The 122nd rendition of the fiercest rivalry in college football will once again highlight some of the best football players who grew up in the Treasure State. Those Montana-made products will certainly have an influence on a contest that will determine the outright Big Sky Conference champion for the first time in the 60-year history of the conference.
A total of 92 in-state products (including Montana State senior Cole Sain, who grew up in Darby but went to high school at St. John Bosco Prep in Southern California) will play in Saturday’s rivalry showdown at Washington-Grizzly Stadium.
A total of 47 players from the No. 3 Grizzlies hail from in-state, four less than last season but two more than Montana State boasts. And No. 4 Montana State’s roster features 45 in-state products entering the game on Saturday, up from 42 last season.
The rivalry game has postseason ramifications for the fourth year in a row. In 2019, Montana State routed Montana as the then-No. 8 Bobcats blasted the No. 3 Griz 48-14 in Bozeman. Both teams earned playoff seeds and first-round byes; UM advanced to the quarterfinals of the 2019 FCS Playoffs and MSU advanced to the semifinals that season, marking the first run to the Final Four for the Bobcats since 1984.
In the last rivalry game played in Missoula, Montana beat Montana State 29-10, snapping a four-game losing streak to MSU and thrusting themselves into a playoff seed again. The loss was Montana State’s only Big Sky Conference loss of the season, yet the Bobcats still received a seed and eventually ended up in the FCS national title game.
Last year in Bozeman, Montana State did not punt on the way to a 55-21 ram shackling of the rival in the most lopsided Bobcat victory against the Griz in series history. That helped the Bobcats earn a No. 5 seed and a bye while it forced Montana, who lost four of five down the stretch last season, to play in the first round. MSU’s win over UM also sewed up a share of the Big Sky Conference title for the first time since 2012 for the Bobcats.
The winner of Saturday’s clash — the first time the two teams have met when each squad is ranked in the Top 5 — will win the outright Big Sky title. The winner will certainly receive a top three seed in the playoffs and will have the inside track at the No. 2 seed, which would ensure home field advantage throughout the postseason.
“I’m excited every Saturday, competition is what drives everybody involved,” Montana head coach Bobby Hauck said. “Competition is what drives our organization. When you are playing your neighbor, there’s probably a little more excitement around that because you are familiar with each other.”
It’s worth noting that Griz (2008 at James Madison) and the Bobcats (2021 at Sam Houston) each only have one road victory in their respective FCS playoff histories.
Montana enters this game riding a six-game winning streak and sit at 9-1 overall. Montana State lost at South Dakota State in Week 2 and at Idaho the final game of October to enter the rivalry at 8-2. The loser of Saturday’s contest will also likely be in line for a playoff seed.
During the Big Sky Conference era beginning in 1963, Montana State won the first six rivalry games against Montana and 12 of the first 15. Montana won in 1978 and again in 1981 and 1982 before MSU ripped off its most recent three-game winning streak until the current one between 1983 and 1985.
In 1986, Montana won 59-28 in Missoula, starting an era of domination that reached 16 consecutive victories during a stretch that became known as simply: “The Streak.”
Since Montana State won in Missoula 10-7 in Missoula in 2002, the rivalry is dead even with 10 wins for each side. Montana’s 2011 win in Bozeman was technically vacated by NCAA violations. And the rivalry was not played in 2020 because of the global pandemic.
MSU had won in four of its last five trips to Missoula before the 2021 loss while Montana had four straight wins in Bozeman between 2007 and 2015 but lost in 2017, 2019 and 2022.
Montana State has won five of the last six, although third-year head coach Brent Vigen is 1-1 against the rivalry and 0-1 in Missoula. Hauck is 6-5 against the Bobcats in his career that includes stints between 2003 and 2009 plus the current stretch that began ahead of the 2018 season.
Hauck first took over at Montana leading up to the 2018 season, the Griz roster boasted 29 in-state players. Now UM has more than 45 for the third year in a row.
Montana State had one of its highest number of in-state products in former head coach Jeff Choate’s four years in 2019 with 46. The 2016 Bobcats had 52 Montana kids while the 2017 team had 46 and the 2018 team featured 45, same as this season.
This year’s Griz team features six starters, including all three linebackers, who hail from Montana. The UM two-deep features nine more Montana-made players, including two lineabckers and three safeties, who will figure heavily into the rotation on Saturday.
“Growing up and watching the Brawl, it was always my favorite game of the year so to be able to play in it has just been a blessing and a heck of an opportunity,” Montana senior linebacker Levi Janacaro, a Big Sky product, said. “It’s been really cool.”
This year’s Bobcat team has 10 total starters from Montana. Six more in-state players are on the two-deep and that’s not counting starting kicker Casey Kautzman, one of six players who hail from Butte and five who call Butte High School their prep alma maters.
“This is it in Montana, every little kid’s dream of playing in this game,” Montana State senior captain Nolan Askelson, a Billings Senior alum, said. “All eyes are going to be on this game. All the eyes in Montana will be watching this. It’s everything, man. Going home – there’s so many guys on both teams, whenever you go home anywhere in the state, there’s bragging rights to be had and people are going to get at you either way so you want to make sure you end up on the right side of this one.”
Between the two rosters combined, a total of 61 in-state players (31 for MSU, 30 for Montana) who played Class AA football in high school.
Class A has 13 representatives, including nine Grizzlies.
A total of 12 players cut their teeth in the Class B ranks, including seven who play for Montana.
And a total of six players prepped in the Class C ranks, including five for the Bobcats, although Jaxon Lee has Class C roots. The Griz safety grew up in Phillipsburg and won two Class C state championships at Flint Creek before playing his senior year at Missoula Sentinel.
Bozeman and Missoula are the two most represented Montana towns once again. A total of 18 players from Missoula, including 11 who went to Missoula Sentinel, three that went to Big Sky, two that prepped at Hellgate and a pair of Griz who graduated from Loyola. A total of 13 Missoulians play for Montana while five Bobcats are from the Garden City. Sentinel features seven Griz and four Bobcats among its alums in the game. All three Big Sky alums are Griz while there’s one each from Hellgate for UM and MSU.
Bozeman has 16 natives playing in the game, including 13 who graduated from Bozeman High (eight ‘Cats, five Griz) and three more Bobcats who are Bozeman Gallatin alums.
Billings boasts 11 players in the game, including six that went to West, two that went to Senior, two that went to Central but none that went to Skyview. Five former Golden Bears are now Bobcats and a sixth is a Griz while one each UM & MSU have a former Senior Bronc suiting up. Central is the most well-represented Class A school with three players in the game, including two for the Griz
Helena has nine players in the game, including five who play at Montana. Helena High has five alums in the game, including three that play for the Griz while Helena Capital has two graduates. on each side of the rivalry.
Butte has six players in the rivalry split evening between the ‘Cats and the Griz. Five are Butte High alums, including three former Bulldogs at Montana. Butte Central has one alum in the game and Aaron Richards plays for the Bobcats.
Great Falls and Kalispell each have three representatives in this rivalry. One Great Falls High product plays for each MSU and UM while Cole Taylor is the lone Great Falls Charles M. Russell High graduate in this rivalry game, and the freshman is on the Bobcat roster. All three Kalispell products prepped at Glacier High and all three play for the Griz.
Laurel and Hamilton are the two other Class A programs with multiple players in the game. One former Locomotive plays for Montana and Montana State while both former Broncs, the Rostad brothers, are Grizzlies. Other Class A towns represented include one Dillon native on Montana State plus natives of Havre, Libby, Polson & Whitefish on Montana.
Three Class B towns have multiple representatives: Huntley Project (one Bobcat, one Griz), Florence (two Bobcats) and Red Lodge (two Bobcats). Anaconda, Eureka, Fairfield and Whitehall all also have athletes in the game, all four who suit up for Montana and three who — Braxton Hill of Anaconda, Garrett Graves of Eureka and Ryder Meyer of Fairfield — figure to play prominent roles.
Class C communities represented in the game include Melstone (the Grebe brothers play for MSU), Sunburst (MSU), Phillipsburg (two if you count Lee), Fairview (MSU) and Savage (UM).
A total of 28 Montana towns are represented, each making up the fabric of this historic game.
“If you are one side or the other, that runs deep in your community and that runs deep in your family,” Vigen said on Monday. “You want to be glued to that TV rooting for your team or you are in the stadium rooting for your team. You want it to go your way.
“It’s a really neat deal. So many of our guys represent so many communities across the state and the same goes for their roster. There’s a lot of vested interest and we want to make that side of our equation proud.”
Here’s a look the 45 Montana products on the Bobcat roster headed into the 122nd rendition of the fierce rivalry in Missoula on Saturday afternoon.
THE STARS
Tommy Mellott, quarterback, junior, Butte — The baby-faced kid from the Mining City took the state and the FCS by storm as a rookie in 2021. Matthew McKay’s regression peaked when MSU’s 29-10 loss at Montana caused McKay to get benched, then to transfer.
Mellott took over as starter and exploded, leading MSU all the way to the FCS national title game with wins in his first three career starts, all playoff games. He’s pretty much done nothing but win since, leading MSU to an 8-0 Big Sky mark last season and a share of MSU’s first league title in 10 years. He was knocked out of MSU’s 20-16 loss earlier this season at No. 1 South Dakota State, giving way to Sean Chambers for nearly a month.
Since he’s returned, he has a pair of 100-yard rushing games (against Sac State and Northern Arizona) to bring his season total to 431 yards on just 47 carries (9.2 yards per rush). He’s also completing 65 percent of his passes and throwing for a little more than 100 yards per game.
In his career, Mellott has thrown for 2,398 yards and 15 touchdowns while rushing for 1,999 and 26 more scores. His next yard will help him become the 14th Bobcat to surpass 2,000 yards.
Brody Grebe, defensive end, junior, Melstone — The “Melstone Cowboy” is the pride of the town that’s the smallest of any Montana community represented in this game.
Melstone, which is in eastern Musselshell County pretty much right in the center of the state, boasts a population of 126. That’s half the size of Treyton Pickering’s home town of Sunburst, a North Toole County town near Canada that boasts 333 residents.
Grebe isn’t just a novelty. Instead, he’s more like a prodigy turned bonafide pro prospect. His teammates boast that his measurables are comparable to Daniel Hardy, a freaky athlete who tested outside the box on his pro day, helping him earn a shot with the L.A. Rams of the NFL.
The 6-foot-2, 248-pounder is one of the top candidates for Big Defensive Player of the Year this season. He has 7.5 sacks and 11 tackles for loss, each tops on the Bobcats and among the top marks in the Big Sky. He has 15.5 sacks and 22.5 tackles for loss in his career.
And, as we wrote in this column last year, Grebe also has to be among the league leaders in being held, although Skyline Sports admits that’s not yet an official statistic.
Nolan Askelson, linebacker, senior, Billings — The former Montana Class AA Defensive Player of the Year out of Billings Senior suffered what was almost a career-ending knee injury early in the rivalry game last year. He committed to coming back and rallied all the way into a memorable senior season.
Askelson has worn Montana State’s legacy No. 41 jersey with great pride, showing grit and toughness along the way while anchoring and captaining MSU’s stout defense.
He has 67 tackles, tied with McCade O’Reilly for the most on the Bobcats. He also has four tackles for loss, and he snared an interception last week against EWU. Askelson has 176 tackles, nine tackles for loss, two sacks and two interceptions in his career.
“QUOTE
Rylan Ortt, safety, junior, Missoula — One of three Missoula Sentinel products on the Bobcats (eight former Spartans play for the Griz) has overcome plenty in his career. The former high school quarterback missed the first two months of last season because he failed an NCAA-administered drug test at the end of last year.
Ortt looked good to end last season. He’s been outstanding during his junior season.
The cerebral and physical strong safety has 57 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss and a sack to go with three interceptions, plus he’s blocked a kick, meaning he has an inside track on All-Big Sky honors.
Treyton Pickering, tight end, senior, Sunburst – Pickering is from the second-smallest town of any player in this game.
Pickering went down in the second half of Montana state’s 45-21 win over Northern Arizona. He missed last week but Vigen said he has been practicing this week.
Because of the confirmed absence of senior All-American H-back Derryk Snell, Pickering’s availability against the Griz will be huge. So far this season, the 6-foot-4, 246-pounder has 15 catches for 303 yards, bringing his career totals to 49 catches for 754 yards and six scores.
He’s the grandson of Lynn Ahrens, a Montana Football Hall of Famer who was drafted by the Chargers in 1972 out of Eastern Montana College.
Marcus Wehr, offensive line, junior, Billings — The converted defensive lineman was the starter at right tackle as a sophomore before having his season end because of a broken leg. He’s bounced back even better this year and is widely considered Montana State’s best offensive lineman.
The former Billings Central product has been a key cog in a Montana State rushing attack that’s averaging 302 yards per contest, second in the FCS.
Justus Perkins, center, junior, Bozeman — The former walk-on has transformed into an integral part of one of the most integral units on the Bobcats. Last season, he was an honorable mention All-Big Sky selection and he is well on his way to all-conference honors again.
Two years ago, Montana State’s offensive line lost All-American tackle Lewis Kidd to the NFL and also had to find a replacement for two-time All-Big Sky guard Taylor Tuiasosopo after he graduated. Starting right tackle T.J. Session transferred to Cal in the off-season, marking the second time (Conner Wood, Missouri) in the last few years a promising starting tackle for the Bobcats transferred to the Power 5.
MSU entered the year with the reality they would have to start mostly underclassmen and that Perkins, a Bozeman High product who earned the starting center job from the beginning of his redshirt freshman season, would be the only returning starter and the most veteran of the group.
The last two seasons, the second-generation Bobcat has been outstanding as a leader and charismatic as one of the faces of the program. The 6-foot, 282-pounder is one of Josh Perkins’ three sons currently on the Bobcats. Justus has started 38 straight games and counting.
Taco Dowler, wide receiver, sophomore, Billings — Dowler first rose to the starting lineup when the Clevan Thomas eligibility debacle could not be cleared up quickly last season.
Dowler is a former Montana Gatorade Player of the Year and a star in the making. He had Montana State’s first punt return for a touchdown since 2013 when he took one to the house against Morehead State last season. And his 65-yard catch and run to set up the game-winning field goal in a 41-38 win at Northern Arizona was one of the plays of the season during his freshman year.
In the spring, he suffered a shoulder injury that required surgery and cost the 5-foot-9 speedster the first seven games of the season. Dowler, whose twin brother Caden was MSU’s starting nickelback before suffering a season-ending knee injury, made his first two catches (totalling 33 yards) last week against Eastern Washington.
THE STARTERS
McCade O’Reilly, linebacker, junior, Bozeman — O’Reilly is the youngest of three brothers who played Division I football, including the second straight to pile up tackles as an inside linebacker for the Bobcats. Callahan O’Reilly was a two-time All-Big Sky selection and led MSU in tackles three seasons in a row before graduating after last season. Callahan and McCade’s oldest brother Payton played at Miami (Ohio).
McCade has been thrust into the lineup first as the third inside linebacker in MSU’s rotation behind Askelson and junior captain Danny Uluilakepa. O’Reilly is tied with Askelson for the team lead with 67 tackles. He also has three tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks and a forced fumble. He has been the starter next to Askelson since Uluilakepa went down with an arm injury a few plays into MSU’s 42-30 win at Sac State. Danny U is expected back for the rivalry game on Saturday.
Ryan Lonergan, tight end, junior, Bozeman — Lonergan has been Montana State’s unstated hero the last month. Snell is a peerless talent, a 6-foot-2, 240-pound bundle of athleticism and power who is one of the most versatile tight ends in college football. Snell can play H-back, fullback, slot tight end, Y in-line tight end, running back and has even moonlighted as MSU’s punt returner.
So when Snell was a late scratch before the Sac State game, to say Lonergan had big shoes to fill would be a gross understatement. Lonergan took a minute to find his footing playing H-back but when he settled in, he thrived. His second half blocking was a key cog in MSU rushing for 328 yards against the Hornets.
Against NAU, Lonergan had two blocks to spring long runs and also caught a touchdown during a two-minute drill as MSU scored on all four of its first half possessions. That TD catch was the first of his career.
Kenneth Eiden VI, defensive end, sophomore, Bozeman — Eiden was one of the most dominant high school defensive ends in Montana history during his time playing for the Bozeman Hawks. He was a three-time first-team all-state pick at defensive end and earned 2019 Class AA Defensive MVP honors during a career in which he notched more than 40 sacks.
The explosive, savvy 6-foot-1, 247-pounder has shown a similar penchant to rush the passer, rolling up five sacks and eight tackles for loss in a pass rush specialist role last season. This season as MSU’s third defensive end behind Grebe and senior Ben Seymour, Eiden has five sacks among his 19 tackles for MSU’s very good defensive line.
Casey Kautzman, kicker, redshirt freshman, Butte – Kautzman has been thrown into the fire over the last couple of weeks. The former Butte Bulldog replaced junior Brendan Hall as MSU’s field goal kicker after Hall missed half of his 12 field goal attempts, including a potentially game-tying kick at the end of Montana State’s 24-21 loss at Idaho, the lone Big Sky loss of the season for the Bobcats.
Kautzman hit a pair of field goals in MSU’s blowout non-conference win over Stetson. He has hit his lone attempt each of the last two weeks, drilling a 42-yarder against Northern Arizona and a 35-yarder in MSU’s 57-14 win over Eastern Washington.
THE CONTRIBUTORS
Lane Sumner, running back, senior, Huntley Project — Sumner was on the star side of this list way back in 2019. Since then, he’s battled the injury bug as badly as anyone. When he’s been healthy, the former Class B state champion sprinter has been dynamite. He scored a touchdown last week against EWU in his first extended action back this season after suffering a calf injury that required surgery in the first game of his senior year.
Sumner has five 100-yard games in his career despite all his injuries. He is the fourth RB in MSU’s rotation that also includes Wisconsin transfer Julius Davis, redshirt freshman Jared White and freshman Scottre Humphrey.
Zac Crews, defensive line, freshman, Missoula — Crews did it all for the Spartans during his high school career, catching a pivotal touchdown as a tight end in the 2020 state championship game to lift Sentinel to its first state title in nearly half a century, then quarterbacking the Spartans to a second consecutive state crown the following year. Crews also won multiple individual track state titles and was a part of a state championship track team.
Crews had a scholarship to Montana but lost it in the controversy that ensued when a racist private message he sent on the money-sharing app Venmo leaked to the public. He re-emerged at Montana State and has become a contributor the second half of his first season with the Bobcats. Last week against Eastern, Crews blocked a punt, had a strip-sack that resulted in a fumble recovery and tipped a screen pass that he then intercepted and returned for a touchdown.
This season, he has five tackles and 2.5 sacks in spot duty as MSU’s fifth defensive end behind Grebe, Seymour, Eiden and senior David Alston.
Caden Dowler, defensive back, sophomore, Billings — Dowler started his career as a safety and special teams stud but quickly acclimated to nickel back, rising up through the depth chart to earn the starting spot over senior Level Price, Jr. Dowler suffered a season-ending knee injury early in the season.
Paul Brott, defensive tackle, sophomore, Billings — The third Brott brother to play at MSU has blossomed into a legitimate cog on the interior defensive line. The 6-foot-3, 283-pounder is Blake Schmidt’s backup at defensive tackle on an MSU front that plays nine players along the line.
Brott, who helped lead Billings West to the 2020 state championship game where they lost to Sentinel, has 12 tackles, three tackles for loss and a sack this season. His oldest brother Wilson was a high school quarterback turned tight end turned offensive tackle during his Bobcat career. The middle Brott brother, Mitch, set Montana State’s record for consecutive and total starts, starting 50 straight games in a career that culminated in All-American honors as a senior in 2019.
Eli Aby, linebacker, sophomore, Laurel — The former state championship-winning quarterback has put on the weight and the mass to break his way into MSU’s linebacker depth chart. He enters Saturday as O’Reilly’s backup. He has five tackles and a TFL this season.
Neil Daily, linebacker, sophomore, Billings — Because of Danny U’s injury, Daily is also among the next men up. The former sprinter at Sentinel and West has transformed himself into a 6-foot-3, 227-pound specimen. He has two tackles this year.
Cole Sain, offensive line, senior, Darby — Sain grew up in the Bitterroot Valley, went to high school at one of the prestigious prep schools in the country and went to Montana right out of high school. He didn’t last long with the Griz, re-routing through the junior college ranks in California before transferring to Montana State.
He was a starter all through last year but had lingering effects from off-season surgery that’s kept him out all season. His final year of eligibility is this year and it remains to be seen if Sain applies (or is approved) for an extra year.
He claims his hometown as Darby, adding him to the Class C ranks represented in this game.
THE MONTANANS
Pat Duchien, quarterback, freshman, Florence
Bryce Grebe, linebacker, freshman, Melstone
Michael Armstrong, safety, sophomore, Bozeman
Tom Carter, wide receiver, freshman, Helena
Adam Jones, running back, freshman, Missoula
Colter Petre, defensive back, freshman, Helena
JJ Dolan, defensive back, freshman, Missoula
Jace Fitzgerald, linebacker, sophomore, Dillon
Cole Taylor, linebacker, freshman, Great Falls
Kade Cutler, safety, sophomore, Phillipsburg
Luke Smith, tight end, freshman, Bozeman
Ryan Krahe, linebacker, sophomore, Great Falls
Jake Vigen, defensive end, sophomore, Bozeman
Max Murphy, fullback, redshirt freshman, Billings
Everett Carr, offensive line, freshman, Bozeman
Aaron Richards, offensive line, redshirt freshman, Butte
Tommy Nilson, offensive line, redshirt freshman, Missoula
Burke Mastel, offensive line, redshirt freshman, Red Lodge
Jaren Perkins, offensive line, redshirt freshman, Bozeman
Jaden Perkins, offensive line, redshirt freshman, Bozeman
Holden Sampson, offensive line, sophomore, Helena
Elijah Reynolds, tight end, sophomore, Red Lodge
Jonathan Luhmann, offensive line, freshman, Florence
Rylan Schlepp, tight end, redshirt freshman, Bozeman
Hunter Sharbono, defensive line, freshman, Fairview
Talon Marsh, defensive line, freshman, Helena
