GRAND FORKS, ND — After picking up a win in their first game of the season, things get a lot tougher for the Montana Grizzlies (1-0) in Week 2 as No. 4 UM hits the road for the first time this year to take on No. 23 North Dakota in what will be a matchup of the top 25 FCS teams on Saturday night at the Alerus Center.

Now that one game has been played, week 2 will be about seeing where they can adapt and improve.

“Just kind of building with each other and kind of building that connection with each other and knowing how, for me, the O-line is going to block people, and how they’re going to get to double teams and how fast, and the timing and how that’s going to work,” senior running back Nick Ostmo said. “And I think that kind of builds throughout the season, and you kind of get that understanding.”

The Fighting Hawks are led by 11-year head coach Bubba Schweigert, and UND is coming off a 7-5 season that saw them once again reach the first round of the FCS playoffs.

Last year was also a highlight with the win over rival North Dakota State. Last year, the Fighting Hawks had a 6-1 home win at the Alerus Center.

“A little bit of familiarity with them, just because they beat my brother (Tucker) last year when he was at NDSU,” Griz senior safety Ryder Meyer said. “I know they’re a good team. They’ve got good skills and I think it’s a great opportunity for us to go up against another quality opponent, another Missouri Valley team, and see where we stand against the rest of the country.”

The Fighting Hawks were long led by quarterback Tommy Schuster, who has since transferred to Michigan State. The team is now led by quarterback Simon Romfo and by outstanding wide receiver Bo Belquist, who is an All-American in preseason.

In the opener against Iowa State, North Dakota (0-1) doubled the Cyclones’ rushing yards, 174-86, behind multiple contributors, and won the time of possession battle by more than 15 minutes. ISU won the game, 21-3.

“They’ve got good running backs. They’re tenacious in the run game. They’ve got a pretty deep scheme in terms of different run plays they can get to, their offensive lines are good,” UM head coach Bobby Hauck said. “It was pretty fun to watch them play against Iowa State because they really held up well physically.”

Defensively, the Fighting Hawks have more experience from last season and mix it up, led by linebacker Wyatt Pedigo. North Dakota was projected to finish fifth in the Missouri Valley this season, and had five players named preseason all-conference.

They are also a longtime Big Sky opponent for Montana. These teams last met in 2018 in Grand Forks, where the Fighting Hawks defeated the Grizzlies 41-14.

Montana’s new offensive line coach, Joe Pawlak, also served as the O-line coach at UND for the past five seasons before joining the staff in Missoula.

So Montana is looking to get one back to make it 2-0, while UND is hoping to make a statement against a top-5 team and earn its first win of the season.

“They’re looking pretty good,” Ostmo said. “They’re flying around a little bit and they’ve got big guys up front, so we’re excited for a new challenge.”