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FCS Football Recap: Week 4 Takeaways
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- FCS Football Recap: Week 4 Takeaways
Montana running back Eli Gillman (10) | Marley Barboeisel (Montana Photography)
Week 4 delivered one of the best weekends of the 2026 FCS football season. We saw multiple potential national contenders make a major statement with dominant wins, including Montana's 40-point win on the road against UC Davis in a Top 10 matchup.
There were also stunning upsets, including UNI knocking off No. 3 Illinois State and Cornell pulling off an upset over Yale, which entered the season as the Ivy League favorite. Some other teams were exposed as pretenders, headlined by Rhode Island and Villanova, which entered the season as Top 15 teams.
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Below are the biggest takeaways from all the Week 4 FCS football action.
Montana looks like a national championship contender
Does anyone know where this Montana team we saw last night has been? There were a ton of valid questions about the Griz going into this matchup, but they were all put to rest after Montana's 62-22 win over No. 10 UC Davis. Eli Gillman is an absolute superstar, setting the program's single-game rushing record with 275 yards and 4 TDs on 26 carries. Brooks Davis and Keali'i Ah Yat are a dangerous duo, but none of this was a surprise after last season.
The much bigger storyline was the defensive performance from the Grizzlies. The star of the game was Tyler King, who led the team with 2.5 TFLs and 2.5 sacks. He was the highest-graded pass rusher for the Griz, but he finally got some help from his surrounding cast. Cooper Buffington, Styles Goodman, and Zekiel Seumalo all made a major impact on Saturday night.
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Montana's offensive line completely neutralized the UC Davis defensive line. Ah Yat was only pressured on 6.3% of his dropbacks, while Gillman finished the game with 8 runs of 10+ yards and averaged over 10.5 yards per carry. As I tweeted last night, if this is the Montana team we see moving forward, the Griz are going to be playing in Nashville in January. We'll see if they can build on the momentum of this impressive performance.
Montana State shows championship resilience without Lamson, Dowler
Championship teams find the way to win games in the face of adversity. That's exactly what Montana State was able to do last night without multiple key starters, including starting quarterback Justin Lamson. It wasn't against an overmatched opponent either. The Bobcats had to battle a hungry Top 25 Northern Arizona team, which was looking for a signature win.
Patrick Duchien did exactly what he was supposed to do. He was effective, efficient, and didn't let two early mistakes impact his performance when it mattered. In his first start, he completed 16-of-20 passes for 204 passing yards, 1 passing TD and 1 INT, while adding 77 yards and 2 TDs on the ground. With Adam Jones limited, Colson Coon delivered in a big way, leading the Bobcats with 199 yards on 11.1 yards per carry.
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The real breakout star is freshman wide receiver Carter Dahlke, who stepped up for the injured Taco Dowler. He was electric all night, including a 47-yard touchdown reception in the first quarter. He led the Bobcats with 7 receptions for 117 receiving yards and 1 receiving TD.
It's just another example of how Vigen has built a machine in Bozeman. The Bobcats are recruiting and developing talent better than just about any other team at this level. It's why this team, even with the injuries, remains the team to beat if anyone wants to hold that trophy at the end of the year in Nashville.
Youngstown State rebounds with statement win over South Dakota
This felt like a must-win game for Youngstown State, especially if the Penguins wanted to show they are legit national contenders. They responded with an absolute statement, dominating South Dakota in a 47-28 victory that wasn't competitive after the first drive of the second half.
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The Penguins did an outstanding job of forcing Austyn Modrzewski into mistakes, turning his 3 turnovers into 17 points, which completely changed the momentum of the game. Graydon Rollins stepped up at linebacker, leading the defense with 17 total tackles and 1.5 TFLs. Defensive tackle Jordan Pritchard-Sewell also made his presence felt on the interior, forcing the late fumble on a sack.
Offensively, the Penguins completely dominated this game. The Coyotes had no answer for Beau Brungard, allowing him to roll up 170 yards and 3 TDs on the ground. He added another 159 passing yards and 1 passing TD. Outside of their final drive, the Penguins scored on all but two drives on Saturday. This offense was deadly efficient and finished with over 500 total yards on 7.7 yards per play.
The Coyotes struggled to establish the run, but once Modrzewski started to turn the ball over, it put South Dakota in a position where it had to abandon the run game. The offense struggled with Youngstown State's front seven, while we finally saw some freshman moments from Austyn Modrzewski.
I still think this team will be fine. Modrzewski needed this learning experience, but even with the mistakes, we still saw some really impressive moments from the young star. The Coyotes need to get healthy on defense, while I would like to see the Coyotes utilize Carson Fletcher a bit more in the downhill run game. South Dakota has a chance for a nice rebound win against Indiana State before a tough matchup against Southern Illinois in two weeks.
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Quick Hits From Across The FCS:
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Illinois Statewas able to quiet the doubters with an FBS win a few weeks ago, but all those concerns were exposed in a loss to UNIthis weekend. This defense is going to have to carry this team, but the Redbirds allowed 8.2 yards per play and weren't able to get UNI off the field when it mattered most. Jaxon Dailey looked outstanding, finishing with 217 passing yards, 2 passing TDs, 44 rushing yards, and 1 rushing TD.
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The Redbirds now have zero room for error. With a non-Division I win, Illinois State is going to have to win 8-9 games to feel comfortable on the bubble. They still have games against SDSU, Southern Illinois, North Dakota, Youngstown State, and South Dakota. Their postseason hopes could get very bleak if the Redbirds don't win at least three of those games.
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I've been telling everyone to buy all the Colgatestock that you can since Week 1. The Raiders continued to look the part with a 28-21 win over Villanova. This defense has been unbelievable this season, holding the Wildcats to 260 yards of total offense, including 2.1 yards per rush. While the rushing attack struggled, quarterback Jake Stearney delivered with 3 passing TDs. The Raiders have 3 Patriot League wins, plus a win over Cornell, which just upset Yale. Their only loss is a 3-point FBS loss. It's time for voters to stop being lazy. Colgate should be firmly inside the Top 20 in this week's poll.
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I'm always curious how teams respond to adversity. Penalties and mistakes put Tennessee Techin a tough spot against Wofford, but the Golden Eagles outscored the Terriers 28-10 in the second half to secure the comeback win. Jax Leatherwood was spectacular, throwing for 427 yards and 5 TDs, while Eric Weatherly emerged as his top target with 9 catches for 100 yards and 2 scores. I'm still a bit nervous about the lack of a run game, but we'll check back in after next week's game against Western Carolina.
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It's time to accept that Rhode Islandjust isn't a very good team. The Rams suffered an unacceptable loss to North Carolina A&T, which has looked like one of the worst teams in the CAA. This is bigger than Devin Farrell's injury. The Rams aren't executing well on either side of the ball. Rhode Island sits at 2-3, there's no known timetable for Farrell's injury, and if this team can't beat North Carolina A&T, there are no easy wins left on the schedule. It's safe to say this is easily the most disappointing team in FCS football right now.
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Cornellstunned Yalein a 38-25 upset this weekend, capitalizing on key mistakes by the Bulldogs. They turned two INTs into TD drives, including a game-sealing TD run from Jordan Triplett with 3 minutes remaining. The Bulldogs didn't have starting quarterback Dante Reno, but Charles Hewitt played well. Unfortunately, his two mistakes were too much to overcome. The bigger story is that the Yale rushing attack continues to struggle, which was a major concern coming into the year. If Reno is out for an extended period of time, the Bulldogs are going to have to figure out the run game.
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The defense has carried Lamarover the first three weeks of the season, but it was the offense that turned heads in a dominant road win over Nicholls. The Cardinals scored 42 first-half points, cruising to a 41-point road win over the Colonels. Aiden McCown was spectacular with 232 passing yards and 3 TDs, while he also led the team with 80 rushing yards and another score. If Lamar can get this level of production offensively, the Cardinals are going to make a real push for the Southland title and a Top 16 seed.
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West Floridacontinues to impress in its first season at the FCS level. It might not always be pretty, but the Argos just find ways to win football games. They were missing starting quarterback Ty'ray Davis, but the defense continues to make enough plays to carry this team. The Argos had 12 TFLs, 4 sacks, forced 6 turnovers, and held the SEMOoffense to 3.7 yards per play.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/fcs as FCS Football Recap: Week 4 Takeaways .
