Box Score

BOX SCORE           POSTGAME NOTES

HAVRE, Mont. – The No. 12 Eastern Oregon University football team continues it's an incredible start to its season with a 48-29 rout win at No. 23 Montana State-Northern Saturday.

The Mountaineers (3-0, 3-0 Frontier Conference) begin the season winning their first three games for the first time in 31 years. It marks only the fifth time in program history that EOU has began the season at 3-0. Even more impressive is Eastern Oregon's three wins have all been on the road against teams that have appeared in the NAIA national poll.

Eastern Oregon's Chris Ware, the national and conference offensive player of the week, completed 18 of his 24 passes for 324 yards. The senior threw three touchdown passes and no interceptions. Ware also ran for 28 yards on seven carries.

Kevin Sampson led the Mountaineers on the ground with a game-high 179 rushing yards on 21 carries. It was the senior's third highest rushing yard output in his collegiate career. Sampson ran for three touchdowns and caught a pass for a score. Justin Udy caught four passes for 42 yards and Jake Burroughs had two catches for 86 yards.

A Ware to Dillon Bedford 14-yard pass opened the scoring after a 10-play, 85-yard drive. Sampson gave Eastern a 14-0 lead with a three-yard touchdown run. Orin Johnson opened the second quarter scoring with a two-yard run that capped a 12-play, 65-yard drive. Burroughs and Ware then connected on a 45-yard touchdown pass.

Kyle Johnston cut the lead to 21-14 with a five-yard touchdown run to end a nine-play, 62-yard drive. A Ware to Sampson 19-yard touchdown pass completed an eight-play, 60-yard drive, to give EOU a 28-14 lead.

The Mountaineers opened the second half with a three-play, 80-yard drive that took only 38 seconds. Sampson broke free and dashed for a 39-yard rushing touchdown. Lear leaned forward for a two-yard touchdown to bring the Lights within 14 points, 35-21. Sampson finished the third quarter scoring with a one-yard touchdown run.

Matt Orthmann ran for his first collegiate touchdown to open the fourth quarter scoring and complete Eastern's scoring. MSUN would score a late touchdown when Lear found Johnston for a 12-yard touchdown pass.

Lear finished completing 31 of his 44 pass attempts for 289 yards. The Mountaineer defense intercepted three of Lear's passes. Johnson caught 11 passes for 47 yards and Johnston had seven receptions for 79 yards. Stephen Silva and Lear each had 50 yards on 11 carries.

Eastern gained 575 yards of total offense, while Northern amassed 437 yards. The Mountaineers entered the game as the second best team in the NAIA in third down conversions, and EOU was 8 of 11 on Saturday. Eastern Oregon committed only four penalties for 51 yards. The Lights had 66 yards on three penalties.

Marc-Avery Airhart finished with a game-high 14 tackles to lead the Mountaineers. Airhart also caught an interception. Howard McDonald added seven tackles. Nathan Rudder recorded a sack, while Mike Goings and Wes Orr each had 0.5 sack. Nick Magrone had two interceptions and three tackles. Jordan VanVoast led Montana State-Northern with 12 tackles. Will Andrews had 1.5 sacks and 3.5 tackles for loss. The last time Eastern had no turnovers in a game was a 48-43 loss to Carroll College on Nov. 7, 2009.

Eastern hosts Montana Western next Saturday in the home opener of the 2011 season. The Bulldogs (0-3, 0-3) fell at No. 5 Carroll Saturday, 35-15. Next week's game will have live video, stats, and audio on EOUSports.com. There are a few tailgate spots remaining for next week's home opener. To learn more about how to reserve your spot visit http://www.eou.edu/alumni/tailgate/