The first thing to realize about the Montana Grizzlies’ 13-7 win at (then-No. 20) Washington Saturday is that they had to win the battle up front.

Boosting the defense was the likes of linebackers Marcus Welnel (Capital) and Patrick O’Connell (Glacier). Helping on the offensive side was right tackle Dylan Cook, a Butte High product who played quarterback for the Bulldogs in high school, and then again at MSU-Northern.

Cook, now packing 305 pounds around on his 6-foot-6 frame, was not as big in Havre or Butte, but still rated among the biggest players in either place.

“It’s a unique transition from quarterback to offensive line, at the collegiate level,” Griz coach Bobby Hauck said UM’s Monday press conference. Then he added it’s not unheard of. “We had a guy at UNLV, Brett Boyko, that played in the NFL and is now in the CFL, that was a high school quarterback in Canada,” Hauck said. “That we recruited as an offensive lineman.”

Call him a double-threat. Cook completed 11 of 18 passes in limited action his redshirt freshman year (2017) at Northern. Not bad, but the Lights struggled: one of his two TD passes came in a 93-19 loss at Montana Tech. Cook was part of as many wins during Montana’s recent 2-0 spring season as he saw in two falls in Havre.

So he walked on at Montana in 2018 and coming out of this second fall camp was given a scholarship. Then he started 13 games in 2019.

“I don’t know, you were probably thinking tight end or defensive end or something,” Hauck said Monday, nodding at Cook sitting to his right. “I took one look at him and said, ‘That guys a tackle. Let’s go.’

“It comes down to the individual having the toughness and the want to get big and strong and play in the trenches. He certainly has the ability and the frame, but it takes the personality and the want-to, and he’s got that.”

Hauck was still obviously pleased with the win at UW — which dropped the Huskies out of the AP’s FBS Top 25, and moved the Griz up five spots in the STATS FCS poll to No. 5 — but mindful that Western Illinois is on the horizon.

Saturday’s game will kickoff around 6:10 p.m. Saturday at Washington-Grizzly Stadium.

“They have great skill kids in my opinion,” Hauck said of the Leathernecks. “They threw for a bunch of yards and we’re aware that they beat us last time we played, and that was a major downer (and) disappointment that (2018) season.”

That was a 31-27 loss at Macomb, Illinois. Sean McGuire threw for 360 yards and three touchdowns for the winners. Connor Sampson threw for 367 yards and two TDs last week in a 31-21 loss to Ball State.

“It’s not just the passing game,” Hauck said of the Leathernecks. “I think they’re going to be insistent on getting the run going, even they threw for 400 yards against Ball State. “

Montana State has to regroup after a 19-16 loss at Wyoming, in which new coach Brent Vigen thought he’d have a chance at a game-tying field goal, but didn’t.

Isaiah Ifanse had a solid run for an apparent first down — only to have it spotted behind the chains with 4 seconds left, and time ran out in Laramie. It was confusing, but Vigen — a Wyoming assistant the previous seven seasons — said the right things.

“We more than had our chances today,” he told the Billings Gazette. “It’s not about one play, it’s a collection of those. I know (the Cowboys) had a collection of plays that they want back, too.”

Ifanse ran for 103 yards; Matthew McKay threw for 200.

The Bobcats bring in Drake for a game Saturday at 6 p.m. at Bobcat Stadium. The Bulldogs are coming off a 45-3 win over Division II West Virginia Wesleyan. If Wesleyan sounds familiar, it might be because that’s where quarterback Nate Montana landed after leaving the Griz. In 2012 Montana threw for a league-high 2,480 yards for those D2 Bobcats.