MISSOULA, Mont. — The No. 3-seeded Montana Grizzlies defended their home turf Saturday afternoon inside of Washington-Grizzly Stadium, as the Grizzlies would down No. 11-seeded South Dakota 52-22 in the quarterfinals of the FCS Playoffs.
 
Wide receiver Larenzo Fenner became the first Coyote in the USD Division I FCS era to eclipse 1,000 career receiving yards with his 18-yard reception in the third quarter.  
 
The Griz would jump out to an early 24-0 lead in the first half against the Yotes in front of a crowd of 22,000+.
 
Midway through the second quarter, the South Dakota defense settled in and got their first stop of the day. Getting the ball back to the offense looking to get something going against a stifling Montana defense early on.
 
The first 30 minutes was controlled by the home team at Washington-Grizzly Stadium. The Yotes got into Griz territory late in the first half, thanks to a 17-yard burst from L.J. Phillips Jr. At the two-minute time out, South Dakota was just outside the red zone for the first time on the day.
 
With under a minute left in the first half and driving, South Dakota elected to go on for it and Phillips Jr. took it 23 yards to the house for the first Yote points of the day to make it 24-7 just before the break.
 
Montana had a 260 to 101 advantage in total yards in the first half, but the Yotes picked up momentum on that final drive of the half. Jack Martens was the key target in the first half with two catches for 24 yards. Phillips Jr. had 69 rushing yards in the first 30 minutes.
 
The Yotes would get the ball to begin the second half, looking to cut into the 17-point deficit on the first drive of the third quarter. The drive would stall, forcing a USD punt to open the half that Montana would take 93 yards for a score to make it 31-7 in the first minutes.
 
Early in the fourth quarter, Aidan Bouman would find Martens over the middle. When everyone in the stadium – including the Montana defense – thought he was down, no whistle blew, and Martens got to his feet and completed the 69-yard touchdown reception.
 
The offense would go down the field in the fourth quarter on the following drive with Bouman finding Tysen Boze on a back shoulder throw form 20 yards out. The two-point conversion would be converted, again caught by Boze, as South Dakota cuts the deficit to 38-22 with just under nine minutes left.
 
Montana would score a couple more times late, taking the victory, 52-22. The Griz advances to the FCS semifinals with a 13-1 overall record and will meet rival Montana State in Bozeman next weekend for a rematch of the Brawl of the Wild.
 
Phillips Jr. ended the day as the leading rusher with 74 yards on 15 carries. Bouman finished the day 15-for-32 for 231 yards and two touchdown passes. Martens led the receiving room with three receptions for 93 yards with a touchdown. Linebacker Gabriel Hardman led the defense with his nine tackles in the effort.
 
The season for South Dakota comes to a close in the quarterfinals, as the Yotes reached at least the quarterfinals for the third-straight season. USD finishes with a 10-5 (6-2 MVFC) record and a second-place finish in the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC).