Lights welcome Mountaineers back to Havre

(Created: Friday, September 29, 2006 1:13 PM MDT)

George Ferguson Havre Daily News sports editor gferguson@havredailynews.com

Football is an emotional game. And for the No. 13 Montana State University- Northern Lights and Frontier Conference newcomer Eastern Oregon, last Saturday couldn’t have been any more emotional. In Helena, MSU-N came within minutes of dethroning No. 1-ranked Carroll College, but fell short, 12-7. And in La Grande, Ore., the Mountaineers earned their first-ever conference win by storming back from 21 points down to defeat Rocky Mountain College. On Saturday, both teams will have to put those games behind them when the Lights and Mountaineers hook up for an important conference clash at Blue Pony Stadium. While disappointed by the loss to Carroll, the Lights (2-1, 3-1), should be in a good frame of mind Saturday. Especially given the fact that starting quarterback Kyle Samson will likely be in the lineup, despite suffering a severe ankle sprain in the third quarter against Carroll. “The last two days Kyle’s ankle has gotten better,” MSU-N head coach Mark Samson said. “I think he is going to be ready to go. “We have had a pretty intense last two days of practice,” Samson added. “The kids have been working really hard this week and I think we’re going to come out and play well on Saturday.” With Samson back under center, the Lights hope to get back to playing balanced offensive football this week after an intense defensive battle with Carroll. The Lights only netted 184 yards of total offense and were limited to just 56 yards through the air last Saturday. With Samson injured, backup quarterback Kelly McBryan led the Lights to their only score against the Saints, butthroughout the game, MSU-N struggled to sustain any momentum on offense. And while Northern is looking to get back to explosive football on one side of the ball, the Lights’ stingy defense should make life tough on the young Mountaineers. Carroll did manage to rack up just over 300 yards of offense against the Lights last Saturday, but Northern stiffened when it mattered most and held the No. 1 offense in the league to a measly 12 points and only one touchdown. The Lights possess five of the top 20 tacklers in the league, led by Kennedy Anderson’s 36 total tackles and his amazing 23 solos. Dilan Saisbury has 38 tackles on the season, and Josh Glaun leads the league in sacks with seven, and tackles for loss with nine. As a team, Northern’s defense leads the league in takeaways, and defensive back Marc Samson is tied for the league lead in interceptions with three. Khalin Anderson, Kennedy Anderson and Marc McBryan all have two picks apiece.

“Our defense has played pretty darn well all season,” Mark Samson said. “And this weekend is another big game for us. I really look at it as a must-win for us. We need to play well and win our games at home.” EOU (1-2, 2-2) does have some unpleasant history with MSU-N. Last season, the Mountaineers came to Havre nationally ranked and became the third such victim to fall in Blue Pony Stadium in 2005. EOU did go on to post its third straight 6-4 season while playing a predominately Frontier Conference schedule. But the 2006 version of Eastern Oregon is a little different. The Mountaineers are now under the direction of first-year head coach Ian Shields, and they are a fullfledged member of the Frontier Conference. EOU also lost several key playmakers from last year’s team, but the Mountaineers still have some talent, especially at the skill positions. Wide receiver Jomo Wilson torched the RMC Bears last weekend to the tune of 103 receiving yards, and he scored the game-winning touchdown with 11 seconds remaining in EOU’s 27-20 come-from-behind win against the Bears. Deandre Amos and Ryan Quarles are two more receiving targets for quarterback Ian O’Brien, who is a multi-faceted QB with the athletic ability to run when he needs to. O’Brien led EOU in rushing against Rocky with 82 yards on 11 carries. “He is a good quarterback and he throws it well,” Mark Samson said of O’Brien. “They run a Wing-T option offense but they throw a lot out of it. So they present some different challenges for our defense. “Defensively they are pretty young, but they have some good personnel,” he added. “They move a lot of people around and they do a lot of blitzing to try and confuse their opponent. They want to get into the backfield and disrupt you offensively.” And Samson knows that while the Mountaineers may be youthful, they will be riding high after their win against Rocky. And that might make Saturday’s game somewhat dangerous. “They are a good football team,” Samson said. “And last Saturday was a good win for them. “Let’s face it, we had a real tough loss against Carroll, so now this game really becomes kind of a must-win for us,” he added. “But our kids have done a really good job of preparing this week. They are very focused. Our emphasis is to come out and be intense and be very physical with these guys right away. We just need to be sharp early.” Saturday’s Frontier Conference game between MSU-N and Eastern Oregon will kick off at 1 p.m. at Blue Pony Stadium. The game can be heard locally on KPQX 92.5 F. M.