Brian Ah Yat completed 30 of 48 passes for 363 yards and three touchdowns Saturday as Montana routed Nicholls State 48-3 in the first round of the NCAA Division I-AA playoffs.
Top-seeded and defending national champion Montana (12-0) plays host to East Tennessee State next Saturday in the quarterfinal round. Nicholls State, of the Southland Conference, ended its season 8-4.Montana jumped to a 10-0 lead on a 27-yard pass from Ah Yat to Raul Pacheco, and a 41-yard field goal by Andy Larson.
Nicholls State scored its only points on a 42-yard field goal by Adam Diel with 14 seconds left in the first quarter.
UM's Greg Fitzgerald blocked an NSU punt and recovered the ball on the 12-yard line midway through the second quarter. Montana scored on the next play, a run by Josh Branen.
Montana led 24-3 at haltime, after Ah Yat and Pacheco hooked up on a 10-yard scoring play.
Branen scored on a 3-yard run late in the third quarter. Justin Olsen caught scoring passes of 26 yards from Ah Yat and 27 yards from backup Darren Rowell in the fourth quarter as the Grizzlies took a 45-3 lead.
Montana's Jake Dennehy intercepted backup quarterback Corey Lambert and returned the ball 57 yards to the NSU 17, setting up a 31-yard field goal by Larson.
Olsen led Montana with eight catches for 129 yards, which was all Nicholls State could manage in total offense.
William & Mary 45, Jackson St. 6
At Williamsburg, Va., Mike Cook passed for 270 yards and two touchdowns and Tim Witcher ran for two scores as William & Mary beat Jackson State.
The Tribe (10-2) dominated with defense, holding the Tigers (10-2) to 18 yards rushing and 199 overall, and only 2-for-13 on third-down conversions. William & Mary gained 480 yards and converted 6-for-14 on third-down plays.
Cook completed 15 of 24 passes, including scoring tosses of 24 yards to David Conklin in the second quarter and 26 yards to Josh Whipple in the third quarter. Whipple finished with six catches for 109 yards.
E. Tenn. St. 35, Villanova 29
At Johnson City, Tenn., Greg Ryan threw for 237 yards and three touchdowns as East Tennessee State held off a late Villanova rally for a victory.
East Tennessee State (10-2) advances to a second round matchup against undefeated Montana next Saturday.
The Buccaneers led by as much as 25 points after Anthony Stringfield caught a 14-yard touchdown pass from Ryan, putting them ahead 28-3. But Villanova (8-4) rallied behind Anthony Cowsette's three third-quarter touchdown runs to pull the Wildcats to within two at 28-26.
Marshall 59, Delaware 14
At Huntington, W.Va, freshman Randy Moss caught eight passes for a record 288 yards and four touchdowns to lead Marshall to a win over Delaware.
Moss' yardage total set school, Southern Conference and Division I-AA playoff records.
Eric Kresser, who transferred from Florida this year, had his best day for second-seeded Marshall, completing 18 of 25 passes for 449 yards and four touchdowns.
Murray State 34, Western Illinois 6
At Murray, Ky., Anthony Downs rushed for 131 yards, including a 45-yard touchdown, and Murray State defeated Western Illinois.
The fifth-seeded Racers (11-1) won a postseason game for the first time in school history.
The teams played a scoreless first quarter, but a Western Illinois fumble led to Murray's first touchdown midway through the second quarter.
Troy St. 29, Florida A&M 25
At Troy, Ala., Arrid Gregory rushed for 166 yards and two touchdowns, including the winning score, to lead the Trojans to a victory over Florida A&M.
It was a game of contrasting offenses. The Trojans (11-1) gained 273 of their 362 total yards on the ground, while the Rattlers racked up 261 of their 335 yards in the air.
N. Iowa 21, E. Illinois 14
At Cedar Falls, Iowa, Tyree Talton returned a kickoff 97 yards for a touchdown, caught a pass to set up another score and recovered a fumble to start the winning drive as Northern Iowa beat Eastern Illinois.
Jeff Stovall scored on a 1-yard dive with 7:02 left to break a 14-14 tie and send third-seeded Northern Iowa (11-1) into the quarterfinals against No. 8 seed William & Mary.
Furman 42, N. Arizona 31
At Flagstaff, Ariz., Braniff Bonaventure threw 8- and 10-yard touchdown passes to Joey Wade, lifting Furman from a 31-21 deficit to a victory over Northern Arizona in the final 41/2 minutes of play.
Bernard Scott capped the Paladins' 21-point comeback by returning an interception 34 yards for a TD with 15 seconds left.