With his rural background, no-nonsense exterior and his cowboy boot strut, it’s easy to see how Jeff Choate would be a hit in Montana’s Golden Triangle.
The second week of May, Choate, Montana State’s new head football coach, and a group of MSU administrators and coaches went on a state-wide tour to help spread interest in Bobcat athletics. Choate and MSU head men’s basketball coach Brian Fish were particularly sharp during the stop to greet the Golden Triangle Bobcat Club in Conrad.
A few weeks earlier, Choate announced a pair of former Conrad Cowboys would be future Bobcats. Choate’s stop in the 2,500-person town an hour north of Great Falls and an hour shy of Canada coupled with the addition of tight end Clark Judisch and offensive tackle Kyle Murack to his roster did nothing but invigorate the quaint community.
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“There’s definitely excitement in the air, especially in Conrad,” Murack, a 6-foot-5, 240-pounder, said in an interview in early June. “The people around the town are just pumped about Coach Choate. When he came here a couple of weeks ago to talk to the Golden Triangle Bobcat Club, it was hard to explain. Instantly, people knew he is going to be the guy who turns it around and gets us back to where we were and back on top of the Big Sky.”
“During graduation after the ceremony and at my grad party, everyone from town knew about us coming to MSU and asked me questions about it,” added Judisch, a 6-foot-4, 200-pound former quarterback who will transition to tight end like so many tall small school in-state prospects before him. “The town is so proud of us. I’ve had so many people congratulate me. I was so happy to see all the support.”
During his junior year, Murack remembers Conrad head coach Mick Morris coming into his weight lifting class to tell him former MSU head coach Rob Ash had called to inquire about the small-school prospect. The following spring, former offensive coordinator Tim Cramsey came to Conrad High to see Murack and Judisch and that summer, Murack attended MSU’s individual camp.
Meanwhile, both Conrad prospects were getting recruited heavily by Frontier Conference schools like Montana Western in Dillon, Rocky Mountain College in Billings and Montana Tech in Butte. Murack and Judisch both said former Western head coach B.J. Robertson and former Rocky head coach Brian Armstrong were among their favorite recruiters.
In November, following a seventh loss to rival Montana in nine career games, Ash, Cramsey and most of the Bobcat coaching staff were let go. Two weeks later, Choate took over as MSU’s 32nd head football coach. Before the end of 2015, he hired Robertson to coach his tight ends and serve as MSU’s director of high school relations. Choate hired Armstrong to coach his offensive line.
In February, Judisch and Murack signed with Chuck Morrell’s Orediggers at Tech.
In the midst of MSU spring drills, Robertson reached out to both prospects once again. He gaged their interest and ended up offering each preferred walk-on spots to be on Montana State’s 94-man roster when fall camp opens the first week of August.
“When I committed to Montana Tech, I had great relationships with their coaches as well,” Murack said. “I really liked their facilities and stuff. But I didn’t know if the Cats were still an option. They were still getting their recruiting stuff figured out with the new coaches. Montana Tech had given me a really great offer and I wanted to play there as well. Once I found out the Bobcats were going to offer me, I thought I’d better take my chance while it was still on the table.”
“At first, I signed with Montana Tech and then the ‘Cats got the new coaching staff,” said Judisch, who was slated to play quarterback in Butte. “I knew B.J. pretty well. As soon as he got settled in, he gave me a call and gave me an opportunity. I thought about it and I couldn’t pass on it.
“It was hard to tell Tech no because they were one of the first schools to start recruiting me and they offered me a scholarship, too. Not taking that was tough but I’m glad to be playing for the ‘Cats.”
As a senior at Conrad High, Judisch earned all-conference honors in football and basketball. As a senior, he completed 51.3 percent of his passes for 1,460 yards, 12 touchdowns and nine interceptions. He also rushed for 856 yards on 136 carries, notching four 100-yard games and scoring nine touchdowns on the ground.
Judisch was Conrad’s starter under center each of the last two years, limiting his defensive reps as he progressed as a signal caller. As a sophomore, he piled up 58 tackles and four tackles for loss. In his career, he snared six interceptions, including three as a junior.
Judisch wants to report to fall camp around 220 pounds. He knows his first year, a redshirt year to be certain, will be used to put on the strength and mass required to compete at the Big Sky Conference level.
“I’m pretty nervous coming from a small school and all the big-time players from all the big high schools,” said Judisch, who plans to pursue engineering. “I’m pretty nervous to go against those guys but you just have to compete and hopefully it goes well.
“I don’t really know much about tight end so I guess I have to study up this summer but I’m just glad for the opportunity to play anywhere.”
Judisch knows a position change and the challenge of gaining weight will not be his only challenges. He will also have to transition from a high school of 160 students to a college with more than 15,000.
“I just found out my roommate (walk-on offensive lineman Connor Floden from El Dorado Hills, California) has more kids in his high school than I do in my whole town,” Judisch said with a chuckle.
Judisch comes from strong athletic bloodlines. His uncle Scott Curry was an All-America offensive lineman for the Montana Grizzlies before being picked in the sixth round of the 1999 NFL Draft by the Green Bay Packers. Judisch’s other uncle Jeremy Curry played football for the Bobcats.
“This means the world to me because when I was little, one of my uncles played for the Griz and another one of my uncles played for the ‘Cats so I’ve wanted to play D-I for my whole life,” Judisch said. “To finally get the opportunity to go play for them is exciting so I can follow in those guys’ steps, go out and compete, try my hardest and see how it goes.”
Murack was also a two-time all-conference selection on the gridiron and the hardwood. The lanky, long offensive tackle will share the challenge of gaining weight in preparation for Division I football but Choate advised him not to rush the process.
“He told me to not set an actually number but to just put on as much good weight as I can so that’s what I’m working toward right now,” Murack said. “I want to make sure I’m still moving well and in good condition so when fall camp comes around, I will be prepared for the work they can give me and they can put on the rest of the weight from there.”
Murack plans on pursuing financial engineering at Montana State. He said he is excited to see the results of daily training, year-round football and the enthusiasm inherent of a new coaching staff. Murack said the support he’s received from his hometown community is something that will drive him as he continues to chase his dreams.
“There’s a lot of support for us to go there and work our tails off,” Murack said.
“It’s always been a dream of mine to play Division I any sports, basketball or football. I’m more than excited to go there and compete and play at the highest level. I want to make an impact on Montana State and I know what they are all about so I want to represent them and represent my hometown as well.”
[/restrict]Photos courtesy of Buck Traxler – Independent Observer. All Rights Reserved.
