By now, you know what Idaho State is up against in its next game, a home matchup with No. 2 Montana. At 1 p.m. Saturday at Holt Arena, the Bengals get the Grizzlies, one of the nation's best teams.

To know more about the Griz, we chatted with Andrew Houghton of ESPN 102.9 Missoula and Skyline Sports and formerly of the Journal! — who provided some thoughtful analysis.

Here is our Q&A. Idaho State Journal:

What's the general scouting report on Montana?

Andrew Houghton: In his fifth season back at his alma mater, Bobby Hauck has built a talented and well-rounded roster that looks capable of competing for the Grizzlies' first Big Sky title in over a decade, and maybe even a national championship. Unlike Hauck's teams in his first stint at Montana, which looked like North Dakota State prototypes with clock-killing power run games and stout defense, this year's Grizzlies are always capable of big plays on either side of the ball. Hauck has had good teams each of the past two years at Montana, but neither got past the quarterfinals. With an efficient offense and possibly the best defense in the FCS, this looks like the team that will push past that ceiling.

ISJ: Is the Griz defense everything it's cracked up to be? What are that group's strengths and is it vulnerable to ISU's offense in any way?

Houghton: It really is. In four games, the Griz have given up four offensive touchdowns and lead the conference in scoring defense, total defense, rush defense, pass defense, sacks, first downs surrendered...you get the idea.

What distinguishes Montana's defense is its aggressiveness and depth. The Griz love to bring extra pass rushers, especially on third down, and they run constant twists and stunts with their three down linemen and blitzing linebackers to confuse opposing offensive lines and quarterbacks as to where the pressure is coming from. The goal is to disorient and eventually overwhelm the offense.

The Griz also fly to the ball harder than any team I've ever seen, and every player on the field likes to hit. They're able to keep that intensity so high because their depth is so good that they can rotate at almost every position, keeping players fresh without having a drop-off in talent. Expect to see every name on Montana's defensive two-deep hit the field Saturday.

Now, there are ways to exploit that aggressiveness. Because the Griz bring extra rushers and flood so many players into the box, their cornerbacks are often on an island without much safety help over the top or even to the middle of the field. Eastern Washington and James Madison both had success against the Griz last year, Eastern by sending Talolo Limu-Jones straight up the seam and James Madison by consistently hitting slants or skinny posts into the vacant middle of the field right behind Montana's rushing linebackers.

But to take advantage like that, a team needs wide receivers who can win one on-one and a quarterback who can either stand in the pocket and deliver accurate throws as he's being hit or make the first rusher miss and immediately get his eyes back downfield. With Xavier Guillory, Idaho State might have part of the first element, but down to third string quarterback Sagan Gronauer, I think they'll have a hard time putting it all together.

ISJ: How has quarterback Lucas Johnson looked, and how could he exploit ISU's defense?

Houghton: Lucas Johnson has looked really good, certainly better than I expected and I think better than a lot of Griz fans expected as well after transferring from San Diego State. You can tell he's in his seventh year in college (matching his jersey number - the Montana student section has started chanting "Luck-y seven" after he scores) because he almost never makes mistakes or negative plays. He's got great pocket awareness and always seems to either scramble or get rid of the ball a split second before the rush gets home, and he's faster and a better runner than I originally thought.

In four games, he's been sacked six times and thrown just one interception, and he's looked better every week. Last week against Portland State, he completed his first 15 passes, not throwing his first incompletion until midway through the third quarter. Montana's offense takes advantage of his experience and decision making by calling a lot of run-pass options and basic read options, which puts responsibility on Johnson to diagnose the defense both before and after the snap and make the right read. The upside is that when Johnson's making the right decisions, as he has been recently, it doesn't matter what the defense does - it'll always be wrong.

ISJ: What did you take away most from UM's win over Portland State last weekend?

Houghton: Last week's win really drove home how relentless and explosive Montana is. Portland State head coach Bruce Barnum had a bye week to scheme up the Griz and a couple of his gambits worked - the Vikings scored their first touchdown after recovering a pooch kick on the opening kickoff, and the second after converting a fourth down with a running back pass.

That's the kind of audacity and luck Idaho State will need on Saturday, and after the second touchdown, PSU trailed just 17-14 with five minutes until halftime and was getting the ball to start the third quarter. Well, the Griz went on to score 22 more points before halftime. Because the defense is so dominating and Hauck is so good at scheming up special teams, the Griz really are a threat to score on any play. Already this year they've forced two safeties and scored touchdowns on a blocked punt, a fumble recovery, a punt return and a missed field goal return.

ISJ: Outside of Johnson, any Griz players to keep an eye on?

Houghton: Montana's depth makes this a tough question to answer because I could throw out 10 names and somebody completely unmentioned could have the biggest game on Saturday. Xavier Harris, a smaller shifty type, is Montana's best running back. Wide receiver Mitch Roberts and tight end Cole Grossman are established targets, while Aaron Fontes is an emerging star on the outside and Junior Bergen, who returned a punt for a touchdown last week, can line up in the backfield or in the slot.

On defense, Patrick O'Connell is the star after being a Buck Buchanan Award finalist last year. He's a linebacker but he'll often be lining up on either end of the defensive line, and he's the best pass rusher in the country. Marcus Welnel is an all-around linebacker who wears Montana's legacy No. 37.

After a nine-game interception streak a year ago, cornerback Justin Ford is getting the Darrelle Revis treatment this year, which leaves Corbin Walker and former Idaho State Bengal Jayden Dawson to deal with most of the targets on the other side of the field. It's always fun to watch Robby Hauck, who set Montana's career tackle record last week, scream downhill into the box like a fighter plane.