Expectations were sky-high for No. 20 Washington entering the 2021 season. It took all of one game for it all to come crashing down.

Year 2 of the Jimmy Lake era opened with a horrendous 13-7 loss to Montana, an FCS team. It was just a brutal performance from the Huskies offensively. 

Montana’s historic moment marked the first FCS upset over a ranked FBS opponent since 2016, when North Dakota State went into Iowa City and beat No. 13 Iowa.

In this upset, Montana's defense was the story. Washington scored a touchdown on its first possession but would never score again.

After that opening possession, UW punted five times, turned it over on downs twice, missed a field goal and tossed two interceptions. Dylan Morris’ second interception came in Montana territory in the final seconds, to seal a mammoth upset.

The INT that sealed the upset for @MontanaGrizFB over Washington! ? #ExperienceElevatedpic.twitter.com/KbXAcgX4T6

— Big Sky Conference (@BigSkyConf) September 5, 2021

While the Washington offense sputtered, Montana chipped away. Washington’s lead was 7-3 after the first quarter, and it remained that way all the way into the fourth quarter. That’s when Washington’s defense could no longer account for the offense’s ineptitude.

The Grizzlies surged ahead on a four-yard touchdown run by quarterback Cam Humphrey, a native of the Seattle area.

?#GoGrizpic.twitter.com/xBML71q9My

— Montana Griz Football (@MontanaGrizFB) September 5, 2021

It gave Montana a 10-7 lead with 10:35 to play, and Humphrey’s touchdown would prove to be the winning score.

Washington just could not get anything going. Washington couldn’t establish any sort of run game, so the Grizzlies dared Morris to beat them through the air. He couldn’t do it. Morris finished the night 27-of-46 for 226 yards and three interceptions.

Montana hung around just long enough and avoided mistakes offensively. And on this night, it was the recipe for a historic upset. The Grizzlies became the fifth FCS team to upset an FBS team ranked in the Associated Press Top 25 since 1978. 

Montana holds on to defeat No. 20 Washington, 13-7.

The Grizzlies are the 5th FCS team to beat an AP-ranked FBS opponent since D-I split in 1978. pic.twitter.com/7UCOzlMtY4

— Jason Starrett (@starrettjason) September 5, 2021

On top of that, it was another win for the Big Sky against FBS competition. 

Earlier in Week 1, UC Davis beat Tulsa and Eastern Washington beat UNLV. But neither of those victories compare to what the Grizzlies accomplished on Saturday night in Seattle. 

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