Here’s my Wednesday column. I’m particularly interested in your thoughts on the number of sacks Montana has given up, and whether that’s even an issue I should be harping on with this team.

Standing on the brink of Montana’s 16th straight trip to the FCS playoffs, it seemed like a good time to speak to someone about the team’s chances of making a run, as well as various other topics related to Grizzly football.
Because I was home with my 1-year-old daughter I needed a quick interview. So I sat down with Myself. Between battling the child for the laptop keyboard and stopping several times to dance to Winnie the Pooh’s smash hit “Rumbly In My Tumbly,” Myself and I had a fairly productive discussion.
Admittedly, Myself’s greatest moment on the football field came as an eighth-grader when former Griz middle linebacker Mike Rankin declared him “Swivel Hips” Smithers after a long, zig-zagging run during a flag football game.
But that didn’t stop Myself from offering several opinions, most of them complete nonsense, on the upcoming playoffs.
I: Did the Grizzlies get a decent draw?
Myself: Getting the fourth seed and hosting Texas State in the first round was the best possible draw they could have received. If they somehow manage to get past the Bobcats, it gets much tougher after that.
I: Does Montana have a chance to do something special this postseason?
Myself: They do, I. But they are in a brutal bracket, and this is the deepest the pool has been in several years. Top seed James Madison is the obvious choice, but the Griz, Cal Poly, Villanova and even Weber State are capable of emerging into the championship game. Cal Poly is probably the most physically talented team on UM’s side of the bracket, JMU will have the home-field edge and the Griz have tradition.
I: So who’s going to survive this dog fight?
Myself: My heart says Montana, my gut says Cal Poly, my brain says James Madison, and your daughter apparently thinks it will be aseefsdss.
I: And on the other side of the bracket?
Myself: Appalachian State … pretty easily. There’s nobody who can match up athletically with the Mountaineers.
I: And who’s going to win it all?
Myself: Appalachian State – for the fourth straight year.
I: And App State will beat?
Myself: Alright, fine. Cal Poly. You know what they say about going with your gut. You want a score?
I: No, that’s OK. But there’s no need to be obnoxious.
Moving on. Pick three things the Griz are doing well right now that will contribute to them making it to Chattanooga and proving your idiot butt wrong.
Myself: No. 1 is continue to play strong defense, especially against the run since that’s what most of the good teams do well. Aside from a couple of times against Montana State, they haven’t been giving up any big plays.
No. 2 is turnover margin. The Grizzlies lead the Big Sky with a plus 10 in that statistic, and forcing the big turnover has contributed to most of their wins this season.
No. 3 is special teams. They need a healthy Marc Mariani returning punts, good field position, and it wouldn’t hurt if they blocked a punt or two during the playoffs.
I: OK, now choose three areas that must be improved if the Griz are going to beat teams like Cal Poly or James Madison.
Myself: First, the offense is working in fits and starts right now, and the defenses they will face only get better from here on out. UM converted just 35 percent of its third downs against MSU. That’s not good enough. One good drive against the Cats accounted for six first downs. The rest of the game … a total of seven.
Secondly, execution in that Dodge red zone. Montana was last in the Big Sky in scoring efficiency inside the 20. Waste opportunities against the big boys and you’re probably done.
Third is sacks. UM, even with its balanced offense, gave up an astounding 44 sacks this season, last in the Big Sky behind even Portland State, which throws the ball on virtually every down. Sacks kill drives and can blow up field position. By comparison, Weber State, which finished third in sacks allowed, gave up just 19.
And looking at the rest of the teams in the playoff field, no one was even in the same ballpark as Montana. Indeed, the most sacks given up by anyone with more than 300 pass attempts was 23 by Southern Illinois.
I: Why do you think the Griz gave up all those sacks?
Myself: Part of it is poor execution across the board. The line missing guys, the backs not picking up blitzes, some slow decision-making by quarterback Cole Bergquist and receivers not getting open. Some of it is also play design featuring deep drops by the QB and pass routes that take a long time to develop.
But there is probably also a cause based in the safety-first mentality of the coaches. In other words, try to make a play, Cole, just don’t screw up. In their view, it seems to be better to take a sack than to force the ball into a tight spot. The fact that Montana had the fewest interceptions in the league (seven) is a direct result of that choice.
It’s an interesting debate, and you could argue for a long time about which is better. Obviously, the best thing would be to avoid the sacks and the interceptions. Frankly, they’re going to have to do both to beat the better teams.
I: You’ve been accused of being overly negative and sometimes a general all-around poop on the Grizzly parade, particularly by your wife.
Myself: It’s my way of showing how deeply I care, even though I’m not supposed to.
I: Well, try cheering up sometime and enjoy the show. By the way, I know you’ve gotten an e-mail or two over the years calling you a moron, but has anyone ever said that to your face?
Myself: Yes.
I: Who?
Myself: You.
I: Well, that wasn’t a very nice thing for him to say.

Columnist John Smithers can be reached at 523-5257 or at jsmithers@missoulian.com.

Montana has obviously put together nice winning streaks over the last few seasons, but this one feels different. This team has some punch that most of the past teams didn’t have.

In my view, this offense is the strongest since 2004, and it’s showing on the field. Cole Bergquist is clearly playing as well as he ever has – better, in fact. And Marc Mariani has emerged as the first truly exceptional Griz receiver since that 2004 season when UM had Jefferson Heidelberger and Levander Segars.

Chase Reynolds is emerging at running back, and his breakaway ability adds a potent weapon to a very good passing game.

Montana had a tremendous defense last season, but you saw what happens when your offense is unable to move the ball with any regularity against a running team like Wofford. Eventually your defense gets worn out, and you end up losing in the fourth quarter.

I don’t think that will be the case this year. Obviously there are some pretty salty teams out there – anybody else watch App State throw up 70 points against Wofford on Friday night?

Montana might have a pretty tough time against the Mountaineers or James Madison, but there’s no reason not to expect them to go fairly far in these playoffs, especially if they can nab a top-four seed.

What do y’all think?