BOZEMAN – Dakota Prukop ran for two touchdowns and threw for another score, and Montana State beat Sacramento State 35-13 on Saturday night.
Prukop was 12 of 22 for 277 yards passing, including a 79-yard touchdown pass to Mitchell Herbert on the second play after the opening kickoff. He ran for a 3-yard score just before halftime, and bullied in from the 1-yard line early in the fourth quarter and finished with 69 yards rushing.
Justin Paige and Gunnar Brekke also had touchdown runs for Montana State (3-2, 2-1 Big Sky Conference). The Bobcats finished with 511 yards of total offense, their fourth-straight game with more than 500 yards.
Kolney Cassel threw a 23-yard touchdown pass to Nnamdi Agude, and Brad Cornish kicked a 30-yard field goal to pull Sacramento State (1-5, 0-3) to 14-10 midway through the second half. The Hornets drew to 21-13 early in the second half, but the Bobcats scored on their next two possessions to put the game away.
Montana State went into a bit of a funk after their quick start, scoring just one touchdown until just over two minutes to play in the third quarter.
“We had a long stretch where we went three-and-out, three or four times in a row,” Montana State coach Rob Ash said. “The Hornets had keys on our formations, but (offensive line coach) Jason Eck and (offensive coordinator) Tim Cramsey adjusted our formations and we got going again.”
Jordan Robinson ran for 108 yards on 17 carries in the first half for the Hornets, but didn’t return after an injury. Starting quarterback Kolney Cassel, filling in for injured Daniel Kniffin, threw for 193 yards before leaving with an injury.
“They got hurt, but we gotta score after getting ourselves in position to make plays,” Sacramento State coach Jody Sears said.
Cornish kicked a 22-yard field goal in the third quarter, the only score for the Hornets in the second half.
On fourth-and-goal from Bobcats 6-yard line, the Hornets’ freshman quarterback Nate Ketteringham was stopped a yard short early in the fourth quarter.
“It was good to get that goal-line stand late even if it didn’t factor into the outcome of the game,” Ash said. “It was a big confidence builder.”