MISSOULA — Sitting at 5-3 and on a two-game losing streak, things are looking a little different for the Montana Grizzlies than they did two weeks ago. And there are some questions to be answered as Montana regroups before the final stretch of the regular season.
Three weeks ago, Montana rolled past UC Davis in a top-10 Big Sky matchup, and soundly defeated Northern Colorado the week after.
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Since, it's been shootout losses to Northern Arizona and Idaho with Montana now on a bye, as the offense has thrived among the nation's best, while the defense, has struggled mightily through injuries, and scheme.
"I am disappointed, but like I said, I've got an unwavering belief in this group and our coaches," UM head coach Bobby Kennedy said after the loss to the Vandals. "And if anything, I'm not ever going to blame our players. I take full responsibility for where we are right now. If my message has to be better, and I have to change things up then I'm going to do that so that we can be successful."
Under first-year coordinator Eric Sanders, defense is where the head-scratching is most present for Montana.
Health and injuries have taken their toll. But especially in the loss to the Vandals, UM's players have looked lost, and at no point seemed poised to make a stop, leaving the offense in a position where anything less than perfectection wouldn't get the job done.
"I've got full confidence in our defensive staff," Kennedy said. "I see the way that our guys are teaching these kids and how we work every day. And we knew there were going to be some growing pains.
"We went from a very different defense to what we're playing now. And am I disappointed that we lost? And do we have to fix some things and make some things better? There's no doubt about that. But I have the utmost confidence in our players and also our staff."
Special teams has also struggled under first-year coordinator Chris White. A kickoff return touchdown against NAU is what doomed the Grizzlies, and UM also missed a key field goal attempt against the Vandals. That unit has also failed to provide any key or explosive plays since the opener against Southern Utah.
Montana's offense has done everything it can to put the Griz in position to win as one of the best units in the FCS. Yet it needs help if UM wants to make a true run. Montana scored 44 points against NAU and 35 against Idaho, and still lost both.
"This is the team I want, this is the staff I want, so I don't want any questions about that," Kennedy said. "Because the thing is, if you see these guys every day and you see our staff the way they work, I'm very comfortable with doing things my way and tweaking things in the future."
The path is still there for the Griz to make a statement and position themselves well for the playoffs, with a road trip at Eastern Washington next, followed by home games against Portland State and Idaho State, with the Brawl of the Wild at Montana State rounding out the final four. Winning out likely earns the Griz a bye, while one loss means playing in the opening round, and multiple could mean no playoffs at all.
It's a challenging route and Montana didn't make it easy for themselves, with their backs against the wall and higher pressure now the result of slipping the last two weeks.
"This game can change quick," Kennedy noted. "I've been around a long time. And you think you have the right answers And when those answers aren't right, then you've got to go back to the drawing board and you have to tweak some things and get them fixed because that's my responsibility in the chair that I sit in."
