rival Montana in the semifinals, Lamson only had six incompletions and averaged 11 yards per throw. His unwavering presence under center has been exactly what the Bobcats have needed and it is certainly what got it done against the Grizzlies.
It isn’t just his passing abilities, though, that have been impressive. The big-bodied quarterback is also not afraid to call his own number and when he gets a head of steam going on the ground, that has also been a big problem for opposing defenses. Lamson has carried the ball 164 times for 704 yards and 14 scores. There is usually no hesitation when he decides to run and that’s exactly how Montana State designs its offense. Under Vigen the ‘Cats have always been run-first and getting the QB involved is a must.
Now heading into the national championship game, it is clear that the acquisition of Lamson was surely the move of the year for the Bobcats. The poise, the accuracy, the attentiveness and the toughness have all been defining traits for the young man from El Dorado Hills, CA and, while it never quite worked out at any of the other places for him, he now has the chance to do what even Mellott wasn’t able to if he can lead the team to one more win. Lamson is looking to lead MSU to its first national title since 1984 and because of him, the ‘Cats have a good chance of getting that done come January 5.
