The No. 8 Grizzlies begin regular season play against Eastern Washington on Saturday at 6:00 PM MT at Roos Field in Cheney, Washington. They enter with a 3-1 record in non-conference play, while the Eagles enter with a 1-3 mark.

This marks the second year in a row that the Griz have opened their Big Sky slate with a road game. They lost their opener at Northern Arizona last year, but have been tested more this season with a tougher non-conference schedule.

The Griz are 0-1 on the road with a loss at ranked North Dakota. The Eagles are 1-1 at home, beating Monmouth, which defeated FBS Florida International, and losing to unlisted Drake. UM opened as betting favorite with 13.5 points.

Montana has never won on Eastern’s red grass and has gone 0-6 since being installed in 2010. The Grizzlies’ last victory in Cheney came in 2008. It is their longest-standing drought in road games against current Big Sky teams.

Here are five things to watch in the game, which will air on the Montana Television Network and stream on ESPN+.

Montana’s pass defense is coming off its worst statistical performance since the 2021 playoffs against EWU. The Griz gave up 374 passing yards and will be tested again against an offense that threw the ball down the field in its only win but hasn’t matched his performance when he dominated the league in the 2010s.

The Eagles rank 44th nationally with an average of 220.5 passing yards. Quarterback Kekoa Visperas is second in the FCS with a 78.8 completion percentage while throwing for 202.8 yards per game and six touchdowns without an interception. Five of those TD throws came in Monmouth’s season opener.

His top target is Efton Chism III, an All-American and the FCS active leader in receptions. He ranks first nationally with 9.8 receptions per game, fourth with four touchdown receptions and eighth with 101.5 receiving yards per game.

“He’s a good player, he’s been a good player in this league for a while,” Hauck said.

No. 2 receiver Nolan Ulm has played sparingly since the season opener, but was on the team’s two-deep this week. Receiver Noah Cronquist is a deep threat, ranking 53rd in the country with an average of 17.1 yards, or a first down, per reception.

The Eagles rank 10th nationally with 91 first downs gained and 21st in third-down conversions (44.2%). UM’s third-down defense has climbed to 33rd (35.2%). The pass defense is giving up 196.8 yards per game and ranks 43rd.

The Griz have allowed just two passing scores, compared to eight rushing. They gave up free yards as they were assessed seven pass interference penalties.

Pressuring the QB proved fruitful for the Griz last week. Eastern Washington allows two sacks and 4.75 tackles for loss per game. Montana is averaging 3.25 sacks and six TFLs.

Griz safety TJ Rausch was listed as a starter on the two-deep after Tyson Rostad started the past two weeks with team captain Ryder Meyer out.

While Eastern is known for its passing attack, the Eagles can also run the ball. In fact, their rushing attack ranks higher than the passing attack nationally, averaging 182.8 yards on the ground per game, ranking 26th. They have rushed the ball 163 times compared to 117 passing attempts.

At running back, Tuna Altahir ranks 42nd in the country with 5.8 yards per carry and 90th with 58 rush yards per game. He rushed for one score. Malik Dotson is averaging 48.5 rushing yards and has three touchdowns.

The running game also comes from the quarterback position as they rotate three QBs, two of whom are primarily runners. Jared Taylor has run 27 times for 139 yards and one score. Michael Wortham has rushed 25 times for 101 yards and two touchdowns. Visperas carried the ball 26 times for 82 yards.

Montana’s rush defense has been tested a little more than the pass defense and has improved with improved containment and tackling. The Griz are limiting teams to 107.8 rush yards per game to rank 23rd in the country.

Eastern has scored seven rushing touchdowns, compared to eight passing scores, while averaging 28.5 points, which ranks 36th in the nation. The Griz are holding teams to 22 points, the 29th best mark in the FCS.

Montana will be without All-American linebacker Riley Wilson for the first half of the game after he was ejected last week for targeting in the second half. The Griz appealed the targeting, but lost.

Montana needs to get opportunities to throw the ball. The question is who will play quarterback after Keali’i Ah Yat took a hit in the previous game and Logan Fife played the entire fourth quarter.

Eastern Washington is allowing 271.3 passing yards per game, which ranks 106th in the FCS. They’ve completed just two passes in four games, but cornerback DaJean Wells has a team-high seven pass breakups.

The Griz are throwing for just 177.3 yards per game, the 79th best mark in the FCS. Only two passes were intercepted, both thrown by Ah Yat. He passed for two touchdowns. Fife threw one TD.

If Fife takes on a bigger role, he will average more yards per completion and per pass attempt than Ah Yat. He helped the Griz seal the victory through the air last week, completing 7 of 10 passes for 58 yards.

The Griz converted late third downs last week by passing the ball and have a 38% conversion rate, 52nd in the country. Eastern allows teams to convert 52.9% of the time, 118th in the FCS.

The Eagles aren’t under much pressure. They rank 91st nationally with 1.25 sacks and 94th with 4.3 tackles for loss per game. The Griz have allowed an average of 2.5 sacks, 88th in the nation, and six TFLs, 65th in the nation.

Montana has run the ball with authority over the past two weeks, racking up 759 yards. The Griz might be able to do that again, but have yet to prove it on the road as their worst rushing game of the year came on their only road trip.

Eastern Washington’s rush defense is better than its pass defense, but that doesn’t mean it’s great by any means. The Eagles allow 172.3 yards per game on the ground, which ranks 84th in the country.

Montana has the third-best rushing attack in the FCS by rushing for 271.5 yards per game. The Griz have 17 touchdown runs compared to three passing scores. Eli Gillman is seventh in the country with an average of 114 rushing yards.

Gillman leads the nation with an average of 10.13 yards, or a first down, per carry. That helped UM lead the FCS by recording 104 first downs. Eastern has allowed teams to rack up 101 first downs, which ranks 118th in the FCS.

Safety Derek Ganter Jr. leads the Eagles with 7.3 tackles per game. Safety Kentrell Williams Jr. is second with an average of six tackles. Defensive end Brock Harrison is the team leader with three QB hurries and 2.5 TFLs.

“They play hard,” Hauck said of Eastern’s defense. “I think they’re after the ball.”

The Griz are averaging 39.5 points per game, tied for sixth in the country. Eastern allows 34.8 points and ranks 98th.

Eastern’s Michael Wortham earned second-team All-Big Sky honors last year as a kick returner, averaging 28.3 yards per return with a long of 86. This year he is a third-team All-American in the preseason, he has averaged 24.1 yards per return with a long of 55.

The Griz kick return defense, which has committed some big hits on returners, is a surprising 70th in the FCS, allowing 20.91 yards per kick return.

“I think they’re especially good at kicking,” Hauck said of Eastern. “They do a lot of things formatively – offensively, defensively, special teams – that create problems for you.”

Montana junior Bergen had his first two kick returns of the season last week, averaging 24.5 yards. Eastern gives up just 17.5 yards per kick return, ranking 29th in the country.

Bergen, also a punt returner, will see a unit giving up 12.75 yards per punt return, 89th in the FCS. Maybe he has a shot at taking sole possession of the top spot for most punt return touchdowns in Big Sky history.

Chism is Eastern’s punter, but has only returned three for 13 yards.

Eagles kicker Soren McKee is 3 of 3 this year with 36 yards. Montana’s Ty Morrison is 6-of-9 with a long of 46.