BOZEMAN, Montana — Montana State’s prized possession enters his senior season with the second-most rushing touchdowns in the history of Bobcat football, trailing only the “Frenchtown Freight Train” when it comes to crossing the goal line.
Only five Bobcats have more 100-yard single-game rushing efforts, only five have scored more points and only eight have more rushing yards.
A replication of the unforgettable, unorthodox 2018 season would place MSU’s do-everything All-American ahead of Ryan Johnson and Cody Kirk on Montana State’s all-time list for career rushing yards and would move him ahead of Kirk and into the upper echelon of touchdown scorers in the history of the Big Sky Conference.
“The kid is a freak athlete and he could play any position on the field. I truly believe that,” former Montana State tight end Conner Sullivan said during that 2018 season. “Whatever the coaches think he is going to play to help our team win. I have 100 percent confidence in him. He’s a freak athlete who can do it all.”
As Portland State All-American defensive back Anthony Adams sat at the Big Sky Kickoff media event in Spokane, he reflected on the last time his Vikings hosted Montana State in Portland.
“All I know is that was the most miserable day of my life,” Adams said. “You literally can’t tackle that dude and he got the ball on every single play.
“I’m so glad he’s not playing offense anymore.”
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Adams is far from alone when expressing that sentiment. Just ask Northern Arizona All-Big Sky safety Anthony Sweeney, a talented player who was knocked unconscious by the sheer force of Troy Andersen’s leg propelling one of the most breathtaking athletes in the league in recent memory through Sweeney and into the end-zone.
That touchdown jaunt was one of 21 scores on the ground for Andersen during his sensational, strange sophomore season. When the former state champion sprinter wasn’t running away from defenders, he was running through them, like when he basically won MSU’s home opener by himself, rushing for 145 yards and scoring two pivotal third-quarter touchdowns to lead MSU past Western Illinois, 26-23.
Or his 169-yard, two-touchdown day that included a 61-yard scoring rip in a 24-23 win over Idaho. Or his three-touchdown day in a 35-7 win over Northern Colorado. Or his iron-man like 107-yard, three-touchdown performance to help MSU rally for a 29-25 win over Montana to make the playoffs for the first time under Choate.
“We are getting closer to where it’s not just him running around on film and I’m excited for that (laughs),” Vigen said during his 25-minute address during MSU’s media day the day before fall camp opened.
“Troy is an extremely gifted young man but he’s every bit as determined as he is gifted. I think that’s the thing. He wanted so bad to be out there in the spring and it was hard to come to grips with the best thing for him.
“He got to June 1 and it’s been really important to him that we did player-led practices so he could get additional reps. Beyond all that, he’s a tremendous leader, one of our captains. I’m so excited to see it all with my own eyes in person.”
Andersen’s single-season touchdown mark broke a nearly 50-year-old record set by Don Hass; the “Iron Tumbleweed” from Glendive is one of four Bobcats — Sonny Holland, Bill Kollar, Jan Stenerud are the others — with his jersey retired.
Some would argue No. 15 might need to be next in line to hang on the fifth floor of the Montana State press box.
“You guys just got done talking to one of the best Bobcats of all time,” said MSU assistant head coach and linebackers coach Bobby Daly, himself a two-time All-American at MSU and still the seventh-leading tackler in the history of the Big Sky.
“He’s been at several different positions and he’s been successful at everything he’s done. He’s going to lead the charge in my room this year and we are thrilled about it.”
Andersen went from a player recruited out of Beaverhead County High in Dillon as an athlete to a part-time running back and part time outside linebacker on the way to earning Freshman of the Year in 2017.
In 2018, he moved to quarterback for the Bobcats, the position he played while leading the Beavers to two state football championships and three title game appearances. There, he flourished, rushing for 1,412 yards and 21 scores, averaging 6.9 yards per carry and ripped of 13 (!!!) touchdown runs of more than 50 yards while playing what only could be described as a modern version of a single-wing option quarterback.
Even in MSU’s 52-10 loss at eventual national champion North Dakota State in the second round of the FCS playoffs, Andersen rushed for 129 yards, and MSU’s only touchdown, a 51-yard scoring jaunt in the fourth quarter.
In 2019, Andersen was an unanimous first-team all-conference pick for the second year in a row, this time earning the accolade as an outside linebacker. He rolled up 54 tackles, 11.5 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks while snaring an interception, breaking up five passes, and recovering a fumble.
In a very Taisom Hill-like role, Andersen also made the most of his 54 offensive touches, rushing 49 times for 336 yards (6.9 yards per carry) and scoring seven touchdowns on the ground, giving him 33 in his career, 14 shy of Kirk in school history set between 2010 and 2013. He also enters his senior year with 2,236 rushing yards, a total of 1,363 yards shy of Johnson’s school record set from 1999 until 2002. Last season he also threw as touchdown and caught a pass for good measure.
Yet Andersen will not play offense this year. At least not according to his new head coach, Brent Vigen, or new MSU defensive coordinator Freddie Banks or his linebackers coach, Daly.
“How Troy got hurt in 2019 (in a 27-17 road win at UC Davis) was playing offense,” Daly said, referring to the knee injury (he had off-season surgery) that cost Andersen the rest of his junior season the week before MSU’s 48-14 beat down of rival Montana.
“It’s one of those things where he doesn’t want to go down so people will continue to bang him as long as he is up. And he’s tough enough to take it but it resulted in an injury and I think we all kind of learned our lessons.
“Troy is going to play Mike linebacker for us, which is the center of our defense,” Banks added. “He will be the man in the middle, the leader. You are going to see his big self standing right there in the middle on every play making all those checks. I think Troy can be really dynamic. We all know Troy Andersen the athlete can do pretty much anything he wants.”
Andersen is one of the great winners in the history of Montana prep sports. During his four-year run at Dillon, the Beavers played for the Class A state title four times in football and four times in basketball, claiming five total state championships, including sweeping state titles during Andersen’s senior year in 2016-17.
In the spring of 2017, Andersen swept the 100 and 200-meter titles at the state track meet for the second year in a row. And four months later, he began his assault on the MSU trophy case by beginning his Freshman of the Year season.
Daly said Andersen’s experience playing multiple sports and at least five football positions (outside linebacker, inside linebacker, quarterback, running back, nickel back) “gives him a great understanding of the game.”
“When I’m talking to him about run flows and run game, I tell him to think about it like a running back or a quarterback. If you see a gap as a running back, you are probably going to hit it. Similar thought process as a linebacker, you are just playing on the other side of the ball,” Daly explained.
“We are moving him inside. He’s a well-rounded football player but he hasn’t gotten the chance to specialize in anything so I think this is going to be really valuable for him to focus on one position.”
Andersen was initially going to play Will linebacker in Freddie Banks’ 4-2-5 defense. Now he will play Mike, standing in the middle of the action in a defensive scheme that will be as unorthodox as any seen at Montana State in recent years.
“You get stretched a little thin when you are trying to do a bunch of things,” Andersen said in his last interview with media back in April. “To really focus on one position and really hone in on the fine details, hopefully get better at it over the course of spring, summer and going into the fall, that’s what I’m looking forward to.”
Although Andersen has only practiced at the position for a week, Banks is already thoroughly impressed with the centerpiece of his already stacked defense.
“I don’t think I’ll ever have a better Mike,” Banks said. “The person, the athlete, it’s rare you have that combination so I will take full advantage of it.”
Although the position change is just the latest in a career filled with them for Andersen, it feels distinctly different for two reasons. First, former head coach Jeff Choate is not giving impassioned monologues about the Paul Bunyan-esque legend that is Troy Andersen. The coaching staff has a completely different identity.
Second, this is it for Andersen. This is his last hoorah with the Bobcats. Can the cowboy from Dillon help Montana State ride off into the sunset during his final season in blue and gold?
“I want to get healthy, stay healthy, have a great last season with my friends, teammates and coaches,” Andersen said. “That’s my only focus right now.”
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Photos by Brooks Nuanez or noted. All Rights Reserved.
