Rovig leads Montana State to win over Norfolk State, 56-21

BOZEMAN, Mont. (AP) - Tucker Rovig, a last-minute substitution at quarterback, threw for 221 yards and four touchdowns to lead Montana State to a 56-21 win over Norfolk State on Saturday afternoon.

Ranked No. 8 in the Football Championship subdivision, the Bobcats (3-1) had three players rush for more than 100 yards. Logan Jones had 104, all in the first half.ˆ  Lane Sumner had 113 and Shane Perry added 111.

A sophomore, Rovig started in place of freshman Casey Bauman, who started the first three games of the season. Rovig started two games in 2018, but lost the starting job to Bauman.

"(Rovig) and I had a conversation and I told him he let (the starting spot) slip through his hands twice now," Montana State coach Jeff Choate said. "You gotta believe in yourself. I just thought he had practiced at a higher level the last two weeks and I didn't want to wait for (Big Sky) Conference play to start to take a look."

Rovig was 21 for 27 passing and connected with Coy Steel twice for scores. Steel finished with 80 yards receiving. MSU scored eight touchdowns of its last 10 possessions and amassed 39 first downs and 670 total yards.

"He really impacted the game more than the stat sheet would indicate," Choate said.ˆ 

MSU pressured Norfolk State's Juwan Carter all day.ˆ  Bryce Sterk led the way with 3.5 sacks and five tackles-for-loss. The Bobcats had 12 tackles-for-loss on the day. Carter finished completing 21 of 32 passes for 243 yard and two touchdowns.

The Bobcats amassed 369 yards of offense in the first half and after the Spartans scored the first touchdown, they answered with 21 straight points. Perry and Jones carried the run game and Rovig consistently found open receivers. The Bobcats finished with 670 total yards

Kevin Johnson rumbled 84 yards for a Spartan touchdown in the third quarter. It was the longest touchdown run in school history and the second longest touchdown run in Bobcat Stadium history.