Conor Quick has been mentored over the last few years by a former Helena High Bengal. The Helena Capital senior offensive lineman has been recruited to Montana by a former Helena High Bengal.
When it came time for Quick to make his college decision, although the Bruin has been coached and lured by men who played for Quick’s crosstown prep rivals, he knew right away which side of the Treasure State’s most heated rivalry he wanted to end up on.
The 6-foot-4, 275-pounder received a scholarship offer from Montana head coach Bob Stitt and wide receivers coach Mike Ferriter, UM’s primary recruiter in the Capital City, in June. Montana State had him as a target as well, but had not extended a solid offer. Not that it would’ve mattered. Once the Griz gave Quick an offer, he leaped at the chance to play for Montana.
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“Ever since I’ve known about football, I’ve loved the Grizzlies,” Quick said. “Then when I finally got to go to a game there, the whole atmosphere is awesome. I’ve always loved the Griz.
“Coach Ferriter sold me on the whole atmosphere. Everyone who goes there wants to win and has a good attitude. The work ethic that everyone has, how everyone there wants to win, that was appealing.”
Quick has spent his Helena Capital career being groomed by Ryan Fetherston, a former Griz defensive end from Helena High who wore Montana’s vaunted No. 37 jersey during the last few years of his career. Fetherston coached at Carroll College briefly after his playing career ended and has been coaching at Capital the last several seasons.
“He’s very precise and he’s really smart and that shadows on down to us,” Quick said of his mentor. “Especially me, he had me switch to center and he tells us it’s all about the little things. It’s the o-line working the same steps every day. He really emphasizes on if you do the little things right, do your job, the whole game is going to go well. Because if the o-line is doing good, the rest of the team should do just fine.”
That switch to center should pay dividends down the road for Quick, who is athletic and moves well for a teenager his size. If he can become truly comfortable snapping then blocking, his noticeable mental aptitude could make him a valuable asset at center in Stitt’s up-tempo spread offensive system.
“I’ve never played it before, even small fry or anything, so getting snaps down for my quarterback at the right height and speed for him, coming out right, that was the hardest part,” Quick said.
“We have a new system and Fetherston drew it all up for me. I call out who I think is the Mike (linebacker) and that travels throughout the whole offense. It sets up the entire offense to who they are going to block.”
Fetherston convinced Quick to make the move to the middle to get an extra year of work in before moving on to the Division I ranks.
“Conor is extremely strong and we continue to work on footwork,” Fetherston said in a message on Twitter. “He is a smart player; we work together on who we want blocked and echo the communication. He has great potential. I’m excited to see him in a few years.
Quick and many of his Capital teammates have been attending Griz football camps for the past few summers. In the summer before his junior year, the Griz coaching staff led by Ferriter began to reach out to Quick consistently via social media. During camp this past summer, Stitt and offensive line coach Chad Germer talked to Quick frequently.
A few days after camp, Stitt called with a scholarship offer. Quick mulled his options — he has scholarship offers from Montana Tech, Montana Western and Carroll College — before committing to Montana in August weeks before his senior season began.
Quick said he likes Missoula, a “way more busy town than Helena.” He has cousins that live in Hamilton, another factor in his decision.
The future Griz has always loved the outdoors, a primary reason he wants to stay in Montana for college. He has designs on majoring in terrestrial wildlife biology or some sort of biological science.
“I’m a big hunter, a big outdoors guy so I’ve always wanted to do something that could land me outside occasionally,” Quick said. “I also heard about someone who flies helicopters for the Fish & Game so that got me interested in wildlife biology.”
In Helena Capital’s current offensive scheme, the Bruins put a high priority on running the ball between the tackles with inside zone concepts. Stitt’s offense, while predicated on throwing the ball prevalently, runs the ball on inside zone and run-pass option plays about 40 percent of the time. Quick said he is confident that Germer, a mentor who he calls “a super good coach”, will help him transition quickly.
Quick is the ninth player to give his verbal commitment to sign with Montana in February of 2018. He is the seventh from the state of Montana. Shortly after posting his commitment on Twitter, Quick said he received a message from Billings Senior star Gabe Sulser, a fellow Griz commit widely considered the top recruit in the state of Montana.
“I’m pretty excited to be able to play with him and not against him anymore,” Quick said with a laugh.
Following last week’s 44-7 win at Butte, Capital is 3-0 this season, tied atop the Class AA standings less than a month in. Quick is squarely focused on this season, something he said prompted his verbal commitment before the campaign began. But when he thinks of his future, he can’t help but be excited.
“It’s a dream come true,” Quick said. “Ever since I started playing small fry football, tackle football, I’ve wanted to go D-I and play at the college level. Committing, getting it all taken care of and getting to be a Griz, it was a dream come true.”
[/restrict]Photos contributed by Quick family. All Rights Reserved.
