Mike Kramer has carried one unforgettable a part of the Treasure State with him for most of the last 40 years.
Idaho State’s sixth-year head coach was born in the tiny Washington farm town of Colton south of Pullman on the Palouse. He spent his formative years coming of age as an offensive and defensive lineman at the University of Idaho, but he dove into coaching first at Helena High in Montana’s capital city between 1977 and 1982, then as an assistant at Montana State from 1983 until 1986.
Kramer’s winding journey led him back to Montana State as the head coach after spending all of the 1990s at Eastern Washington. Kramer has been at Idaho State since 2011 but has coached just two time in Montana: losses at MSU in 2011 (54-13) and on a frigid Bozeman day in 2014, 44-39.
On Saturday, Kramer leads his Bengals into Washington-Grizzly Stadium for the first time as ISU’s head coach. Kramer was suspended the last time Idaho State played in Missoula back in 2012. The last time Kramer coached in the hallowed venue came in Montana State’s 13-7 loss to the Griz to end the 2006 regular season, Kramer’s last of seven seasons at the helm for the Bobcats.
ISU head coach Mike Kramer/ by Brooks Nuanez
“There will be 25,000-plus people hanging over the railing helping you enjoy the day,” Kramer said during his weekly press conference on the ISU campus on Wednesday. “It’s cool, really cool. It’s what you aspire to play as a college football player. No Pac 12 school can say it, no Mountain West school can say it. Not Boise, not Utah, not Utah State, not BYU. Nothing is like playing at Washington-Grizzly Stadium except playing at LSU and playing at Alabama. And kickoff is at 5 so guess what? They’ve had all day to get prepped. It’s a howling and we go into the howling maelstrom at 5 o’clock. Absolutely one of the cool experiences in coaching.”
Kramer still drives through Montana every summer in an effort to enjoy the beauty, see old friends and remember the landscape of the people that helped mold him into a man during his younger years. One defined characteristic for those who call the Treasure State home still resonates inside Kramer’s heart each time he steps foot on Montana soil.
“In the state of Montana, toughness counts, it matters in all levels of all things all of the time,” Kramer said. “I don’t care if you are neophyte or are just moving into the state or what, you learn real soon one thing right away: not the weather, not the geographical location, nothing can supersede the value of toughness. I love it, I see it, I witness it, I live it, I breathe it, it’s part of me and it’s why I’m excited to cross the state line into a place that recognizes the value of toughness.”
The 61-year-old has spoken frequently throughout his long career in the Big Sky Conference of his respect for both the Montana schools, particularly the pride and tradition the Grizzlies have been able to cultivate over the last two decades. When Kramer first took the ISU job before the 2011 season, he wanted to get as many former Bobcats and Griz as possible on his staff.
Roger Cooper, the 2004 Big Sky Defensive MVP as a linebacker at Montana State, is his current assistant head coach for the defense. Kramer also offered former Big Sky MVP Kane Ioane, now MSU’s linebackers coach, the defensive coordinator position when Kramer was first hired.
ISU offensive coordinator Matt Troxel/by ISU Athletics
Former Montana wide receiver Matt Troxel is Idaho State’s offensive coordinator. Former UM offensive coordinator Rob Phenicie, who won seven straight Big Sky titles on Bobby Hauck’s staff, is the assistant head coach for the offense and works with ISU’s wide receivers. Former Montana wide receiver Mike Ferriter, now in his second year as UM’s inside wide receivers coach, held a similar position for two seasons on Kramer’s staff.
The roots each hire has to Montana all helps them share one characteristic that Kramer can’t help but gravitate toward.
“In other states — Washington, Oregon, California, Massachusetts — toughness is not recognized as a requisite for being a coach,” Kramer said. “In Montana, you don’t coach unless you are extremely tough and it’s a requirement that your teams respond and play that way.”
Kramer owned a house in the Bozeman area up until the last few years. His daughter, Courtney Kramer, worked as the historic preservation officer for the City of Bozeman until last December. During his various trips in and out of Montana, mostly for personal reasons these days, he has seen Missoula and Bozeman boom with transplants from around the West.
He sometimes wonders how long it will last. Are the winters too long? Do the new residents possess the fortitude? Only time will tell.
But it’s been too long, three weeks shy of 10 years to be exact, since Kramer stepped foot in a venue in which part of his legend was crafted. Kramer led Eastern Washington to the semifinals of the 1997 FCS playoffs. He has earned Big Sky Coach of the Year honors at EWU, MSU and ISU. But his greatest triumph during his time in the Big Sky is likely the turnaround he orchestrated at Montana State, an improvement trademarked by the end of “The Streak”.
ISU head coach Mike Kramer in 2015/by Brooks Nuanez
In 2000, Kramer’s first in Bozeman, the Bobcats went 0-11. That group featured a salty defense led by Ioane and not much else. By 2002, Ioane, upstart freshman quarterback Travis Lulay and the Bobcats marched into Washington-Grizzly Stadium and snapped a string of 16 straight losses to the rival Griz. Kramer would go on to beat Montana twice more — 2003 and 2005 in Bozeman — but that historic moment in 2002 marks Kramer’s only victory in Missoula since the turn of the century. EWU won in Missoula in 1997.
“I don’t think not playing at Washington-Grizzly Stadium has impacted us but I’ve certainly missed it,” Kramer said. “I love the venue and I love coaching in Montana and I love competing against one of the most storied programs in college football history. It will be a great experience to be back.”
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