Date: Saturday September 27, 2025
Time: 10:15 PM (ET)
TV: ESPN2
The Quick Hits
On Saturday the “Little Brown Stein” rivalry between #8 Idaho (2-2) and #5 Montana (3-0) gets renewed in Missoula and the game, as it almost always does, will have a ton more than just a wooden mug at stake.
The Grizzlies are looking to keep their record unblemished and firmly establish themselves as a contender in the Big Sky this year. With one ranked win already under the belt, UM can pick up a second here and begin conference play on the right foot. The last time the Vandals came to town, though, it didn’t go quite that smoothly but this is a completely different bunch from Moscow.
Idaho has a new coach and a largely rebuilt roster after their quarterfinal run from a year ago and, although they sit just behind Montana in the rankings right now, they are a group with a ton of upside. Their two losses have come at the hands of FBS opponents and both of those were close games. Washington-Grizzly Stadium is a tough place to play as a visitor and it’s made even tougher when it’s a night game. This serves as a prime opportunity, though, for Idaho to show the conference and the country it never went anywhere.
The Coaches
Bobby Hauck is the most experienced and winningest coach in the Big Sky and he enters the eighth season of his second stint at UM with a 141-41 overall win record. Hauck has led his team to the playoffs in each of the last four seasons and five of the last six, taking the Grizzlies all the way to the national title game back in 2023. An eight-time conference champion, Hauck is as decorated as any in the FCS and is no stranger to coaching in big games just the like the one he will be a part of Saturday night.
For Idaho, Thomas Ford is on the total other end of the experience spectrum but so far in Year One he’s shown to be a heck of a leader. Ford got hired shortly after last season ended and did a terrific job rebuilding (and maintaining) the Vandals roster and the results have been evident early on. His team is 2-0 versus FCS competition and, like Montana, finds itself in the Top 10 nationally. Before taking over with Idaho, Ford was an assistant at Oregon State and Washington as well as the head coach at NAIA Simon Fraser.
Montana Offense vs. Idaho Defense
The Griz want to run the ball and they want to do it often because they have one of the best running backs in the country in their backfield in Eli Gillman. Gillman, the 2023 Jerry Rice Award winner, has been the spark for the UM offense for several years now and has already run for 400 yards and six touchdowns this season. He’s far from the only playmaker on that unit but he’s certainly the biggest name that Idaho’s defense will need to hone in on.
This is where guys defensive lineman Matyus McLain will really need to shine for the Vandals defense and shine McLain has so far in 2025. He has been a problem up front for opposing O lines with 5.5 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks. He and Mitchel Jaskowiak are the enforcers in the trenches and have been a big reason why Idaho has held its opponents to 126.8 yards per game this year. That trend will need to continue against Gillman because Montana has already made it clear again this year that he will see lots of touches.
The other key players on that Vandals defense will be linebackers Dylan Layne and Isiah King. They are the top two tackle-getters on the team right now with 58 combined over four games and have been responsible for 5.5 TFLs. Layne and King are both excellent at flying to the ball and crashing plays over the middle in both the run and pass games and they will both need to be at their best because the Grizzlies have plenty of weapons through the air as well.
Quarterback Keali’i Ah Yat has emerged as Montana’s starting signal caller after a splitting time at the position all of last year and, just three contests into 2025, that appears to have been the right choice. The sophomore Ah Yat has thrown for 863 yards while accounting for seven total touchdowns. Unlike many QBs out there, though, Ah Yat won’t run much unless he absolutely has to so if the Griz are going to get the best of Idaho’s defense, it will take his arm to do it. Fortunately for him, he’ll have plenty of viable weapons to throw to.
The most noteworthy of those names will be receiver Michael Wortham, the former Eastern Washington transfer. Wortham has been explosive so far this year, averaging 15.4 yards per catch. He leads the team with 215 receiving yards and is UM’s home run hitter as far as big plays are concerned. The Vandals secondary cannot let Wortham get behind them or Ah Yat will surely take advantage of it. Wortham is just one guy to worry about, though. Fellow wideouts Blake Bohannon and Brooks Davis can be just as much of a problem as can tight end Josh Gale. All three of those guys are over 100 yards receiving on the year and have combined for three touchdowns.
Idaho Offense vs. Montana Defense
Idaho will lean on QB Joshua Wood and running back Art Williams to make plays for their offense. Wood, a redshirt sophomore, has been showing improvement over the last few weeks after a very slow start in his debut back in Week 1. He threw for 232 yards last week in the loss to San Jose State and has notched at least one touchdown in each of the last three games. Unlike his counterpart Ah Yat, though, Wood will run and has been solid in that department as well with a team-leading 314 yards.
He will be complimented by the aforementioned Williams who has run for 297 yards and a pair of scores on 60 carries so far this year. Williams has gotten at least 11 touches in each of his four contests this season and, against Idaho’s last FCS opponent in Utah Tech, rumbled for 144 yards. The objective for the Grizzlies defense is pretty clear here; don’t let these two get it rolling on the ground.
That will be a whole lot easier said than done but it will start with linebacker Elijah Tolbert in the middle. Tolbert is one of Montana’s top defensive playmakers and currently leads the unit with 22 tackles. He and fellow backer Clay Oven will need to spy the gaps up front really well in order to keep Wood and Williams’ damage to a minimum. If they can do that and force the Vandals into a pass-heavy approach, things will get easier.
When Idaho does opt to throw, it will be youngsters Emmerson Cortez-Menjivar and Ryan Jezioro that Montana’s secondary will have to pay attention to. Cortez-Menjivar has been seeing increasingly high looks as the season has gone along with a year-best five catches for 84 yards last week. Jezioro, meanwhile, has a team-best 16 receptions and three TDs.
Griz defensive backs Kyon Loud, Micah Harper and Kade Cutler will have a tall task against the Vandals receivers but all three can be stifling if they’re on. Loud particularly has been effective in defending the pass so far this year with three breakups while Harper has an interception under his belt. Cutler and Loud have also combined for 26 stops.
Prediction
ESPN picked a fantastic game to flex into its late night slot and once again the “Little Brown Stein” battle should be an excellent showcase of Big Sky football. Idaho will not be intimated by the hostile road environment as it has already played some big time opponents this year, but not being intimated is not necessarily enough in a place like Missoula. Hauck’s team will be ready and it will use Gillman the same way Idaho will use Williams and Wood. That means that the team that can throw it better will probably win the game and, if that’s the case, Montana has one too many weapons for the Vandals defense to deal with in that area. Ah Yat and his receivers will get it done to make the difference and UM will move to 4-0 in a nail biter.
Score Prediction: Idaho: 27 – Montana: 30
