On January 6th in Frisco, Texas, the Montana State Bobcats (MSU) faced the North Dakota State Bison (NDS) in the NCAA Division l Football Championship (FCS).
This was the Bobcats’ second trip to the FCS in three years. They also had a historic year. They won more games than any MSU team has in the past, and their quarterback won the Walter Payton Award, which has never been won by a Bobcat before.
Bobcats Season
The Bobcats were first in the Big Sky Conference standings and won every game this year except for the championship. This was the first season in ten years that the Bobcats have won every regular season game with most of their wins over five points.
The Bobcat’s highest score of the season was against Sacramento State on November 9th. The game ended with a point difference of 42 with the final score 49-7.
The Bobcats won the rivalry game (Braw of the Wild) against the Griz this year. There seems to be a pattern in the last few years where the win goes back and forth between the two teams. Although this game wasn’t as close as it had been in previous years, it ended with a point difference of 23. The final score was 34-11.
Their only loss of the season happened at the most important game of the year: the FCS championship. The Bison led the game from the start and was 18 points ahead at the half. The Bison never let the Bobcats take the lead or get close until the last minute of the game where the Bobcat wide receiver made a 19-yard run for a touchdown and Myles Sansted for the extra point kick. Even with the touchdown and extra point, the Bobcats were unable to tie the game, and it concluded with the final score 35-32.
The Bison have beaten the Bobcats in every game they have played against each other since 2019. This is also the second time they have met in the FCS championship. The first time was back in 2021 when the Bison won by 28 points. The game had a final score of 38-10.
Tommy Mellott
Fifth-year Senior Tommy Mellott is a homegrown Montanan player from Butte who was signed by MSU in 2020. He is now the team’s quarterback but he first started as a wide receiver and played on special teams.
Mellott redshirted his freshman year, but in 2021 his sophomore year he started as the quarterback in the FCS playoffs. In his junior year, he led the Bobcats to the FCS championship game but suffered an ankle injury on the first drive. His senior year was statistically his worst year, and the team ended the year with a record of five to four.
On January 4, Mellott was selected as this year’s Walter Payton Award receiver. This award goes to the FCS offensive player of the year and debuted in 1987.
The award is named after the Chicago Bears running back Wlater Payton, who is considered one of the best football players of all time. Payton was a first-round draft pick in the 1975 NFL Draft. The Bears retired his number and he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1993.
Mellot went into the FCS game with a 68.8% pass completion rate, 2,564 yards, 29 touchdowns, and two interceptions. He had the FCC’s best passing efficiency (180.1) for the season. For all of 2024, he had a 72.6% pass completion rate, 3,052 yards, 31 touchdowns, and four interceptions.
Walter Payton was not the only award that Mellot won this season. He was named the FCS Athletic Directors Association offensive player of the year, the Big Sky Conference offensive player of the year, first-team All-American honors, and first-team All-Big Sky Selection.
Mellot is projected to be a seventh-round pick and could potentially be an undrafted free agent in the upcoming 2025 NFL draft.
The Future
The Bobcats have 22 seniors this year. Some may stay to take an extra year if they were redshirted, but for most, this was their last season. Losing a good amount of players is a big adjustment for any program, but the Bobcats have underclassmen that can keep this program at the top of the standings.
Sophomore Zac Crews is a defensive end who could help the Bobcat’s defense. Crews is from Missoula and played for Sentinel. He was originally signed with the Griz, but after a controversial text surfaced the Griz pulled his scholarship. He played 12 games this season, and made 17 total tackles, 13 solo tackles, four assisted tackles, and two sacks.
Another sophomore who played for Sentinel is Adam Jones. Jones is a running back and played 11 games this season. He had 833 rushing yards, and 198 receiving yards. The longest rush was 93 yards, and 56 yards was his longest reception. He also had a total of 11 touchdowns.
Junior Jordan Reed is most likely the quarterback who is going to replace Mellott’s spot. Reed is from El Centro, California and he played for Central Union High. He only played two games this season but he got injured in the 2023 season which forced him to take time off until his return this past August. He completed two passes and had eight pass attempts. He had a good high school career where he threw 1,015 yards and had 16 touchdowns in his senior year.
The Bobcats have been on the up and up for the last few years. They have gotten pretty far in the FCS playoffs for the last five years and they have a great program that builds on their players’ strengths to push them to the next level.
This next year will be interesting for the Bobcats due to the adjustments in the roster, but other than that, they have all of the tools they need to go back to the FCS championship.
