No. 4 Bulldogs Win First Playoff Game Since 1994, Topple Blue Hawks 41-14 (Photo Gallery)

Nov 30, 20242 min read

Lindsey Branch, UMW Sports Information

DILLON, Mont. – After a 30-year playoff win drought, the no. 4 ranked Montana Western football team (10-1) picked up their first NAIA Football Championship Series (FCS) win in Bulldog Stadium with a 41-14 rout of the no. 14 seeded Dickinson State Blue Hawks (10-2) this afternoon.

The Bulldogs were led by Michael Palandri who threw for 388 passing yards and five touchdowns.

How It Happened

After a slow start that saw both teams combine for 12 unsuccessful offensive drives, the Bulldogs were the first to put together a scoring drive that featured a 34-yard field goal from John Mears to put UMW up 3-0 with 6:38 left until the first half.

The Bulldog defense continued to show out as Keegen Muffich recovered a blocked punt at the Western 24-yard line to fuel a scoring drive for the Bulldog offense. UMW capped a nine-play 76-yard drive with a Palandri pass to Eli Nourse for a touchdown, going up 10-0 heading into the second half.

After Dickinson State failed to score on a 22-yard field goal attempt on their second half opening drive, the Bulldogs broke the game open after Palandri hit Coby Tanioka from 34-yards out to go up 17-0 early in the third.

Dickinson State answered quickly, scoring on the next drive after DSU's quarterback Will Madler tossed up a five-yard touchdown pass to CJ Stinson to cut the lead to 17-7.

The Bulldog offense would score once more in the third quarter, this time on a touchdown pass from Palandri to Jon Kirkley for his first of two touchdowns of the game with 1:45 left in the third. Dickinson State wasted no time in answering, scoring on the first play following the kickoff on a 63-yard rocket to Kyle Meinecke to close the gap once more to 24-14 heading into the fourth quarter.

Despite the evenly matched third quarter, Montana Western's defense stood tall and held the Blue Hawks scoreless across the fourth as the Bulldogs rattled off 17 unanswered points to close the contest.

With 11:47 left in the game, Palandri hit Kirkley from 12-yards out for his second touchdown of the matchup. Dickinson was unsuccessful on their next drive and left UMW in ideal field position to score one play later on a 32-yard toss from Palandri to Dylan Shipley.

Mears would cap scoring with a field goal from 36 yards out to send Western into the NAIA FCS quarterfinal matchup with a Second Round 41-14 win.

Notables

The last time the Bulldogs won a playoff game was in 1994 against Glenville State when the Bulldogs won 48-38 in a chilly affair.
Western has won six straight matchups over the Blue Hawks, dating back to 2012.
Palandri went 28-39 on the day with 388 passing yards and five touchdowns.
Two Bulldog receivers totaled over 100 yards in the air, with Tanioka leading the way with 126 yards and Nourse following with 108 total receiving yards.
Keegen Muffich and James Ochs led the Bulldog defense. Muffich totaled nine tackles and a blocked punt while Ochs added eight tackles and a sack for a loss of 11 yards.