Montana State enters the 116th edition of the fiercest rivalry without much to play for other than pride. Yet the significance of the rivalry is not lost on first-year head coach Jeff Choate as he enters his first Cat-Griz game.
“Hey, I know what this is all about,” Choate said following his team’s 27-13 win over UC Davis in Bozeman last Saturday. “This is going to be a great week of preparation and our guys will be very focused. This does help us to have that feeling of victory and create a little confidence and momentum going into a very, very big week for the program, our university and the state of Montana.”
Montana State’s win over UC Davis was the first Big Sky Conference win of the Choate era. The victory snapped a six-game losing streak and pushed MSU to 3-7 this fall. Unlike a year ago, MSU does not have the carrot of securing a winning season to play for. The Bobcats don’t have a playoff spot to secure like they did during the 2014 rivalry showdown. The game does not have Big Sky Conference title ramifications like it did for at least one side literally every season between 2000 and 2012.
Yet the game could still put a sweet stamp on an otherwise sour season for the Bobcats.
MSU quarterback Chris Murray (8) stares down the barrel with a full line cut block protection
“That’s our championship this year so all of our chips are going to be in that game,” MSU junior captain linebacker Mac Bignell said. “Everything is on the line for us. Even regardless of how bad this season has been, a win would make this season better than last season.”
The fall from Big Sky contender has been swift for Montana State. Rob Ash helped the Bobcats to three straight Big Sky championships between 2010 and 2012. A three-game losing streak to the 2013 season sparked a free fall that resulted in last season’s 5-6 campaign, MSU’s first losing season since 2001. Following a 54-35 loss to Montana at home, Ash and most of his staff were fired.
Since snapping a streak of 16 straight losses to the Griz in 2002, the Bobcats have won the rivalry game five times in 14 matchups. UM claimed seven of nine total matchups against Ash, including all five in Bozeman. MSU won in 2010 and 2012 in Missoula, the former helping snap Montana’s streaks of 12 straight Big Sky titles and 17 straight playoff appearances. The latter helped solidify Montana’s first losing season since 1986 while sewing up a third straight conference crown for the Bobcats. But Montana carries a three-game winning streak in the rivalry into this contest.
Of Montana State’s 14 seniors, six will play in their fourth Cat-Griz game on Saturday in Missoula. Captain offensive guard J.P. Flynn, captain running back Chad Newell, captain middle linebacker Fletcher Collins, tight end Austin Barth and wide receiver Will Krolick are MSU’s five fifth-year seniors. Captain running back Gunnar Brekke played as a true freshman in 2013. None of the six, nor walk-on senior defensive tackle Matt Brownlow, a Missoula native in his fourth year after walking on as a sophomore, have been a part of a Bobcat victory over Montana.
This year’s Griz saw their playoff hopes take a huge hit with a 28-25 loss at Northern Colorado last week. Montana enters the game at 3-4 in Big Sky Conference play, 6-4 overall. UM did not play a Division II game so a win over MSU would put the Grizzlies to seven Division I victories, the unwritten baseline for playoff eligibility. But four conference losses combined with a loss to a UNC team that has won just 18 other Big Sky games since joining the league in 2006 and a schedule devoid of a signature win could keep Montana out of the postseason even with a win over the Bobcats. A loss to MSU will certainly assure Montana will be home watching the playoffs.
MSU head coach Jeff Choate
The contest will feature 79 players from Montana — 52 for the Bobcats and 27 for the Grizzlies. Billings is the most represented town in Montana with 11 players in the game, while nine hail from Kalispell and seven come from Bozeman.
Montana State will start at least 13 players from Montana while UM might start as few as five in-state products.
Since the inaugural season of Division I-AA play in 1978, Montana has won 28 of 38 matchups. Since the beginning of ‘The Streak’ in 1986, Montana has won 25 of 30. Montana holds a 72-37-5 all-time advantage.
The two Treasure State schools are two of the most storied programs in the Big Sky Conference. Montana has 19 all-time conference titles while the Bobcats have 18. Montana State has won national titles at the NAIA (1956), the Division II (1976) and the Division I-AA levels (1984). Montana won Division I-AA titles in 1995 and 2001, playing in the title game in 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008 and 2009.
QUICK HITS
Location: Bozeman, Montana
Nickname: Bobcats
Founded: 1893. Montana’s land-grant university is the state’s largest. One of two certified Carnegie Research Institutions in the Big Sky (Idaho State is the other), the STEM school has a strong reputation for its engineering and architecture programs.
Enrollment: The university has 15,688 and an endowment of $119.8 million.
Stadium: Bobcat Stadium. Erected in 1973, the stadium has had several major additions over the last decade. In 2008, the school installed FieldTurf. In 2011, the school opened up a 7,200-seat addition to the south end-zone to raise the capacity to 17,777 with a standing-room ability to hold 20,767. In 2012, Montana State added lights. Since the expansion, Montana State has consistently drawn as well as any program in the FCS and this year has been no different. In six home games, Motnana State averaged 17,907 fans.
THE TEAM (1-6 in the Big Sky, 3-7 overall)
The Coach: Jeff Choate, first season at Montana State. The Montana Western grad played and coached for former Montana Griz head coaches Mick Dennehy and Mick Delaney in Dillon. After graduating from Western in 1993, Choate spent the next eight years as a high school coach in his native Idaho. In 2002, he joined Dennehy’s staff at Utah State. In 2005, he made a brief foray into the FCS with one season coaching special teams at Eastern Illinois. In 2006, he joined Chris Petersen’s staff at Boise State, where he coached until 2011. Choate made one-year stops at Washington State and Florida before rejoining Petersen for the 2014 and 2015 seasons at the University of Washington. He became Montana State’s 32nd head coach on December 5 of 2015.
THE OFFENSE
Chad Newell, running back, 6-1, 222, senior — The two-year captain from Billings Senior has been the heart and soul of the Bobcats for most of his career.
After making a name for himself as an All-Big Sky special teams player in 2013, Newell saw his carries grow each of the last three years. His 110-yard performance in Montana State’s 44-39 win over Idaho State in 2014 likely solidified MSU’s playoff spot that season and his five-touchdown performance against South Dakota State two weeks later tied a school record.
Last season, Newell earned All-Big Sky honors by rushing for 831 yards and 12 touchdowns, the seventh-most in a single season in school history.
This season, Newell has battled injuries throughout. Against Idaho, he rushed or 100 yards in a 20-17 loss but broke his hand, an injury that required surgery. He missed MSU’s non-conference games against Bryant and Western Oregon but returned for the Big Sky opener against North Dakota. In the first half, Newell hyper extended his knee but never missed a down despite the gruesome injury.
Newell has 631 yards and seven touchdowns this season. He has 31 touchdowns in his MSU career, the second-most ever by a Bobcat. His 132-yard outing in the Bobcats’ 27-13 win over UC Davis last week was his seventh 100-yard game of his career and pushed him past 2,000 yards rushing for his career.
J.P. Flynn, offensive guard, 6-5, 317, senior — The Bettendorf, Iowa native is Montana State’s most talented player and a key cog in the offense when he is performing at his peak.
The giant three-time All-Big Sky selection will make his 43rd consecutive start for Montana State on Saturday. The NFL hopeful suffered a ruptured patella tendon in MSU’s 54-35 loss to Montana in Bozeman last fall. He contemplated retirement but instead returned to be a bright spot for an otherwise struggling offense.
Gunnar Brekke, running back, 5-10, 180, senior — The Helena Capital product has been a versatile talent for the Bobcats despite never assuming the role of lead running back throughout his MSU career.
Whether he was sharing carries with Newell, Shawn Johnson, Anthony Knight, or dual-threat quarterback Dakota Prukop, Brekke has received the ball in a variety fo ways even if they haven’t been as prevalent as some expected for the former Montana Gatorade Player of the Year.
Brekke, who initially committed to Montana, has 2,908 all-purpose yards in his career, 59 shy of Demetrius Crawford for 10th on MSU’s all-time list. His 308 all-purpose yards in a 59-56 win over Sacramento State in 2014 were the second-most ever by a Bobcat.
This season, he has rushed for 378 yards (4.8 per carry) and a touchdown while catching 17 passes for 101 yards and another score. In his career, Brekke has 235 carries for 1,173 yards (5.1 per carry) and 63 catches for 676 yards (10.7 yards per catch. He’s scored 11 total touchdowns.
Chris Murray, quarterback, 6-2, 180, freshman — Murray officially became Montana State’s starting quarterback four games ago but he has taken the majority of the crunch-time snaps for the last six contests.
Murray’s breakout performance came in a 41-38 loss to Sacramento State. He rushed for 187 yards, second-most ever by an MSU quarterback an scored three touchdowns. But a late fumble in the red-zone sparked a run of 20 unanswered points as MSU blew a 38-21 lead.
Murray has been spectacular at times with the ball in his hands — his 718 rushing yards are an MSU freshmen record and his 10 rushing touchdowns are tied for the Big Sky lead — but his inability to keep the ball in his hands has been a huge factor in Montana State’s Big Sky struggles. He has thrown eight interceptions and has been a part of almost all of MSU’s 11 fumbles as he’s struggled at times in the read option game. Montana State has turned the ball over 23 times in league play but did not turn the ball over in the win over Daivs.
Mitch Herbert, wide receiver, 6-4, 205, junior — Herbert was a third-team All-Big Sky selection as a true sophomore and caught eight touchdowns during his second year as a starter.
His numbers this season are a reflection of MSU’s struggles to throw the ball. The Sheldon High (Eugene, Oregon) product has 25 catches for 465 yards (18.6 yards per catch) and has a team-high three touchdowns. His 15 career touchdowns are seven away from MSU’s all-time record.
Herbert is from the same high school as Griz like linebacker James Banks, linebacker Connor Strahm and offensive lineman Mike Ralston. Former UM quarterback Jordan Johnson also prepped at Sheldon.
THE DEFENSE
Mac Bignell, outside linebacker, 6-1, 205, junior — Bignell has been solid again after entering the season as the Big Sky’s returning leader in tackles for loss.
During a breakout sophomore season, Bignell piled up 101 tackles and 20.5 tackles behind the line of scrimmage for MSU’s otherwise struggling defense. He forced four fumbles, broke up five passes and notched two quarterback sacks for a unit that gave up yards and points in bunches.
Bignell is MSU’s primary playmaker again this season. His 91 tackles leads the team and his 13.5 tackles for loss rank second in the Big Sky behind UM linebacker Josh Buss’s 17.5. MSU’s defense has improved tremendously under Choate and former UM defensive coordinator Ty Gregorak
Fletcher Collins, middle linebacker, 6-2, 217, senior — The former walk-on from Seattle Prep’s improvement has gone hand in hand with MSU’s defense solidifying.
This season, the hard-hitting Collins has been able to stay healthy and has thrived from the Mike linebacker spot in Gregorak’s defense. Collins has 74 tackles, seven tackles for loss, a sack, an interception and two forced fumbles as MSU has gone from 10th in the league in scoring defense in 2015 to second this year by allowing 25.9 points per game.
John Walker, cornerback, 5-9, 180, senior — The graduate transfer from Colorado has ben one of the best cover corners in the Big Sky this season.
He helped Northern Arizona stud Emmanuel Butler in check in a 20-14 loss. Since then teams have avoided throwing Walker’s way most Saturdays.
This season, Walker has 30 tackles, including 26 solo tackles, two tackles for loss and a sac. All three of his interceptions came during the non-conference, including two in a 27-24 win over Bryant to help him earn Big Sky Defensive Player of the Week honors.
Bryson McCabe, safety, 5-10, 205, junior — The hard-hitting former South Dakota State and Iowa Western transfer has been one of MSU’s most productive players and has been able to stay healthy despite his physical style.
McCabe started the first eight games of the season at strong safety next to fellow captain Khari Garcia. He’s played free safety the last two games, performing much better against UC Davis last week than he did two weeks ago against Southern Utah.
This season, McCabe has 73 tackles and two tackles for loss. He has an interception and nine pass breakups along with a team-high three forced fumbles.
Grant Collins, Buck end, 6-4, 225, sophomore — The Bozeman native has had an up and down year at MSU’s standup defensive end spot, his first playing the position.
Collins started at middle linebacker and rolled up 88 tackles and five tackles for loss as a redshirt freshman in 2015. Gregorak and Choate decided they liked Collins’ length and leverage on the edge and moved him to the front line.
The son of former NFL defensive end Shane Collins has shown flashes — he notched 2.5 tackles for loss last week against UC Davis. But his production has taken a major hit on the edge overall. He has 40 tackles, including 26 solos, five tackles for loss and just two sacks.
