Lindsey Branch, UMW Sports Information
BILLINGS, Mont. – The no. 6 ranked Montana Western Football traveled to Billings this afternoon to take on the Rocky Mountain College Battlin' Bears this afternoon. UMW came out on top by a final score of 42-24 after posting 28 points in the second half.
Jake Humphrey led the Bulldogs, rushing for a career high 215 rushing yards and five touchdowns. The last time a Bulldog runningback rushed for over 200 yards was Reese Neville back in 2021 against Rocky Mountain College.
"In a challenging situation our program stepped up and showed what a true brotherhood and football family we have at UMW. I'm proud of our staff and players ability to rise up and make it happen in my absence. We have strong leaders throughout this team and I'm extremely excited for coach Martello to get his first win as a head coach," Head Coach Ryan Nourse said. "If we are going to continue to win, we are going to have to become a more consistent and a smarter team. I believe the men will be up for the challenge."
How It Happened
The Bulldogs were the first to light to scoreboard up, utilizing an eight play, 80-yard drive to score on a four-yard rush by Jake Humphrey for his first touchdown of the day.
Rocky Mountain would tie the game just one play into the second half on a 30-yard touchdown pass to tie it up at seven all.
It took no time before Humphrey found the end zone again, this time when he broke free on a 60-yard touchdown rush to put UMW up 14-7 with 13:16 left in the half.
Rocky once again drove down the field and scored on a field goal, making the game 14-10 with nine minutes on the clock.
Despite a rough following drive, the Bulldog defense impressed as Noah Rimmer picked up a sack for a loss of six yards and Jace Fitzgerald recorded a tackle for a loss of five yards to force a quick turnover.
The Bulldogs would take the 14-10 lead into the second half.
The Bulldogs were hot coming out from the half, scoring on three consecutive offensive drives behind a pair of rushing touchdowns from Humphrey, including a 70-yard rush. They would also record a score as Michael Palandri threw a touchdown pass to Dylan Shipley for 48-yards.
Up 35-10, Rocky took a five-minute drive down to the Western 19-yard line and scored on a touchdown pass with under three minutes left in the third.
The start of the fourth featured quick excitement as Tony O'Neel blocked a punt that would give Western the ball at the Rocky 11-yard line. It was Humphrey once again who added another score to the board and take a 42-17 lead.
Rocky scored once more before the game was capped at 42-24 with Western on top.
Notables
The Bulldogs have won three-straight against Rocky Mountain in the series, winning seven of their last 10 matchups dating back to 2018.
Humphrey's 215 rushing yards and five touchdowns was a career high, averaging 10.8 yards per rush.
Three Bulldogs totaled double digits in tackles on defense, with Brady Mounts totaling 12 total on seven solo tackles. Keegen Muffich and Fitzgerald each tallied 11 tackles.
John Mears remains perfect on point after attempts, hitting six for six in today's game and going 33 for 33 this season.
Up Next
Montana Western returns for Homecoming weekend next week as they take on the Arizona Christian Firestorm at 1pm on Oct. 26 at 1pm.
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