The Big Ten held significant allure coming out of high school for a talented kid from a small town in Northwest Montana. But for Luke May, throwing a javelin into a net for most of the year could not compare to spinning the pigskin and the camaraderie of a football team.
May, a Whitefish native who quarterbacked the Bulldogs to the Class A state championship in 2015, capped his prep career by winning his third straight state title in the javelin in the spring of 2016. He was recruited by every school in Montana to play football, but neither Montana or Montana State offered a scholarship. Minnesota did come with an offer, a scholarship to throw jav in the Big Ten against some of the strongest competition in the country.
May dove into campus life, attending Golden Gopher football games while staying in shape. Unlike most other track events, the javelin is only part of the outdoor season so May spent the fall and winter training but not competing. He missed the team aspect of sports, particularly all the intangible aspects of playing quarterback.
Former Whitefish standout Luke May / photo contributed by May
“The whole fall, I was watching college football and I went to a few games on campus at Minnesota,” May said in an interview with Skyline Sports in mid-July. “I didn’t feel right for me to watch. It took so long to get to track since it’s in the spring. I felt like my whole life, I’ve been training for football and in the summer, you work out, fall hits and it’s sports right there. It was tough to go four or five months without doing anything. I missed football a ton. Pretty much the whole year, I wanted to play football.”
Those yearnings eventually morphed into action. Last spring, May held his own, throwing a collegiate best 199 feet, nine inches in April. Weeks later, he won the Tomcat Twilight with a throw of 195-11. He finished 15th at the Big Ten championships in May by throwing more than 185 feet. But he missed throwing a football more than he enjoyed competing at the highest level of collegiate track.
May requested his release from Minnesota in May and began weighing his options. The recruiting process worked in reverse at first when May initially began the process. He reached out to both the Griz and the ‘Cats and heard back from each side. May said it was “tough to get back into contact with football coaches since I hadn’t played for a year.” He also said the fact that he was training for a Division I sport intrigued the UM and MSU coaches since it meant he wouldn’t have the rust of being out of shape.
By mid-summer, Montana and Montana State both offered preferred walk-on spots. May’s parents, Eric and Amy, went to UM . May’s grandfather, Buck, played fullback for Tom Parac then Jim Sweeney at Montana State in the early 1960s. Because what he thinks is a better opportunity to move up the depth chart combine with his childhood affinity for MSU, May chose the Bobcats.
“It was a little bit of a factor,” May said of his grandfather’s legacy at MSU. “I always grew up a Cat fan more than a Griz fan because he would want me to root for the Cats but my parents both went to U of M, so it’s not like I dislike the Griz. I just felt that Montana State was a better fit and a better opportunity for me.”
“I’ve put on some weight since college, some good weight, a little heavier,” May, who is up eight pounds from high school to 203 pounds, continued. “I think I for sure can fit into (Montana State’s) offense helping the team with whatever I can do. It’s all about the team. That’s what I missed most.”
Luke May
May’s last experiences on the gridiron couldn’t have gone much better. He threw for nearly 1,700 yards and 21 touchdowns and ran for 800 yards and 17 more scores to earn All-Northwest A honors for the fourth straight year. He helped guide Whitefish to their first state title since 1979 by beating perennial power Dillon 17-13 in the State A championship game.
The following summer, May continued to shine. He was the MVP of the Montana East-West Shrine Game and offensive MVP of the Knights of Columbus Badlands Bowl.
“I knew he was a great competitor, but he played at such a higher level when we played in the MonDak and the Shrine Game,” Whitefish head coach Chad Ross told the Missoulian in late June. “When you put other guys that were of equal talent with him, I was like, ‘Oh wow, this guy can play.'”
May played with and against future Montana State teammates Kyle Finch and Jacob Hadley in the all-star games and has communicated with each about his transfer. He also talked about the process with current Griz like Trase LeTexier and former Whitefish teammate Jed Nagler.
“The two all-star games over the summer, meeting a bunch of good guys and good players that are playing college football now, you play with them and know you can play with a lot of them and they are still playing,” May said. “That’s where I wanted to be. Winning that state championship, playing in those all-star games made me love football even more and that’s why it was so tough to leave for a year.”
The athletic 6-footer with a strong arm contemplated staying in Minneapolis. After a tryout with the football coaches, May secured a spot on Minnesota’s roster for this fall but not as a preferred walk-on part of the 95-man roster. He would have to wait until the roster expanded when classes began.
MSU quarterback Chris Murray /by Blake Hempstead, for Skyline Sports
Instead, May is now living in Bozeman and working out with the Bobcats. His general education credits from his freshman year should make his transfer smooth academically. Next spring if the opportunity arises, May said he would consider throwing the javelin for the Bobcat track and field team.
In the immediate future, May joins a quarterback room that features no player older than sophomores Chris Murray and Brady McChesney. May, who will have four years to play four, will be a newcomer to a group that also includes true freshmen Tucker Rovig and Callahan O’Reilly.
“I’m just looking forward to finally putting some pads on,” May said. “Camaraderie was the biggest thing I missed from football. Track was more individual. I’m looking forward to being part of a team and I’m stoked to get to work.”
Photos contributed by Luke May and family. All Rights Reserved.
