Game Day - Northern Arizona

7/27/2019 Game Day - Northern Arizona

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Saturday, Oct. 5vS. NOrtherN arizONaGame

Day

Full PaPer

InsIDe

no. 15 northern arIzona vs. no. 8 montana state, BoBcat staDIum, 2:05 P.m.

Back to Back?

Can Montana State pullof a win in this battle o Big Sky unbeatens? The

Chronicle weighs in I 6

InsIDe

statement maDeOnce overlooked, NAU

senior tailback Bauman

has ound a home and

success in Flagstaf I 2

can’t make Itto BoBcatstaDIum ?

The Chronicle sports staf

has you covered. For all o the latest updates and

analysis and to join the

discussion on the Bobcats’

battle with Northern

Arizona, visit

dailychronicle.com/live

starting at 2 p.m. today.

Also be sure and ollow

@jmaletz and

@kylesample_bdc

on Twitter.

By JON MALETZ

Chronicle Sports Editor

Light rain plummets from anovercast sky and the din of cleatsscraping across asphalt filtersthrough the air as MontanaState players shuffle past. A

sea of sweat-drenched blue and white jerseys and expressionless stares stretchesfrom Bobcat Stadium to Brick Breeden

Fieldhouse.Most in this band of brothers flashlittle more than a passing glance as they slowly saunter to the locker room on arecent late afternoon. They are no doubtdrained after a full slate of classes and arigorous practice and are contemplatingan evening replete with homework andfilm study.

No. 64 stands out. He’s sharing a light-hearted moment with a teammate andsporting a wide grin as he tilts his headtoward the drops.

Andy Austin is savoring the experi-ence.

Soon, he will extend a warm greetingand a firm handshake.

“He’s a fantastic kid, isn’t he?” headcoach Rob Ash gushes about his reserveoffensive lineman, a fifth-year senior.

“He’s earned a lot of respect aroundhere for being a walk-on, being someonewho stuck it out despite never havingthe chance to play very much. He stillcomes to work every day like the guyswho are playing all the time, and he nevercomplains. He’s always smiling — rain orshine, even when (offensive line) coach(Jason) McEndoo is in his ear, calling outhis name. Always.”

Dan Austin describes his son as a kindsoul; a gregarious, upbeat individual who

has always been motivated and has aknack for forming instant and enduringpersonal connections.

Andy traces the origins of his positiv-ity and sense of purpose to the summerof 2010 and a life-altering, 9,000-mile

journey across the Atlantic.There, on a nondescript, sun-bathed

swath of sand in the village of Ngoma,Namibia, the Austins helped pull back thedoors of a 40-foot orange shipping con-tainer and open a world of possibilities.

A simple yet influential project took shape.

Wheels of Change International — anonprofit the Austins helped develop thataims to provide bicycles to Africans toincrease mobility and economic develop-ment in one of the planet’s most sparsely populated areas and ultimately alleviate

the cycle of poverty — started spinningin earnest.

“It’s a phenomenal thing to see peoplewho have nothing — people who literally live day to day, go out and fish or collectgrains for tonight’s dinner and live in huts— yet are some of the happiest peopleI’ve ever met in my life,” Andy says. “Youcome back here and people are arguingover (trivial) things, and your mind’sblown because of how different it is overthere. You can’t help but appreciate things

more.“You hear stories of how people havegotten bikes and how it has positively impacted their lives; how one bike canchange the life of one person, their family,their village. When you think of pack-ing a shipping container with more than300 bikes, or you think of the 1,000 we’veestimated we’ve shipped so far, it’s really unbelievable.”

The idea was first conceived about fouryears ago when Dan Austin, founder of Billings-based travel company Austin-Lehman Adventures, endeavored toupgrade his fleet of 120 mountain bikes.Rather than sell them locally, he hoped tofind a way to put them to good use.

ADRIAN SANCHEZ-GONZALEZ/CHRONICLE

Montana State offensive lineman Andy Austin helped establish Wheels of Change International, a nonprofit that helps collect and

deliver bicycles to those in need in Africa.

Bobs sno an asn lpng ng ls n af w blng nonpof

Northern

Arizona

running back

Zach Bauman

More WhEELs I B4



bozeman daily chronicle2 | Saturday, October 5, 2013

BOBCATS GAME DAY

No. 15 Northern Arizona vs No. 8 Montana State

2:05 p.m., Bobcat Stadium, Bozeman

Sideline BriefingRecordsNo. 8 Montana State 3-2No. 15 Northern Arizona 3-1

Series46th meeting, Northern Arizona leads 25-21

Weather forecastMostly sunny, 53 degrees

CrowdBobcat Stadium (17,777)

TVMax Media (Chris Byers, Mike Callaghan, Je Eberle)

RadioKXLB-FM (100.7) (Tyler Wiltgen, Dan Davies, Riley

Corcoran)

Coaches

SchedulesNORTHERN ARIZONA

Aug. 30 @ Arina L, 35-0

Sp. 14 UC Dais W, 21-10

Sp. 21 SoUth DAkotA W, 22-16

Sp. 28 MoNtANA W, 34-16

oc. 5 Mnana Sa 2:05 p.m.

oc. 12 Sacramn Sa 5:05 p.m.

oc. 19 IDAho StAte 3 p.m.

oc. 26 Cal Ply 5:05 p.m.

N. 2 NoRth DAkotA 3 p.m.

N. 16 NoRtheRN CoLoRADo 3 p.m.

N. 23 Surn Ua 11:05 a.m.

MONTANA STATE

Aug. 29 MoNMoUth W, 42-24

Sp. 7 Surn Mdis L, 31-30

Sp. 14 CoLoRADo MeSA W, 26-0

Sp. 21 Spn F. Ausin L, 52-38

Sp. 28 Nr Daa W, 63-20

oc. 5 NoRtheRN ARIzoNA 2:05 p.m.

oc. 19 Wbr Sa 3:35 p.m.

oc. 26 UC DAvIS 2 p.m.

N. 2 Nrrn Clrad 1:35 p.m.

N. 9 easrn Wasingn 1 p.m.

N. 16 SoUtheRN UtAh 4 p.m.

N. 23 MoNtANA Nn

Players to watchNorthern ArizonaRB Zach Bauman: The senior scored two frst-quarter

rushing touchdowns to stake Northern Arizona to a leadit would never relinquish last week against Montana. Hefnished with 158 all-purpose yards. Ater a slow start

to the season — a consequence o teams packing thebox and testing unproven receiver-turned quarterback Kyren Poe — Bauman has averaged more than 135

yards rushing the past two games. The Lumberjacks’all-time rushing leader is well on his way to a ourth-consecutive 1,000-yard season.

Montana StateDE Brad Daly: The senior rom Helena continues tobe a dierence maker despite being hampered by

injuries. He has recorded at least one sack in all fvegames and at least one tackle or loss in his last 13dating to 2012. He leads the Football Championship

Subdivision with nine sacks.

Injury reportNORTHERN ARIZONA

UndisclosedMONTANA STATE Ot or season: LB Na’a Moeakiola (shoulder), WR KurtDavis (knee)

Ot indefnitely: WR Tanner Roderick (hand), DL ZachHutchins (undisclosed), C Christian Williams (eye),LB Wyatt Christensen (undisclosed), S Eryon Barnet

(shoulder)Qestionable:LS Rocky Hogue (shoulder), OLAlex Eekho (undisclosed), DB Ijumaa Armstrong

(undisclosed), DE Preston Gale (knee), WR BrianFlotkoetter (shoulder)

Quick hitsn Montana State is averaging 3.6 sacks per g ame,which is frst in the Big Sky Conerence and ninth in

the Football Championship Subdivision.nBobcats linebackers have intercepted fve passesthis season, while deensive backs and lineman have

logged two and one, respectively.nMSU is third in the FCS in average attendence at

19,427. The school has played 41 consecutive homegames with announced crowds o more than 10,000.n The Bobcats are averaging 428.9 yards and 33

points per game on their 6-year-old tur.nMSU leads the Big Sky in turnover margin at plus-8nCody Kirk’s 10 touchdowns and 12.4 points per

game both lead the Big Sky.n Tanner Bleskin’s 568 receiving yards are fth in theFCS. He also has three 100-yard receiving games.

n The Bobcats have logged at least 20 frst downs inall fve games.nMSU’s 63 points against North Dakota were the

seventh highest tally in school history.nNorthern Arizona has won three o its past fvemeetings with MSU.

ROB ASHMSU, 7th year

34th year overall

53-24 at MSU

229-123-5 overall

JEROMESOuERSNAU, 16th year 16th year overall 87-86 overall

By JON MALETZ

Chronicle Sports Editor

You’re too small.You’re too short.You’re too slow.You’ll never make it at the Football

Bowl Subdivision level.The assessment was as sobering as

it was perplexing and still cuts deep,Northern Arizona tailback Zach Bau-man admitted Tuesday evening.

The former Chandler High (Ariz.)standout still struggles to compre-hend exactly why schools fromcollege’s top tier didn’t come callingfor him like they did for many of histeammates. He doesn’t understandwhy he was routinely overlooked —particularly after a senior season inwhich he rushed 1,178 yards and 25touchdowns and led the school on theoutskirts of Phoenix to a 14-0 recordand a state championship.

“I always thought I was goodenough to play at a place like ArizonaState,” the 5-10, 200-pound senior in-sists. “No one else did, unfortunately,but it really wasn’t something new; it’s

happened my entire career — at leastuntil I got here.”

As many Huskies inked Lettersof Intent with the Sun Devils andschools throughout the Pac-12 andthe country, Bauman garnered offersfrom just three — Air Force, South-ern Illinois and Northern Arizona.

After much soul searching, he de-cided to choose the in-state programthat took a chance on him and thesituation where he could contributeimmediately.

He decided to head north to Flag-staff.

“This was part of my vision,” Bau-man says. “I talked to my dad, and he

said, ‘This is where God wants youto be. Now go work for it. Work hardand make sure you stand out every day.’”

Has he ever.Bauman rushed for 167 yards —

including one scamper of 66 — andfour touchdowns in his college debutin September 2010. His average of more than 96 per game as a fresh-man is third best in Division I history.Current Denver Broncos tailback andformer San Diego State standout Ron-nie Hillman (117.9) is tops on the list,which also features South Carolina’sMarcus Lattimore (92.1) at No. 4.

More BAuMAN I 5

By KYLE SAMPLE

Chronicle Sports Writer

Montana State quarterback DeN-arius McGhee on Tuesday said hecouldn’t recall a time when the BigSky Conference wasn’t rife with teamscompeting for the title.

Through five weeks, this season ap-

pears to be no different.Though Montana State, Montana

and Eastern Washington still figureto be the favorites, a few teams havesurprised as the conference enters itssecond week.

Portland State, which was chosenby coaches and media members tofinish 10th, is 3-2 thanks to an offensethat produced yards and points at anationally elite level. The Vikings arecurrently the seventh-highest scoringteam in the FCS and the third-mostprolific in terms of yards.

Despite the dynamic start, the Vi-kings dropped a 38-34 contest to theCal Poly and are 0-1 in the conference

as they visit Montana today.Southern Utah (4-1, 1-0) is anotherearly surprise. The Thunderbirds,who nearly beat the Bobcats lastseason in Cedar City, Utah, have ben-efitted from one of the conference’sstaunchest defenses.

Portland State at No. 10 Mon-tana, 1:35 p.m.: Both teams need torebound from losses last week to keepthemselves in the Big Sky title race.

With quarterback Jordan Johnsonback, Montana’s offense operatedas one of the nation’s most efficientunits as the Grizzlies opened theseason with three wins. But Montanastruggled mightily last week in Flag-

staff, Ariz., converting just 4-of-13third-down attempts in the 34-16 loss.Both Montana’s offensive and defen-sive lines were overpowered as NAUscored touchdowns on two turnovers.

The big difference between the Griz

and the Vikings (3-2, 0-1) has beenball control. Though there is just afour-minute difference between thetwo teams in time of possession — 29minutes, 26 seconds for Montana and25:06 for PSU — Portland State isminus four in turnover margin, whileMontana is eight better.

Weber State at No. 6 EasternWashington, 4:05 p.m.: EasternWashington (2-2, 0-0) may be theleague’s most perplexing team. TheEagles upset Oregon State to openthe season, but later dropped roadcontests to Toledo and FCS No. 2 SamHouston State.

Big Sky teams and followers should

develop a little better picture of whatEastern Washington can do, but a nota definitive one after today’s match upwith Weber State.

Weber (1-4, 0-1) opened the seasonwith a 50-40 win over Stephen F. Aus-tin but has flamed out since.

The Wildcats allowed 70 pointsin back-to-back losses to Utah andUtah State before they were outscored74-9 in consecutive losses to No. 11McNeese State and conference foeSacramento State.

Northern Colorado at SacramentoState, 6:05 p.m.: Sacramento Statewas the dark horse pick to challengefor the Big Sky crown. But despite last

week’s 31-3 win over Weber State, theHornets have been inconsistent. Oneweek after a 55-0 loss to Arizona State,the Hornets (2-3, 1-0) had to outscoreDivision II Southern Oregon 63-56 inovertime.

Quarterback Garrett Safron hasthrown for 13 touchdowns, nine of which have gone to DeAndre Carter.

Northern Colorado (1-4, 0-1)seemed headed in the right directionafter a 4-4 finish in league in 2012, butwithout senior quarterback Seth Lo-bato, the Bears are 0-4 and lost theirconference opener to Southern Utah.

Yale at No. 18 Cal Poly, 2:05 p.m.:

The first contest between Big Sky andIvy League schools should be a quick one.

Employing a triple-option attack,Cal Poly is the FCS’ seventh-bestrushing attack at 278 yards, while Yaleis 10th at 270.

Cal Poly (2-2, 1-0) will return homefor the first time since its seasonopening win over San Diego on Aug.30. The Mustangs will likely rely onrunning back Chris Ivory, who leadsthe Big Sky with 130 rush yards pergame.

UC Davis at Southern Utah, 1:05p.m.: Enjoy your league lead whileyou can, UC Davis.

The Aggies started the conferenceseason with a 30-13 win over IdahoState. It was the third time Davis (1-4,1-0) has played a Big Sky conferenceteam this season. The Aggies werehanded a 21-10 loss by NAU and a41-10 defeat by Portland State.

Though neither of those gamescounts toward the Big Sky record,they provided an indicator of wherethe Aggies stand in relation to the restof the conference.

Southern Utah (4-1, 1-0), on theother hand, is also undefeated inconference but has looked much moreimpressive.

The Thunderbirds own the league’s

best run defense, while UC Davis isthe league’s best pass defense.Kyle Sample can be reached at

[email protected] or 582-2690. Follow him on Twitter @kylesample_bdc.

NAu tailback Baman makes most of opportnity

Making a statement

Bsy weekend on tap for Big Sky Conference

PHOTO COURTESy NAU

Northern Arizona’s Zach Bauman became the first Lumberjacks plaer to eclipse the

4,000-ard rushing mark in last week’s win over Montana.

“I always thoght I was good enogh to play at a place

like Arizona State. No one else did, nfortnately, bt it

really wasn’t something new; it’s happened my entire

career — at least ntil I got here.”

— Zach Bauman, Northern Arizona tailback



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bozeman daily chronicle Saturday, October 5, 2013 | 5

BOBCATS GAME DAY



We’ve Moved!

586-6160 • 1285 North Rouse Ave. Bozeman • M-S 10 to 7

Come see our new larger location andcheck out our selection of Bobcat fangear for your dog including hoodies,

jerseys, collars, bowls, beds.

Austin stumbled acrossan organization called theBicycle Empowerment

Network (BEN) during anInternet search.Soon after, he reached

out to BEN director Mi-chael Linke.

“Michael called me back,explained his model to me,and we decided to take ashot,” Austin says.

The family loaded ashipping container withtheir 120 bikes and about300 more donated frompeople in Billings and sur-rounding towns like Sid-ney, Hardin and Roundup.

About six weeks later,they were on hand whenthe box arrived in north-east Namibia.

There, old bikes likely bound for landfills begannew lives.

There, locals in direfinancial straits were givenreason for hope, and a rigidcontainer was transformedinto a community gather-ing spot: abike shopthat sells,rents andfixes bikes ata subsidizedcost with all

profits be-ing directly filtered back into variouslocal welfareprojects.

“We arrived on site, thecontainer was sitting thereand out of the bush comesa half-dozen locals thatwere pre-selected to be theshop staff, manager and allof that,” Austin recalls. “Weopened it together, and justto see the expressions ontheir faces — the thankful-ness for us bringing this

empowerment to them —was incredible.“We don’t look at this as

a charity; we look at it ashelping those who wantso desperately to helpthemselves with tools andtraining to stand on theirown. Many of these peoplehaven’t had a job before.”

The Austins spent sixweeks in Ngoma instruct-ing the locals how toservice bikes, balancecheckbooks, operate busi-nesses — even how to ride.

“They had never been

on one before. Andy Ispent hours trying to teach30-year-old people how toride,” Austin recalls.

The kinship developedwas a most rewardingpayoff, Andy says.

“There was a personwho basically invited my dad and I into his houseand fed us fish, coffee andCoca-Cola,” he says. “Wetried to get him to keep it,but he was saying, ‘You’rea guest in my house. Comein and share what I have.’We talked for a couplehours.

“It’s pretty funny, butpeople there kind of flock to me; (at 6-foot-3 and 285pounds) I do stick out abit. There are pictures of me standing in a group of people laughing and havinga good time. Even if youdon’t speak the language,they bring you right in.”

The Austins werehooked immediately. Totake a more active rolein the process, work inconcert with Linke butexpand on the model andinclude different elements

— chief among them usingDan Austin’s backgroundto help shops develop biketours — they decided toform Wheels of Change.

Their mission statement:Empowering communitieswith sustainable enterprise.

Andy serves on theboard of directors and hasbeen largely responsiblefor operating WOC’s socialmedia sites and grassrootsmarketing and fundraisingefforts.

July’s Bohart BashMountain Bike Race do-

nated all of its proceeds tothe cause. One month later,Andy was in downtownBozeman selling T-shirtsand parking bikes for SweetPea festival-goers, generat-

ing $700 in donations inthe process.

The domestic responsehas been overwhelming,the Austins say. Bike dona-tions continue to filter in,and WOC chapters have

sproutedup inplaces likePhiladel-phia andCincinnati.

One

12-year-oldboy fromNorthCarolinaeven do-nated the

$1,000 he received forChristmas, according to aWOC Facebook post.

“Everything is sopositive, and everyone thathears about us wants tohelp,” Andy says. “I can’teven (fulfill) all the offersbecause of how muchinterest has been drummedup.”

To date, WOC hasshipped three containers toAfrica. Four hundred bikesreached a village outsideNairobi, Kenya, in 2011,and the latest — a ship-ment of about 300 — wasdelivered to the villageof Linyanti in northeastNamibia on Aug. 7.

All three are part of a vast 31-shop network supported by BEN that hasdonated 32,706 bikes since2005, according to a Sept.23 WOC news release.

“One of the best testi-

monies is that of the 30 orso shops up and running,none have ever failed,” DanAustin says. “That showsthe ingenuity, the passionand the commitment thesepeople put into this. … Thesense of accomplishmentand fulfillment just radiatesfrom them.”

The Linyanti project,which will help subsistencefarmers and fishermanmore efficiently transporttheir products in additionto supporting two nearby bicycle tourism projects,really hits home for theAustins.

The duo was invited to agroundbreaking for a new conservancy in that area,and last year returned thefavor by inviting 14 Namib-ians on a two-week Mon-tana excursion. The groupspent that time exploringBillings, Yellowstone andthe Grand Tetons, and eventook in Montana State’sfootball game against Ste-phen F. Austin.

“They were extremely well received by Boze-man. They had a Bobcat

cheer they made up, andthe highlight of the trip formost of them was gettingto see Andy on the footballfield,” Austin recounts. “Itwas neat to see Andy in hisenvironment; after all, hehad met them in theirs.

“We’ve grown so closewith these people. Whenwe go over there, we look at it as visiting friends andfamily. We’re not touristsanymore.”

That expanded family isthriving.

In Ngoma, the Tuli-

wonde Bicycle Shop, situ-ated near the border withZambia, Zimbabwe andBotswana, has sold morethan 1,000 bicycles — theAustins have leaned on

partners for donations tomeet demand. Profits havehelped feed and clothe chil-dren through a partnershipwith local organizationCatholic Aids Action.

Some containers havebeen turned into make-shift schools and orphan-ages. Some now sell waterpurification systems, solarlights and help charge cell

phones, among other func-tions, Austin says.Affordable, easily main-

tainable and reliable trans-port has affected all facetsof daily life. According toWOC, a bicycle makes: a5-kilometer trip take 40fewer minutes than travel-ing on foot; a young girl 70percent more likely to at-tend school; a person carry five times the weight they could on foot; a healthcareworker visit three to fourtimes more patients.

“There are areas wherepeople are 20 kilometersfrom schools or hospitals;some people who wind upneeding treatment can’t getit,” Andy says. “With theaid of a bike, we can get ahealthcare worker to thepeople instead of a villageof 200 trying to get to ahealthcare worker. … We’realso working with bicycleambulances. What’s scary is that if people feel likethey’re going to die, they won’t go to the hospital;an ambulance is a month’ssalary for some of thesepeople and they don’t want

to burden their families.Build a bike with a gurney on the back … and you cantransport a sick person forfree.”

He continues, “I’vealways wanted to helppeople; I was a nursingmajor my first 2 ½ yearsin college. It just wasn’tfor me. I had an entrepre-neurial spirit and wantedto do my own thing. Thishas really struck me how something so simple canchange a life. It’s easy forme to do. Sure, it takes a lot

of time and effort, but it’sworth every bit of it.”Andy is hoping to devote

more time to WOC. AfterMSU’s season concludesand he graduates in De-

cember, he is planning toreturn to Africa for at leastsix months to help furtherthe cause on the ground.

“Andy’s worked so hardand been so committed toeverything he does,” DanAustin says. “He’s stayed aBobcat, and even thoughyou’ll never see him on any watch lists or any confer-ence awards lists he doesn’t

miss a meeting, is neverlate for a practice. He loveshis teammates dearly andloves playing football,but he understands theimportance of getting aneducation and preparingfor life after football.

“When we really startmoving the ball withWheels of Change is whenwe can dedicate more timeand energy. It wouldn’t sur-prise me at all to see him bethe catalyst. … There’s noreal way to describe how proud I am of this projectand how proud I am of him. Every once in a whileyou get lucky, right?”

Wheels /m 1

Photo courtesy of Andy Austin

A namba ma ak pa a a bk maa.

How you can helpi ’

ag a bk g m abw g vlvw Wl cagiaal, pla vwaal.g.

He’s since become theonly Lumberjacks playerto log three consecutive

1,000-yard seasons andhas blossomed into oneof the Football Cham-pionship Subdivision’smost well-rounded anddynamic playmakers.

“He’s one of those guyswho can make you miss ina phone booth,” Montanalinebacker Jordan Tripprecently told the Mis-soulian.

Bauman’s exploits andaffability have spawned alegion of fans in Flagstaff and across the Big Sky and a slew of hash tags;

#IBackZach and #Votin-4Bauman abound onsocial media sites.

He’s a multiple WalterPayton Award finalist,a second-team All-American and a first-teamAll-Big Sky selection. Lastweek, he became the firstNAU player to eclipsethe 4,000-yard mark ina convincing win overMontana.

“Every team’s got a guy,and he’s ours,” Lumber-

jacks head coach JeromeSouers said. “We knew he

was good from the startand threw him right inthere as a true freshman.Zach has not disappoint-ed; he’s been something towatch.”

Added Montana Statehead coach Rob Ash,“He’s an incredible talent.I’ve watched him abso-lutely singlehandedly wingames for NAU. A lot of them were last year whenwe didn’t play them, butI saw him when I wasscouting other teams. He’sa difference maker. We

recruited him for a bit, soI’ve known about him fora long time.

Ash jokingly added, “Itseems like he’s been inthe league forever. I’ll behappy to see him go.”

Bauman and NAU hopethis is just the start.

After a season-opening,35-0 loss at Arizona, theLumberjacks have reeledoff three straight wins,none more impressivethan last week’s 34-16stunner against the Griz-zlies in front of 12,640at the raucous WalkupSkydome, which was soldout for the first time since1994.

“That was the mostpeople we’ve ever had ata game since I’ve beenhere; the atmospherewas great,” Bauman said.“When this team getsgoing, it definitely puts asmile on the face of theentire community.”

While it was the NAUdefense that turned heads,scooping up two Montanafumbles and returningthem for 98- and 22-yardscores in the second andthird quarters, it was

Bauman that predictably provided the early spark.He slipped past threeGrizzlies and sprinted 41yards for a touchdown onthe game’s first posses-

sion, and then capped alengthy second Lumber-

jacks drive with a 5-yardscoring burst.

He finished with 118yards on 21 carries — his20th game of more than100 — and hauled inthree catches for 40 moreas NAU bested Montanafor the second consecu-tive season and for thefirst time in Flagstaff in16 years.

“He’s very elusive andpowerful; he’s not just afast guy that can outrun

people,” Ash said. “Hemakes guys miss, he canrun through arm tack-les, and he sees things

very well. He’s very fluid,(and) he runs a lot of dif-ferent kinds of plays well.He’s just a huge threat.”

Despite being theclear focus of opposingdefenses, Bauman hasamassed 396 yards on82 carries through fourgames. After 71- and56-yard efforts againstArizona and UC Davis,he averaged 135.5 yards

against South Dakotaand Montana — a boostfacilitated by the develop-ment of fellow Hamiltonproduct and receiver-turned-quarterback Kyren Poe. The sopho-more was 22 of 30 for 242yards and connected witheight different receiverslast week.

Couple that with anopportunistic defensethat is surrendering anaverage of just 14 pointsin three FCS games, andthere’s reason for opti-

mism in Flagstaff. TheLumberjacks have vaultedto No. 15 in The SportsNetwork’s latest poll andappear to have a favorableschedule the rest of theway. The seven remainingteams on the slate have acombined record of 15-17, and only two — MSU(3-2) and Southern Utah(4-1) — are above .500.

Don’t expect Bauman tounderestimate any oppo-nent, however. He knowshow it feels, and he knowshow motivating suchcircumstances can be.

He’s lived it.“I’ve used all that

negativity from before tofuel me to go that extramile,” he says. “I comeout with the attitude thatteams are game-planningfor me and I have to work my hardest and not takeany week off. … I think this team is the same way.We’re excited and we’re aconfident team, but we’rea very humble team.”

Jon Maletz can bereached at [email protected] or 582-2601.Follow him on Twitter @

jmaletz.

Bauman /m 2

Photo courtesy of Andy Austin

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BOBCATS GAME DAY



Depth charts

Montana StateOffenseLEFT TACKLE

55 John Weidenaar 6-7/280 So

76 Marshall Womack 6-5/280 Fr

LEFT GUARD

63 Kyle Godecke 6-5/315 So

70 Joel Horn 6-4/295 So

CENTER

74 Matthew Devereux 6-3/300 So

70 Joel Horn 6-4/295 So

RIGHT GUARD

75 JP Flynn 6-5/304 Fr

72 Charles Lee 6-3/280 Jr

RIGHT TACKLE

79 Quinn Catalano 6-4/300 Jr64 Andy Austin 6-3/285 Sr

QUARTERBACK

9 DeNarius McGhee 6-0/212 Sr

2 Jake Bleskin 6-1/195 So

RUNNING BACK

25 Cody Kirk 5-10/213 Sr

33 Shawn Johnson 5-9/175 Jr

X RECEIVER

86 Tanner Bleskin 6-3/218 Sr

83 Manny Kalfell 6-3/193 So

Z RECEIVER

4 Jon Ellis 5-10/175 Sr

13 Mitch Griebel 5-11/193 So

F/Y RECEIVER

12 David Dash 5-7/174 Jr

13 Mitch Griebel 5-11/193 So

TIGHT END

80 Tiai Salanoa 6-3/257 Sr

93 Lee Perkins 6-2/240 Jr

KICKER

18 Rory Perez 6-3/185 Sr

DefenseEND

7 Preston Gale 6-3/254 Sr

10 Odin Coe 6-3/250 So

TACKLE

47 Taylor Dees 6-2/273 Jr

92 Nate Bignell 6-2/273 So

NOSE

50 Craig Ashworth 6-1/280 Sr

90 Taylor Sheridan 6-3/280 So

BANDIT

41 Brad Daly 6-1/240 Sr

46 Hayden Vick 6-3/236 Jr

SAM LINEBACKER

16 Cole Moore 6-2/220 Jr

34 Blake Braun 6-1/225 Fr

MIKE LINEBACKER

51 Michael Foster 6-1/228 So

58 Rhett Young 6-0/215 Jr

WILL LINEBACKER

43 Alex Singleton 6-2/240 Jr

29 Fe’ao Vunipola 5-10/222 Fr

BOUNDARY CORNER

37 Deonte Flowers 5-11/183 Jr

36 Brad Nordahl 5-11/172 Jr

ROVER

5 Rob Marshall 6-0/200 Jr

22 Eryon Barnett 6-2/200 Sr

FREE SAFETY

1 Steven Bethley 5-11/210 Sr

26 James Nelson 5-11/199 Jr

FIELD CORNER

3 Sean Gords 5-10/193 Sr8 Ijumaa Armstrong 6-0/190 So

PUNTER

18 Rory Perez 6-3/185 Sr

THE EDGEMontana state atnorthDakota

So, what exactly did we learn rom Montana

State’s visit to Grand Forks?

Not much, other than the act the North

Dakota deense is proving to be the perect salve

or a Bobcats squad looking to regroup.

MSU entered last year’s contest with UND

ater a hard-ought, three-point loss to Eastern

Washington and a bye and promptly reeled

o 55 points and more than 400 yards rushing

is an easy win. Ater yet another

deating loss in Texas this time

around, MSU once again took out itsrustrations on seemingly uninspired

and overmatched NoDak. The ‘Cats

produced 42 points and Cody Kirk

ound the end zone fve times in the

frst hal alone.

All told, MSU piled up 315 yards on

the ground, 586 total and 63 points

in a game that was not nearly as close as the

43-point margin suggests.

Was the result a much-needed confdence

booster to open Big Sky play? Sure. Was it nice

seeing No. 9 back under center? Without a doubt.

Can we fnally put to rest all those concerns

about a maligned Bobcats rushing attack?

Not yet. When you’re third-, ourth- and evenfth-string tailbacks are running wild against a

deense that is shaping up to be one o the worst

in the conerence, it’s sae to say the perormance

is in no way a harbinger o uture success.

That being said, today’s matchup o Big Sky

unbeatens will speak volumes.

Those who ollowed MSU’s virtual cakewalk

by settling in to watch the Griz take on

Northern Arizona likely were stunned by what

transpired at the Walkup Skydome. A Montana

team that staked its claim as one o the top

teams in the country ater an impressive

frst ew weeks was completely

outplayed. Jordan Johnson was

rendered largely ineective. The Grizground game could muster just 55

yards and 2.1 per carry against an

opportunistic Lumberjacks squad

that returned two umbles or

scores — bringing their deensive

touchdown total to fve.

NAU has surrendered just 14

points per contest against FCS opponents and

likely will give the ‘Cats some fts. We can’t bet

against DeNarius McGhee, however. He was back

under center our weeks earlier than some had

predicted, and teammates openly admit that his

presence is a motivator. Something tells us he

hurried back last week so he’d have time to work

o the rust beore the Lumberjacks come calling.With frst place on the line, we expect nothing

less than No. 9’s best, which more oten than not

is enough to produce a win.

WHEN MONTANA STATE HAS THE BALL

One thing is certain when the Lumberjacks

have the ball: They will give it to running

back Zach Bauman.

Bauman, a Walter Payton award candi-

date, is the FCS’ third-leading active rusher

with 4,072 rushing yards. Northern Arizona’s

oense is molded around the

senior; expect to see him get theball plenty — that includes in the

passing game, where Bauman has

caught more balls than anybody

on the roster.

A ew things, however, are not

well known about Northern Arizo-

na’s attack. One o those variables

— the play o irst-year quarterback Kyle Poe

— is a big one.

Through our games, Poe has been ver y

good and he has struggled. In last week’s 34-

16 win over No. 10 Montana, Poe completed

22-o-30 passes or 242 yards. Though he

threw a pick, he still operated NAU’s oense

well enough to give it a lead and hold onto it.

Northern Arizona has seen the other Poe,

too, the one who completed just 32-o-58

passes as the Lumberjacks struggled to score

points against UC Davis and South Dakota.

Poe’s inconsistency has had little eect

on NAU’s success, however, as it

has won three straight. The Lum-berjacks may be 3-1 and have the

perception o explosiveness with

Bauman, but this is not a potent

unit. Northern Arizona has scored

10 touchdowns as a team this sea-

son, and ive o those have come

rom its deense.

Montana State again showed the doubters

why it has a good deense last week. Deonte

Flowers is the only deensive back in the

history o Greg Hardin’s career in the Big Sky

Conerence to hold him without a catch; the

deensive line pitched in our sacks; and the

unit orced our turnovers.

WHEN NORTHERN ARIZONA HAS THE BALL

Remember that time DeNarius McGhee

returned right beore the Bobcats’ game

against North Dakota and MSU went on to

steamroll the no-name

team rom Grand Forks

and all was right with the

world again?

Almost all o that

happened. No. 9 returned

and the ‘Cats’ oense

looked unstoppableagainst an overmatched

deense.

The MSU deense

regained its orm ater a tough outing in Texas

as it chased North Dakota’s quarterbacks all

day and orced the UND into our turnovers.

We expect this game will

answer a lot more questions

about the Bobcats than last

week’s, however.

NAU’s oensive attack

isn’t anything special, but

Northern Arizona’s deense

will be a tough test.MSU will show everybody

why it belongs near the top o

the FCS, however.27 21

EDGE

EDGE

THE BOTTOM LINE

Northern Arizona

DefenseLEFT END

96 Quentin Kantaris 6-2/230 Sr

92 Anthony Arledge 6-4/245 So

TACKLE

90 Tim Wilkinson 5-11/290 Sr

98 Justin Jungblut 6-5/280 Sr

NOSE

49 Chima Ike 5-10/255 Sr

31 Marc Thompson 6-2/290 Sr

JACK LINEBACKER

58 Harrison Johnson 6-3/195 So

33 Tevin Ray 6-1/190 So

MIKE LINEBACKER

35 Austin Hasquet 6-1/225 Jr54 Craig Frum 6-3/225 Jr

SAM LINEBACKER

44 Ryan Reardon 6-1/235 Sr

36 Anthony Harrington 6-1/210 Sr

LEFT CORNERBACK

22 Marcus Alford 5-10/160 So

4 Randy Hale 5-10/175 Jr

RIGHT CORNERBACK

19 Anders Battle 6-0/185 Sr

24 Blake Bailey 5-8/170 Jr

FREE SAFETY

26 Blair Wishom 6-1/200 Sr

12 Jake Johnston 5-11/210 Jr

STRONG SAFETY20 Lucky Dozier 5-10/185 Sr

13 Shawn Sharkey 5-11/185 Jr

NICKEL

21 Mike Dosen 5-11/195 Sr

28 Anthony Hughes 5-9/200 Sr

PUNTER

41 Andy Wilder 6-3/205 Sr

29 Ryan Hawkins 5-11/185 So

OffenseLEFT TACKLE

74 Kyle Walker 6-4/290 Sr

73 LeRoy Guenther 6-7/235 So

LEFT GUARD76 Eric Rodriguez 6-3/272 Fr

75 Dylan LaFrenz 6-4/285 Fr

CENTER

67 Roy Garcia 6-3/275 Jr

61 Jim Herrero 6-6/225 So

RIGHT GUARD

61 Jim Herrero 6-6/225 So

75 Dylan LaFrenz 6-4/285 Fr

RIGHT TACKLE

64 Jacob Julian 6-4/297 Fr

78 Ryan Nowicki 6-5/300 So

QUARTERBACK

7 Kyren Poe 6-3/195 So

15 Chase Cartwright 6-3/210 JrRUNNING BACK

34 Zach Bauman 5-10/200 Sr

42 Casey Jahn 5-11/185 So

FULLBACK

45 Nick Butier 6-1/240 So

40 Jake Thomas 6-1/220 Fr

WIDE RECEIVER

14 Alex Holmes 6-0/180 So

8 Ify Umodu 6-3/215 Sr

WIDE RECEIVER

5 Dejzon Walker 6-3/225 Jr

18 Jesse Brantley 6-0/195 Sr

WIDE RECEIVER

6 Nick Cole 6-3/195 So18 Jesse Brantley 6-0/195 Sr

KICKER

29 Ryan Hawkins 5-11/185 So

Documents

Game Day - Northern Arizona