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Date: Monday January 5, 2026
Time: 7:30 PM (ET)
TV: ESPN
The Quick Hits
Montana State and Illinois State have never met on the gridiron but that will all change on Monday night on the FCS’s grandest stage. The Redbirds and Bobcats will duke it out in Nashville and when the dust settles, someone will stake the claim of national champion. ISU took a long, windy road to the big game, becoming the first team to ever win four road playoff contests to make it to the end. Now the Redbirds, who have only played in this game once before (2014) have the chance to end their Cinderella story with the school’s first ever national championship. Standing in their way, though, will be one of the toughest tests they’ve seen to date in a team that feels like it has unfinished business.
MSU was three points and what felt like just a couple minutes away from a ring last year in this game. Now, for what feels like the first time in forever, it is not North Dakota State acting as their final hurdle and there is legitimate hope in and around the program that a trophy will come back to Bozeman for the first time in 41 years. Winners of 13 straight including an epic runaway from their rivals in the semifinals, Montana State is as flying as high as could be heading in. The Bobcats are looking to handle business one more time against a different Missouri Valley foe in this iteration but cannot trifle with their dance partners in Tennessee or it could be another season of heartbreak.
The Coaches
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Both teams will be led by two of the best to ever do it at their respective places. Brock Spack is far and above the most successful coach in Illinois State’s history, having won 123 games in his 17-year career leading the Redbirds. He’s guided ISU to a pair of Missouri Valley Conference crowns, seven playoff appearances, a dozen postseason victories but the one game he has yet to win is the big one. Spack, who coached in the 2014 FCS championship contest, lost a heartbreaker to North Dakota State 29-27. He’s done practically everything else there is to do, though, a sentiment that his counterpart on Monday night will share.
Brent Vigen, likewise, has stamped himself as arguably the best coach that Montana State has ever had. Five years in and Vigen has led MSU to three Big Sky titles, three appearances in the championship game and has coached the Bobcats to 60 wins and just 12 losses since he took over. Of those losses, only three have been to conference foes and two have come in the title game to North Dakota State. Vigen, too, is seeking his first national championship as a head coach after winning three with NDSU as an assistant back in the early 2010s.
Illinois State Offense vs. Montana State Defense
The two biggest names to know on the Illinois State offense are the pair of seniors that have played arguably the biggest role in getting the Redbirds here. Quarterback Tommy Rittenhouse and receiver Daniel Sobkowicz have been clicking on a whole different level since the playoffs began, teaming up for 403 yards and seven touchdowns over the last month. If there is a play that needs to be made in the passing game, odds are pretty high that Rittenhouse will be looking for his star wideout to make it happen. Sobkowicz might be the most complete receiver in the entire FCS and should have NFL prospects once the season ends. Montana State’s young secondary, as good as it has been all year, has not seen a receiver this talented since it played Oregon in Week 1.
Containing Sobkowicz will be made easier, though, if star MSU safety Caden Dowler can play. Dowler, this year’s Big Sky Defensive Player of the Year, got injured early in the Bobcats’ semifinal game and his status is currently up in the air for this one. If he can’t go, it will be a big blow to the defense as Dowler has been responsible for six interceptions, four deflected passes, two forced fumbles and a pair of defensive touchdowns this season. He is a game-changer in every aspect and could single-handedly account for a skewed turnover margin in this one if he’s healthy enough to play.
Whether he plays or not, though, MSU will still need the rest of its secondary to be locked in. Carson Williams and Tayden Gray, a duo that has teamed up for 92 stops and 11 PBUs this fall, will be tasked with mitigating the damage that Rittenhouse and Sobkowicz can inflict in the passing game. Even if Sobkowicz does get bottled up, guys like Dylan Lord and Luke Mailander will be receiving targets as well. That electric ariel attack, however, is just part of what Montana State will need to worry about.
The other part is the stout Illinois State offensive line led by senior tackle Jake Pope and a ground game that has been bullying opponents all postseason long. Running back Victor Dawson became ISU’s feature ball carrier in the beginning of November and has been ultra productive since. He’s run for 512 yards and two touchdowns during the playoffs. He is not necessarily huge big play threat but there might not be anyone better at consistently picking up four or five yards per run; something that the Redbirds have leaned on greatly in recent weeks. Dawson, though, will have a tall task against a strong Bobcats front.
Kenneth Eiden IV and Zac Crews will be the first point of contact for Dawson on the defensive line and will be looking to slow him down as well as get to Rittenhouse. They’ve been solid at generating pressure and very sound when it comes to plugging up running lanes. Eiden and Crews have combined for 14 sacks and 24.5 tackles for loss this year. Getting Illinois State off the field and preventing those long, sustained drives will be key and a big part of that will be stonewalling Dawson.
Montana State Offense vs. Illinois State Defense
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The ISU defensive line is one of the best out there but to contend with the rushing attack that Montana State will throw at them, they’ll need arguably an even better performance than the one they laid out in Fargo a few weeks ago when they knocked off the Bison. MSU will send the two-headed monster of Julius Davis and Adam Jones out of the backfield along with quarterback Justin Lamson who is an excellent runner too. Both Davis and Jones are up over 1,000 yards and have combined for 23 touchdowns this year. Lamson himself has run for another 704 yards and 14 scores of his own. It’s no secret what the ‘Cats offense likes to do; they’re going to pound the rock and do so repeatedly.
Illinois State, like Montana State, will field its league’s Defensive Player of the Year with linebacker Tye Niekamp. Niekamp is the unquestioned leader of the Redbirds defense and has had a stellar senior season, piling up a staggering 155 tackles (14.5 for loss) and eight pass breakups in 2025. He is in on or near practically every play and has a nose for the football like no other. If anyone can wreck MSU’s offensive gameplan it will be #46 but he also won’t be the only thorn in the Bobcats’ side.
Defensive lineman Garrett Steffen and linebacker Mason Kaplan will also be crucial in slowing down the likes of Davis, Jones and Lamson. Steffen spearheads a unit up front that has been as stifling as any, especially in the latter half of the season. He has 10.5 tackles behind the line of scrimmage and has brought down opposing QBs seven times this year. Kaplan, meanwhile, has 76 stops under his belt and has complimented Niekamp nicely over the middle. Few teams have been able to stop that vaunted MSU rushing attack and odds are Illinois State won’t be able to entirely either. However they might be more equip to deal with it than most.
The Montana State passing attack, however, can be extremely dangerous too thanks to the explosiveness of receiver Taco Dowler. Dowler is the go-to guy when Lamson throws and he can flip the game on its head in a hurry. In the semifinals two weeks ago, Dowler made arguably the play of the year for the ‘Cats when he snagged a deep pass over the middle in traffic and broke free for an 87-yard touchdown. Those types of plays are commonplace for the junior wideout and if ISU isn’t dialed in on the back end, Dowler will certainly be able to make them pay.
Defensive backs Cam Wilson and La’Shavion Brown will match up with Dowler and other MSU receivers like Dane Steel and Jabez Woods. Wilson has been terrific in his pass defense, knocking down 14 throws that have come his way along with snagging two picks. Brown is second on the team with 91 tackles and has posted four PBUs and an interception himself. Making those plays will tougher in this game, though, than perhaps any other as Lamson is very careful with the ball when throwing. He is laser sharp with a completion percentage of over 72% and has only tossed three INTs all year.
Prediction
This game will be won or lost primarily on the backs of Montana State’s defense. No team yet in the postseason has been able to have an answer for Sobkowicz and if MSU can’t come up with a way to consistently stop him, there is a real possibility they lose. That being said, the Bobcats have some of the best individual defensive talent of anyone that Illinois State has seen all year. While Sobkowicz will likely get his catches and yards, the ‘Cats have the right guys to limit his damage on the back end. Making Rittenhouse beat them with other weapons will be the key. Lamson and the MSU running backs should be able to push their way through the Redbirds defense consistently enough and if Montana State has a second half lead that might be a problem. It won’t come as easily as some might think but the Bobcats will have enough to pull away from ISU in the closing stages. A late touchdown run on the heels of a long, sustained drive will put the game out of reach and MSU will take home the hardware for the first time in 41 years.
Score Prediction: Illinois State: 21 – Montana State: 31
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