SOUTH OGDEN, Utah (Interstat) — Keali’i Ah Yat threw for 296 yards and two touchdowns and ran for another score, leading Montana to a dominant 38-17 road victory over Weber State on Saturday at Stewart Stadium.

The Grizzlies, improving to 9-0, seized control immediately, exploding for 21 points in the first quarter and never looking back against the Wildcats, who fell to 3-6.

Montana’s offense was firing on all cylinders from the opening drive. The Grizzlies capitalized on a Weber State fumble on the Wildcats’ first play from scrimmage, with Brooks Davis scoring on a 12-yard rush just over a minute into the game. Ah Yat, a quarterback from Kaneohe, Hawaii, then connected with Blake Bohannon on a 62-yard touchdown strike midway through the quarter before capping the period with a 2-yard rushing touchdown.

Weber State managed a 29-yard field goal from Sloan Calder on its opening drive, but otherwise found little traction against a stifling Montana defense in the first half.

The Grizzlies extended their lead to 28-3 early in the second quarter on a 14-yard touchdown run by Eli Gillman, who finished with 122 rushing yards. Weber State quarterback Dijon Jennings found Jayleen Record for an 11-yard touchdown pass late in the half to cut the deficit to 28-10, but Montana answered with a 33-yard field goal from Ty Morrison as time expired to take a 31-10 lead into halftime.

The Wildcats showed some life in the third quarter. After a Montana drive stalled, backup quarterback Kingston Tisdell entered the game and led a scoring drive, finding Record for an 18-yard touchdown pass to pull Weber State within 31-17.

Any hopes of a comeback were quickly extinguished in the fourth quarter. Ah Yat engineered one final scoring drive, finding tight end Evan Shafer for a 9-yard touchdown pass to put the game out of reach at 38-17.

Montana’s defense was a key factor, intercepting a pass and consistently pressuring both Weber State quarterbacks. The Grizzlies held the Wildcats’ offense in check for the majority of the contest.

The result was an upset according to the pregame betting lines, which had installed Weber State as a 22-point favorite. The combined score of 55 points also went over the projected total of 61.5. The outcome defied a projection from Interstat’s game simulator, which had predicted a Weber State victory, though the same service’s ELO system gave Montana an 81.8 percent chance to win.

Montana, which has now outscored its last two opponents 87-52, will look to continue its perfect season next Saturday when it hosts Eastern Washington. Weber State travels to face Montana State next Saturday.