Montanans Tommy Mellott, Junior Bergen to cross paths Saturday in NFL preseason

BILLINGS — Homegrown Treasure Staters Tommy Mellott and Junior Bergen have crossed paths on the football field a handful of times through the years, but now they'll meet as NFL rookies when Mellott's Las Vegas Raiders play Bergen's San Francisco 49ers in a preseason game this week.

And both are fighting for roster spots.

The game is set to kick off Saturday at 2 p.m. Mountain time from Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. It will be broadcast on the NFL Network.

Montana State's Mellott, a Butte High alum, and Montana's Bergen, a Billings Senior grad, both saw playing time in their preseason debuts last week with varying degrees of success.

Last Thursday against Seattle, Mellott caught one pass for minus-2 yards as part of a 23-23 tie. It was the only time Mellott was targeted in the passing game.

A former Montana State standout and a sixth-round draft pick in April, Mellott is transitioning from superstar college quarterback to NFL wide receiver. He won the Walter Payton Award last season as the top offensive player in the FCS.

Last Saturday against Denver, Bergen showed promise with two kickoff returns for 40 yards and one punt return for 28 yards in the 49ers' 30-9 loss. He was targeted once and didn't catch a pass.

A former star at Montana and a seventh-round draft choice, Bergen's path to sticking with the 49ers will most likely come through his abilities as a returner. Bergen returned eight punts for touchdowns — an FCS record — and two kickoffs for TDs in his Grizzly career.

49ers coach Kyle Shanahan told reporters during a press conference on Monday that Bergen is faring well so far.

"That's why we brought him here, because of his return ability that he had in college," Shanahan was quoted on the 49ers Webzone site. "But he's gotten a lot more opportunities going into this camp being down more guys than we initially expected.

"I think he's shown he is ready for it. He's been able to catch the ball good, he's learned the playbook, we've been able to put him in there and use him as a receiver, and that definitely helps his chances."

In college, Mellott and Bergen met four times as active players. Mellott's Bobcats won twice and Bergen's Grizzlies won twice.

In his career against Montana, Mellott threw for 265 yards, rushed for 326 yards and accounted for five total touchdowns.

Bergen's career numbers against the Bobcats consisted of 15 receptions for 200 yards and two touchdowns, as well as a 15.8-yard punt return average and a 28.0-yard kickoff return average.

In their lone high school meeting in 2018 Bergen intercepted a Mellott pass on the game's first offensive play — tipping the ball to himself and catching it while falling to the ground to help set up a quick touchdown as part of the Broncs' 40-27 victory over the Bulldogs in Billings.

There were also Cat/Griz connections in last week's preseason games:

Mellott crossed paths with former Grizzly linebacker and Kalispell native Patrick O'Connell and ex-Bobcat defensive back Ty Okada, both of whom play for the Seahawks.

And Bergen saw former MSU linebacker Alex Singleton, a Broncos starter. Singleton, however, was in street clothes due to an injured thumb.

Also of note for Saturday, Griz hall of famer and Butte High alum Colt Anderson is in his first year as an assistant special teams coach with the 49ers, and Helena native Tom McMahon is the Raiders' special teams coach. Also, former Bobcats defensive tackle Sebastian Valdez plays for the 49ers.