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The capital of Montana football might be Moscow, Idaho. The Vandals (2-5, 2-2 Big Sky) have won just two games this season, and both came against the Treasure State. Saturday's 42-35 win in Missoula brought the Little Brown Stein back to Moscow and finished a sweep of the Grizzlies and Bobcats.
Joshua Wood threw for 335 yards and ran for 85 more at Washington-Grizzly Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 17. It's the first time since 1989 that Idaho has beaten both Montana schools in the same season. Idaho beat Montana State five times from 1990 to 2025, but lost to Montana each of those years, according to the Idaho-Montana State and Montana-Idaho series records.
Idaho never trailed, but it never got comfortable either. Montana tied the game three times, and the Vandals had an answer every time, according to the official play-by-play.
The opening drive set the tone for a strange day. Wood was intercepted by Montana's Chris Johnson II, but Gus Donnerberg forced a fumble on the return and Damonte Bias recovered at the Montana 39. Idaho turned it into a seven-play, 39-yard drive capped by Wood's 10-yard touchdown pass to Zack Card. The Vandals followed with an 11-play, 88-yard drive capped by Wood's 14-yard strike to Ryan Jezioro, and they led 14-0 after one quarter.
Montana found its footing in the second quarter. Keali'i Ah Yat capped a seven-play, 75-yard drive with an 18-yard touchdown pass to Brooks Davis. Idaho answered with a 14-play, 76-yard drive that ate 7:12 off the clock and included a fourth-and-1 conversion by Hayden Kincheloe at the Idaho 33. Wood finished it with a 2-yard run. Ah Yat and Davis connected again from 5 yards out with 1:05 left, and Idaho took a 21-14 lead into halftime.
The third quarter turned into an old-fashioned shootout. Ah Yat hit Davis for a 33-yard score to tie it at 21, and Wood answered with a 13-yard touchdown pass to Jezioro. Monte Gillman's 35-yard kickoff return set up a quick Montana drive, and Landon Ransom-Goelz caught a 22-yard touchdown to tie it at 28. Idaho then put together its best drive of the day, a 12-play, 73-yard march that included a 23-yard Wood run. Kincheloe punched it in from 6 yards out with 10 seconds left in the quarter for a 35-28 lead.
Montana tied it one more time when Eli Gillman caught a 3-yard touchdown pass with 11:53 left. Idaho needed just four plays to go back in front. Wood ran for 35 yards, then hit Nolan McWilliams for 34 more, and a roughing penalty moved the ball to the 3. Israel Carter scored from 2 yards out with 10:07 left for a 42-35 lead.
That's where the Idaho defense took over. On Montana's next drive, Mason Krahn sacked Ah Yat for a 9-yard loss on third down, and Jo Silver's 34-yard field goal try missed with 5:30 to play. Montana got one last shot and drove to the Idaho 19, but Nikko Speer dropped Ah Yat for a 3-yard loss and Mitchel Jaskowiak sacked him. Ah Yat's fourth-and-10 pass fell incomplete with 33 seconds left, and Wood took a knee to end it.
The difference came down to keeping the ball. Idaho converted 11 of 14 third downs, scored touchdowns on all six of its red-zone trips and held the ball for 35:43. Montana, No. 8 in the Redshirt Sports FCS Top 25 coming in, had it for just 24:17. Idaho outgained the Grizzlies 493-481 and piled up 32 first downs to Montana's 24, though it was flagged seven times for 50 yards to Montana's two for 15. Each team lost one turnover.
Wood completed 30 of 38 passes for 335 yards, three touchdowns and one interception, and he ran 11 times for 85 yards and a score, with a long of 35. Kincheloe added 44 yards and a touchdown on 11 carries, according to the box score.
Wood spread it around. Tony Harste led Idaho with five catches for 61 yards, McWilliams had five for 60 and Daveon Superales had five for 45. Jezioro caught four passes for 47 yards and two touchdowns.
On defense, Khaled Rawls made a career-high 11 tackles, with two tackles for loss. Hysan Dalton and Aaron Kinsey each had six tackles, and Krahn and Jaskowiak each had a sack.
Montana had its own big numbers. Ah Yat completed 25 of 31 passes for 338 yards and five touchdowns without an interception. Davis caught eight passes for 104 yards and three touchdowns. Gillman ran for 139 yards on 19 carries and caught four passes for 31 yards and a touchdown. Kade Boyd led the Grizzlies with 12 tackles and a sack, and Devin Dunn added 11 tackles. It wasn't enough, and a crowd of 26,567 watched Montana drop its second straight game.
If Saturday felt familiar, that's because Idaho has done this before this season. On Oct. 2 in the Kibbie Dome, Wood threw a 25-yard touchdown pass to Jezioro with no time left, then ran in the 2-point conversion to beat defending FCS champion Montana State 35-34. Idaho had trailed by 14 points in the fourth quarter. The loss ended the Bobcats' 19-game winning streak, as ESPN reported.
Idaho probably isn't winning the Big Sky at 2-2, but it has done plenty to shape who does. Northern Arizona (6-2, 4-1) and Weber State (5-3, 4-1) share the lead. Montana State (6-1, 3-1) is a half-game back, with Montana (5-3, 3-2) and Cal Poly (4-4, 3-2) a game back, according to the Big Sky standings.
Without the loss in Moscow, Montana State would be unbeaten in league play. The Bobcats are still in good shape. They beat Northern Arizona 28-14 on Sept. 26, and head-to-head is the first tiebreaker for the Big Sky's automatic bid, according to the league's tiebreaker policy. Tied teams share the title, but only one gets the automatic bid. Montana State, No. 4 in this week's Redshirt Sports FCS Top 25, also gets two of its biggest games at home, hosting Weber State on Saturday and Montana in the regular-season finale on Nov. 21.
Montana is in a tougher spot. The Grizzlies have two league losses, to Northern Arizona (49-44 on Oct. 10) and now Idaho, so they need help to win the automatic bid. They are 5-3 overall, with the third loss coming 52-17 at FBS Oregon State, which leaves little room for error if they need an at-large bid. Montana fell from No. 8 to No. 13 in our poll and still plays at Eastern Washington, hosts Portland State and Idaho State, then visits Montana State.
Northern Arizona, No. 6 in our poll, might be the biggest winner from Idaho's sweep. The Lumberjacks don't play Idaho this season, so they got to watch the Vandals knock off two of the programs chasing them. Their path still runs through a Nov. 14 home game against Weber State. Weber State beat Idaho 38-27 on Oct. 10 and visits Montana State on Saturday.
Idaho hosts Southern Utah on Saturday, Oct. 24, at 5 p.m. ET in the Kibbie Dome on ESPN+. The Thunderbirds are 3-4 and 2-2 in the Big Sky and come in off a 38-17 win over UC Davis, which was No. 13 in our Week 6 poll.
The Vandals have already shown they can beat anybody in this league. The question now is whether they can do it against teams not from Montana.
