Sam Houston State (12-0) fought back from a huge potential upset in a 34-27 comeback win over Stony Brook in last week's second round of the FCS playoffs, a scare that the overall No. 1 seeded Bearkats will use to prevent another slow start against Montana State today in Hunstville. Bearkats head coach Willie Fritz spoke about SHS starting flat against Stony Brook, trailing 10-3 at the half before scoring 31 points in the second half.
We just didn't jump out of the gate real well. We certainly did in the second half. That was a good team we played. We didn't play great in all three phases throughout the game, but there was times when we played really well. In the second half, offensively we had 273 yards. That might've been our best half of offense and we played excellent in the first half on defense and at the beginning of the third quarter. That's when we put it all together.
Dominant late performances have defined the Bearkats' season - the win over Stony Brook was the ninth time Sam Houston State has shut out opponents in the third quarter, and has a +7 turnover advantage against opponents in the third period.
Montana State arrives in Huntsville after a comeback of their own in a 26-25 win over New Hampshire, escaping on a missed game-tying extra point with six seconds remaining.
If MSU were to win in an upset, they would face in-state rival No. 4 Montana in Missoula. The Grizzlies beat Northern Iowa 48-10 on Friday. If SHS wins Saturday, they would host Montana next week.
Date, time: Saturday, December 10, 11 a.m. CT
Location: Bowers Stadium, Huntsville, Texas
TV: ESPN
Radio: Live Audio
Streaming: ESPN3
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