HELENA, Mont. - The Carroll College football team is back in action for its first Saturday afternoon game of the young season, heading an hour south for a non-conference bout with longtime rival Montana Tech at Alumni Coliseum at 1 p.m.
Although Mother Nature did her best to delay the outcome, the No. 11-ranked Fighting Saints (1-0) kicked off the 2026 campaign with a win last week in Helena. Two lightning delays added more than an hour to the total game time, but Carroll had done enough in the opening half to cruise to a 30-14 win over MSU-Northern. The Saints extended their win streak over the Lights to 14 games, dating back to 2016, and 40 of the last 42 games in the series going all the way back to 1970.
Now, they turn their attention toward the nation's biggest game of the week: a showdown with the No. 5-ranked Orediggers (1-0). The 136th all-time meeting between Carroll and Tech will have the attention of the nation. Saturday's game between the Saints and Orediggers is the only Saturday matchup featuring two teams ranked inside the NAIA Top 25. Not only will the game be broadcast statewide on SWX, it will be one of three featured broadcasts on the NAIA Network.
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Not a single NAIA rivalry compares to Carroll and Tech. Separated by just 71 miles, the two schools have battled for over a century, usually multiple times a year. Montana and Montana State own the state's longest-running all-time series, but the Saints and Orediggers have played more times than any other two schools in Montana, and potentially the NAIA. One hundred six years, 135 meetings, and two institutions with no love lost. Saturday's showdown in Butte marks the 18th time since 2000 that both teams are ranked inside the NAIA Top 25 Coaches' Poll. No other two teams in the Frontier have met more often as ranked opponents in that span.
The vast majority of the 135 meetings between the longtime rivals have taken place in October or later. However, since 2014 the pair have met five times in the second game of the season. Tech holds a slight 3-2 lead in those meetings (Carroll - '21, '14 | Tech - '25, '22, '15). Montana Tech has won five straight in the series, dating back to the final game of the 2023 season. The rivalry is 106 years old this fall, and Tech has only accomplished the feat one other time. From 1996 to 1999, the Orediggers won nine straight meetings. That streak ended in September 2000, as the Saints picked up a 21-17 win over then-ranked No. 7 Tech at Vigilante Stadium. Carroll's last win in the series came in the season opener of 2023, a 21-19 win in Butte, and they will look to snap the slide this afternoon.
Slightly under the radar last week, Kaden Huot (Helena, Mont. / SR) put together the single best passing game in a season opener in Carroll College history. Following a 2025 season that saw him become the first Fighting Saint to throw for 30 or more touchdowns since the legendary Tyler Emmert, Huot was impressive in Week Zero. He completed 23 of his 31 attempts on the evening for 372 yards and a pair of touchdowns. The 372-yard performance was just seven yards shy of his career best (379 vs. ACU), but more impressively it was the most passing yards in a season opener in school history. Huot became just the fourth Saint to throw for 300-plus yards in the first game of the year, joining Devan Bridgewater ('19 - 326), JT Linder ('16 - 330), and Tyler Emmert ('04 - 349).
Replacing the production of an All-American tight end is a tall task for 95 NAIA programs, but the Fighting Saints appear to have things covered. Ty Wilkinson (Pocatello, Idaho / R-SO) put on a show last week against MSU-Northern, hauling in a team-high six passes for a career-best 115 yards and two touchdowns. Wilkinson leads all NAIA tight ends in all three categories after Week Zero, and he continued one of the most jaw-dropping trends in college football. Wilkinson's two touchdowns on six catches continued his impressive trend of scoring on one out of every three receptions over his career (21 catches, six touchdowns).
Kickoff for the highly anticipated clash is slated for 1 p.m., and the game will be aired live on SWX affiliates throughout Eastern Washington, northern Idaho, and all of Montana.
Catch Voice of the Saints, Stewart Davis, and Carroll Hall of Famer Gary Turcott call the action live on Rewind 94.9 FM in Helena or online HERE.
Be sure to visit www.carrollathletics.com this evening for a full recap of the action, and for complete coverage of the Fighting Saints all season long.
