NAIA Playoffs: Montana Tech travels to Indiana to battle Saint Francis
The Montana Tech Orediggers are in unfamiliar territory.
Not only are they in the quarterfinals of the NAIA playoffs for the first time since 2005, the Diggers are some-1,600 miles east of their Butte campus.
“I don’t think very many,” head coach Chuck Morrell laughed when asked if any of his players had been to Indiana before. “I’ve only been in Indiana a few times myself. You know, our guys are used to travel. Obviously in the Frontier Conference we are on a lot of long road trips to Ashland, Oregon, and La Grande, Oregon, so we are used to being out and about for sure.”
The Frontier Conference champs (10-1) are at Saint Francis (10-0) for a second-round matchup Saturday afternoon. Kickoff is set for 10 a.m. Mountain Time in Fort Wayne, Ind.
A week ago in the first round of the playoffs, halfback Nolan Saraceni rushed for 163 yards and three scores – his ninth game over the century mark this season – as the Digger offense racked up 514 yards to cruise past a less-talented Dickinson State team, 44-10.
“I feel we finished the regular season on a strong note and guys have continued to play well and they’re definitely excited about (Saturday),” Morrell said of his No. 5-ranked Diggers.
The fourth-ranked Cougars should provide for a much stiffer test. Quarterback Nick Ferrer, who has thrown for 35 TDs while passing it to the opposition just thrice, leads a dynamic offense that is among the nation’s best.
The Cougars hold top-three marks in the country in passing efficiency, total offense (507 yards per game) and points per game (50.7). Ferrer, at 6-foot-5, 225 pounds, is the catalyst.
“He doesn’t make very many mistakes,” Morrell said. “Thirty-five touchdowns and only three interceptions on the year. He takes great care of the football. He reminds me a lot of Austin Dodge at Southern Oregon last year. He’s able to deliver the deep ball at a really high percentage and been able to move their offense up and down the field.”
Morrell was an assistant head coach and defensive coordinator for the University of Sioux Falls from 1998-2009, and during his time there, Morrell squared off with Saint Francis on two occasions, once in the 2006 national championship and then two years later in the semifinals, so the fifth-year Tech mentor knows a thing or two about veteran Cougar head coach Kevin Donley and his football teams.
“He’s one of the all-time winningest coaches in NAIA history,” Morrell said. “Just unbelievable in terms of the career success that he has. His teams are always very well-coached and very well-organized, and I know that they come ready to play.”
The same can be said for the Diggers, a team that hasn’t lost since Sept. 19. Despite a musical-chairs-like-situation at the quarterback position, Montana Tech has won eight consecutive games in large part behind a dominant defense.
Montana State transfer Quinn McQueary, the starting quarterback to begin the season, hurt his shoulder in the second game of the year and the dual-threat playmaker hasn’t appeared in a game since late October. His status for Saturday’s game is still up in the air.
“He’s slowly but surely coming back and we are just going to take it a snap at a time,” Morrell said. “He has been practicing a little bit here the last couple of weeks, but has not been on the field.”
The offense hasn’t exactly skipped a beat with McQueary’s absence, though it surely misses his ability to extend plays with his feet.
Andrew Loudenback, Clay Cavender, Zach Bunney and Saraceni have all seen snaps behind center. As far as dropping back to pass, Loudenback, the 6-foot-3, 225-pound junior, saw the majority of the work last week, throwing for 163 yards and a touchdown. The Diggers have put several players in the Wildcat formation as well.
“Our guys have really bought in to the team concept, and we have a lot of talented skill guys throughout our entire offense,” Morrell said. “Our offensive staff has done a great job of being creative and finding different ways to get guys the ball.”