The Krone name is a recognizable one in the world of Treasure State sports. Now Denver Krone will get a chance to carry on his family’s athletic legacy in Montana.
Denver Krone grew up on a cattle ranch in Augusta just like his father, grandfather, and great-grandfather before him, each learning the habits of hard work while also forging athleticism that carried them all over the state.
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Ray Krone, Denver’s great grandfather, was recently inducted into the Montana Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame after a decade-long career as a calf and team roper. Ray also played basketball for the Montana Grizzlies. Denver’s dad, Lorne, played football at Carroll College in Helena.
This spring, Denver Krone earned a shot carve out his own collegiate athletic career. The 6-foot-2, 250-pound defensive lineman who prepped at Choteau — his mother, Tami, teaches at the Class B school 25 minutes north of Augusta — was one of 11 prep players added as preferred walk-ons to Montana State’s football roster a few weeks after the completion of Jeff Choate’s first spring drills as MSU’s head coach.
“Anyone would be nervous but I’m really excited,” Krone said in an interview earlier this month. “I love what Coach Choate brings, all the intensity and stuff like that. New coaches mean new change and change is a good thing sometimes. Most of the time it is.
“I think it will be tough like always, like anything but you just have to put your nose to the dirt, do what you are told and work your ass off. The small things.”
Krone first heard from Montana State after an all-conference junior season. Former MSU offensive coordinator Tim Cramsey, the Bobcats’ primary recruiter for North Central Montana, first reached out to Krone.
“While that was happening, I was getting recruited by Tech and Western and a bunch of other schools,” Krone said. “Then (new MSU offensive line) Coach (Brian) Armstrong and (new tight ends coach and director of high school relations) B.J. (Robertson) just started talking to me. Then (new defensive line coach) Coach (Bryon) Hout, the d-line coach, came and visited me and talked to me about some stuff. Eventually, B.J. told me they would offer me a preferred walk-on spot so I took it first chance I could.”
Krone heavily considered accepting a scholarship at a Frontier Conference school like Montana Tech in Butte or Montana Western in Dillon. But the chance to play for the Bobcats coupled with the academic opportunities provided by Montana State proved to be too much to pass up.
“Being a ranch kid, there’s a lot more for me to study there,” Krone said. “That was one thing and the other thing is I want to prove myself and to the rest of the state that just because you are a small-town kid doesn’t mean you can’t go do great things at a bigger school.”
Krone wants to earn a degree in agricultural business and animal sciences. He hopes to someday return to Krone Ranch & Cattle to carry on the family tradition. He grew up with Rhett Young, a fellow Augusta native who walked on and played five years of linebacker for MSU. Rhett and Chase Young, a former Bobcat wide receiver who transferred from MSU-Northern to play with his younger brother, also grew up on a cattle ranch. The Young’s have since returned to help out the family business, a path Krone will someday likely emulate.
Montana State has a long lineage of athletes who grew up on ranches and farms who came to Bozeman and thrived. Krone said his background and the way he was raised have had a strong influence on his life and athletic success.
“I think it influences me a lot, mostly from my father, grandfather,” Krone said. “They all grew up on ranches and they played college basketball, college football both. I had that pushed from them to do well. They didn’t push me like making me do anything but I just had it in the back of my mind that I wanted to make them proud at the same time. Having to get up at 6 a.m. and work all day, it teaches you life skills that not every kid gets the chance to learn.”
Krone stood out on both sides of the football for Choteau, earning All-Class B honors as a senior. He played along the defensive line as well as a standup inside linebacker defensively. He said he will play defensive line and prefers defensive end before adding “I don’t care if it’s inside or outside — I just like hitting people.”
Krone will join a 94-man roster that reports to the first day of fall camp at MSU that includes seven current Bobcats who played Class B or Class C football in Montana. Defensive players like Mac Bignell (Drummond) and Tucker Yates (Colstrip) are just the latest in a long line of small town Montana kids who have become standouts for the Bobcats. Krone hopes he can be the next in line.
“It means a lot to be able to make my friends and family proud and to make myself proud,” Krone said. “I want to prove myself and show myself what I can do. It means a lot. It hasn’t really hit home completely yet but it’s getting there every day. Every day, it gets closer to practice, it starts hitting home more and more and I can’t wait.”
[/restrict]Photo courtesy of Choteau Acantha. All Rights Reserved.
