The schedule makers did Montana State-Northern no favors this season. The Northern Lights have taken on NAIA playoff participant Dickinson State in the first game of the season and then followed that up with a contest against two-time defending national champion Carroll College.

With a roster that is about 50 percent freshman or redshirt freshman, the Lights took their lumps and were outscored by a combined score 99-3.

"A lot of kids learned in a big hurry what it takes to play football in this league," said Northern and former Capital coach Mark Samson.

The Lights will play Montana Tech in Butte this week, and Samson said it will be important for his team to play a full 60 minutes of football. Samson said that despite two big losses the Lights attitude is still positive.

"I want to see kids play hard," Samson said. "If we have some success on offense that might steamroll a bit for our defense and then the kids relax a bit and play."

The choice was simple for Montana Tech coach Bob Green.

Green stayed behind last Saturday in Fargo, N.D. after the rest of the Orediggers players and coaching staff left following their game against North Dakota State.

Green stayed behind to drive Koa Bartlett 839 miles back to Butte after he had surgery Saturday night for a broken leg.

"That's all we could do and we were glad to do it," Green said.

Green and Bartlett traveled back to the Mining City in a van loaded down with sleeping bags and pillows.

"It was better for him to lie (down) while traveling," Green said. "We couldn't fly because by the time we made connections we wouldn't be back until Tuesday.

The pair returned at 1:30 a.m. Monday morning. Five hours later Green was back at work.

"It is part of the job," Green said. "The safety of players is paramount. I care about all of our players."

Food, fun and football will be the theme this weekend in Dillon as the University of Montana-Western will take on Carroll College Saturday.

"It is one of the bigger games in the Frontier Conference so we will be going all out," said Western's sports information director Wally Feldt.

Dillon merchants will be having sales and giveaways Saturday. Food vendors and music will also add to the atmosphere before the Bulldogs and Saints tangle.

The game pits the No. 1 team in the nation (Carroll) against Western who is ranked No. 17 in the latest NAIA poll. Western was also the last team to beat the Saints, who have put together a 21-game winning streak since that loss.

"It's an advantage that the game is against the No. 1 team in the nation and it is a night game," Feldt said. "It is also being televised so it kind of has a party atmosphere to it."

Western used two quarterbacks against Rocky Mountain College last week, but coach Tommy Lee said that Travis Blome will get the start against Carroll College.

Lee said that he wanted to see how true freshman Keali'i Perbera performed in game conditions and he inserted him for several series.

"I felt we needed to take a look at him," Lee said about Perbera. "He hadn't played at all the week before."

Perbera passed for 98 yards against Rocky, while Blome passed for 60.