Football Recap: Bozeman Starts Season with Victory at Home + How To Watch

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Previous 5 Games

08/29/25 - Home	46-20 W
08/24/18 - Home	49-6 W
08/24/17 - Away	40-7 W
08/26/16 - Neutral	14-0 W
08/28/15 - Neutral	56-7 W

Bozeman gave their fans exactly what they wanted out of a home opener on Friday. They put the hurt on the Hellgate Knights with a sharp 46-20 win. The victory continues a trend for the Hawks in their matchups with the Knights: they've now won five in a row.

Van Shockley went supernova, throwing for 246 yards and four TDs while picking up 10.7 yards per attempt, and also rushing for 68 yards and one touchdown on only nine carries.

They were just one part of a punishing run game: Bozeman was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 253 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 167 rushing yards in seven consecutive games dating back to last season.

Another reason for the win was Bozeman's imposing defense, which managed to get into the backfield for four sacks. In fact, those sacks all came courtesy of defensive juggernaut Lucas Garson. He has been hot recently, having also posted five or more total tackles the last three times he's played.

Hellgate lost despite a true team effort on offense. The best among them was Vince Paffhausen, who threw for 226 yards and a pair of touchdowns while completing 73.1% of his passes, and also punched in one rushing score. Evan Pyron was another key player, picking up 85 receiving yards and one score.

Looking ahead, Bozeman is headed away from home for the first time to face off against Glacier at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. As for Hellgate, they will host Billings West at 7:00 p.m. on Friday.