2018 BOBCAT FOOTBALL MAGAZINE —Review & Preview by MSU Bobcat Football Magazine

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Bobcat Football Magazine REVIEW & PREVIEW Publisher – FMFP Enterprises Editor – Cynthia Logan Art Director / Photo Editor Felix A. Marquez Ionut Oproiu Web Development & Administration FMFP Enterprises Print Design & Layout FMFP Enterprises Writers Jessica Bergman Jacqueline R. Berning, PhD, RD, CSSD Paul Burns Cynthia Logan Matt McLeod Chad Newell Coram Parker Brittney Patera, MS, RD, CSSD, LN Sales – FMFP Enterprises Marketing – FMFP Enterprises Circulation – FMFP Enterprises 2018©FMFP Marketing Group Bozeman, MT 59715 (406) 585-1205 This publication is owned and distributed by FMFP Enterprises. The 2018 Bobcat Football Magazine — Review and Preview is not a part of Bobcat Sports Properties (BSP), MSU Athletics or Montana State University.

From The Editor Welcome to the 2018 edition of The Bobcat Football Magazine—Review and Preview! As we enter year three under AD Leon Costello’s leadership, there are great expectations for Bobcat success, and funding has begun for a Stadium expansion and upgraded athletic facilities. We’re delighted to feature MSU President Waded Cruzado, who opens up about art and politics as well as her role here. You’ll find a theme running through this issue: the excellence of an education obtained from Montana State University, an institution that has been earning distinction throughout the Nation and around the world for everything from diversity on campus to research into biofilms and partnerships with NASA. We’re pleased to introduce three new contributors to the team: veteran sports writer Matt McLeod’s profile of Hayden Ferguson proves his professionalism par excellence; MSU student Coram Parker’s piece on the Brott brothers from a personal perspective is superb (this guy is going places!), and MSU graduate Jessica Bergman debuts with a foray into the Pony Bar (a tough first assignment, but we knew she could do it), as well as a portrait of Ralph and Linda McCormick, dubbed Mr. and Mrs. Bobcat by none other than our publisher! We continue to examine the role nutrition plays in athletics and sports performance, with an update from MSU’s first registered dietitian, Brittney Patera (did you know the Bobcats test hydration with a refractometer?), and some great data from the University of Colorado’s sports dietitian, PhD. Jacqueline R. Berning. Check out what the Broncos have on their Training Table! Athletic Director Leon Costello shares the Master Plan for an upgrade to Bobcat Stadium and explains the correlation between sports facilities and athletic success. Along those lines, writer Paul Burns delves into the history of the Bobcat Quarterback Club, whose support provides a crucial link between average and excellent. As usual, Burns’ conversations with coaches and players are both enjoyable and enlightening. Former Bobcat running back Chad Newell gives us a heads up on what we might expect from the team this season. It’s good news, based on a solid evaluation from a guy with first-hand experience. Professional Photographer and Publisher Felix A. Marquez is pleased to present this sixth edition of The Bobcat Football Magazine—Review and Preview to Bobcat Nation and the broader Bozeman community. We hope you share our enthusiasm for Montana State University and the Bobcat athletic program. It’s something we can all take pride in. Cheers—and Go ‘Cats!

Cynthia Logan

Bobcat Football Magazine - Review & Preview

Table of Contents

BOBCATS

58 9 Welcome Letter

122 Index of Advertisers

Facilities A Key Factor In Athletic Success

Dr. Waded Cruzado: MSU’s Tiny Dynamo Delivers Huge Benefits

Quarterback Club Provides Extra Incentive For Excellence

Prayin’ For The Team — Chaplains Offer Spiritual Coaching

Hayden Ferguson: True Blue and Gold

Meet Ralph & Linda McCormick — Mr. & Mrs. Bobcat

The Pony Bar — Riding For The Bobcat Brand

Troy Andersen: Versatile Bobcat A Standout On Either Side Of the Ball

The Brott Brothers — A Team Within A Team

Linebacker Josh Hill Exploits The FBI Factor

BJ Robertson — Energy And Passion Drive Montana’s Ambassador

Brian Armstrong: OC Sees His Job As Not To Screw It Up

Fueling A Football Team

Bobcat Fuel — Sharpening The Cats’ Competitive Edge

The Future of Bobcat Football

123 Contributors

Bobcat Football Magazine

124 Autograph pages

PREVIEWS 94

MONTANA STATE UNIVERSITY BOBCAT PREVIEW

WESTERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY LEATHERNECKS

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100 WAGNER COLLEGE SEAHAWKS 102 PORTLAND STATE UNIVERSITY THE VIKINGS 104 EASTERN WASHINGTON THE EAGLES 106 UNIVERSITY OF IDAHO VANDALS 108 WEBER STATE THE WILDCATS 110 IDAHO STATE THE BENGALS 112 CAL POLY THE MUSTANGS 114 NORTHERN COLORADO THE BEARS 116 U OF MONTANA THE GRIZZLIES 118 NORTHERN ARIZONA THE LUMBERJACKS 119 SACRAMENTO STATE THE HORNETS 120 SOUTHERN UTAH THE THUNDERBIRDS 121 UC DAVIS THE AGGIES 2018

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2018

Facilities A Key Factor in Athletic Success BY LEON COSTELLO, A.D.

“… the message we hear and convey over and over centers on maintaining our high standards of academic excellence…”

Early design concept for the Bobcat Athletic Complex situated on the North End of Bobcat Stadium. Credit: A&E Architects and Crawford Architects

Bobcat Football Magazine

When you study the greatest glories in Montana State Athletics’ history, a trend emerges. The Golden Bobcats, and the school’s resurgent football teams of the late 1920s and early ‘30s? The basketball success of the 1950s and ‘60s, and the great 1970s and ‘80s football teams? Three straight Big Sky Championships in 2010, ’11 and ’12? Track and tennis championships in the last decade-and-a-half? Each of those Bobcat success stories followed, or directly preceded, facilities expansions. Across college athletics, and from its very beginning, facilities have driven success. That’s our goal, our end game. We continue to travel the state thanking our great supporters and expressing to all Bobcats the message that adding to that glorious tradition is within our reach, and that completing projects within the Facilities Master Plan is our vehicle to that end. Interacting with our fans and listening to the reasons they love and support the Bobcats has been a gratifying part of my first two years at Montana State University. But the message we hear and convey over and over centers on maintaining our high standards of academic excellence and helping our student-athletes to achieve their athletic goals while excelling in competition. That’s not easy anywhere in college athletics, especially at the Division I level. At a university as competitive and committed to high achievement as Montana State, the reward for students reaching their goals is great and life-changing, but it isn’t easy. That is the goal of our Facilities Master Plan, and of Bobcat 2018

Athletics in general: to provide our student-athletes the tools to succeed during their time on campus and to establish the foundation of success in the years that follow, reflecting the values of this great university and objectives of the entire student population. The Montana State campus has changed greatly in my short time in Bozeman, and friends returning after years away remark that the campus’ transformation is remarkable. That has both driven and reflected the standards and achievements of generations of MSU students. And that drives us. That leads us through the process of upgrading our athletic facilities to match the beautiful new buildings on campus with high enthusiasm and great dreams. The fruits of this commitment to excellence are revealed with every passing season, with every class of students that walks across the stage in the Brick Breeden Fieldhouse with a diploma, with every success achieved by our student-athletes. One thing we know is that the process that leads to success is crucial. One key part of that process began as soon as I arrived. We constructed the road maps to our success, and to the facilities that will drive that success in our Strategic Plan and our Facilities Master Plan. These plans guide not only our operations today but our dreams and visions for tomorrow. That is where we stand this fall. Sharing our vision with stakeholders and supporters around Montana and beyond has been exhilarating and productive. In recent months we’ve focused on what’s 21

Overlooking the stadium within the Bobcat Athletic Complex will be coaches’ offices and conference and team meeting rooms. Early design options give flexibility to turn these spaces into viewing suites on game day.

important to the people who care so strongly about Bobcat Athletics, and we’ve built a foundation of funding that will lead to a great start on our facilities projects. Phase One of the project is symbolic of the values of Montana State University. It raises a building that will house our football operations in the north end zone of Bobcat Stadium, which allows the renovation of the southeast corner of the Brick Breeden Fieldhouse — the former football offices — into an academic center that serves all Bobcat student-athletes. These new spaces will also benefit all Bobcat student-athletes and programs, as it will allow our coaches and support areas more space and efficient time for development. This Phase positively affects all studentathletes and their programs — the reason it is priority number one.

when it served 30 students in Bozeman’s fledgling downtown, this University has challenged students, faculty and staff alike. The very first edition of the College Exponent Student Newspaper (as The Exponent was called back in 1895) cited President James Reid’s statement that the institution provided students ‘thorough and practical instruction in their scholastic studies’ and ‘that higher and

That commitment to providing student-athletes tools to meet their academic goals first and foremost has never waned. When you listen to President Waded Cruzado, that point shines through. Our new academic center’s design offers ample workspace to meet the rigors of Montana State University. The faculty at MSU demands the best from students and, for our studentathletes, who commit so much of their time to their sport and to serving the MSU, Bozeman and the State of Montana even beyond their studies— this expansion is necessary. I look forward to continuing to share our message, our vision, and our plan for reaching these goals. This is an exciting time at Montana State University, and it is an exciting time to be a Bobcat!

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Bobcat Football Magazine

Leon Costello’s appointment as Athletic Director at MSU began June 15, 2016. He says he was attracted to MSU because of its campus-wide commitment to academic excellence coupled with the tradition of athletic success. After observing countless games and practices, and through meetings, conversations and correspondences, the strategic and master plans formed, positioning the department for advancements that, according to Costello, “match the growth of this great University.” Montana State University President Dr. Waded Cruzado considers Costello “the perfect leader who has motivated and inspired” student-athletes, co-workers and external constituencies throughout his career.” Costello moved into Bobcat Athletics’ top

spot after serving six years in progressively increased responsibilities at South Dakota State. He became Deputy Athletic Director (2014-16) after serving as Senior Associate AD/External Relations (201014), helped spearhead SDSU’s massive facilities improvement project and was involved in sport oversight while managing the department’s external operations. Nine Jackrabbit programs reported to Costello at various times, and he served as hiring authority for six head coaches and 30 other staff members, serving as point-ofcontact as SDSU hosted several conference and NCAA postseason events. He managed the department’s digital and sports information operations, served as department liaison with Learfield Sports, and supervised production and distribution of radio and television content.

He was also involved in several compliance studentathlete services initiatives. Costello, who became interested in athletics administration during his days as a Division III student-athlete, entered

As part of the initial phase of the masterplan, the football locker rooms will be relocated from the Brick Breeden Fieldhouse to the Bobcat Athletic complex. Players and coaches will have direct access to Bobcat Stadium.

2018

Situated within the Bobcat Athletic Complex will be a state of the art hydrotherapy room with pools to help all student athletes compete at the highest level.

the profession as a marketing assistant at Northern Iowa in the fall of 2002, and within three months had become Director of Athletic Marketing and Promotions there. In 2005 he became Assistant Athletic Director for Marketing and Promotions, and in 2008 was elevated to Associate Athletic Director/External Relations. While his increased

responsibilities led him to roles touching all areas of UNI Athletics, his efforts in revenue generation stand out. Northern Iowa’s ticket revenue increased 168% under Costello’s guidance, and sponsorship revenue rose by 230%. He helped drive annual donations to the Panther Scholarship Club exceeding $1.2 million, directed corporate hospitality suites

producing more than $150,000 annually, and assisted in negotiating a 10-year, $9 million agreement with Learfield Sports. One of the crowning achievements of Costello’s administrative career is his involvement in all elements of the Sanford-Jackrabbit Athletic Complex ($32 million) and the Dana J. Dykhouse Football Stadium ($65 million).

Located adjacent to the new locker room will be a state of the art weight room for all student athletes.

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DR . WA DE D CRUZA D O MSU’S TINY DYNAMO DELIVERS HUGE BENEFITS “People would stop and say, Your president is amazing—I’ve heard so much about your university.” ~ DR. ROBERT MOKWA, PROVOST

ou may be surprised to learn that as a schoolgirl in Mayagüez, Puerto Rico, Montana State University President Waded Cruzado was in trouble rather frequently. The problem was boredom: Waded (an Arabic word meaning ‘love,’ chosen by her father) had learned to read at three years old at her maternal grandmother’s knee and, using a small blackboard and desk,

BY CYNTHIA LOGAN would pretend to be a teacher to her dolls and stuffed animals. At five she was helping her grandfather on his coffee farm and assisting her stepfather in the coffee mill he managed (as an adult, she appreciates a good cup of joe and enthuses: “I can tell you great coffee from the aroma). But the industrious little girl found her school lessons a bit, well, elementary. So, the parochial school she attended came up with a fitting Bobcat Football Magazine

punishment for her misbehavior: she had to read novels aloud to a blind nun. “I’ll be forever indebted to that nun,” exclaims Dr. Cruzado. “That experience taught me a love of literature!” (She would later graduate from the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez magna cum laude with B.A. in Comparative Literature). “All my life I’ve been associated with land grant universities,” says Dr. Cruzado, who was the

first person in her family to attend college. “Mayagüez is the equivalent of Bozeman in being home to a land grant university. My passion started there and grew.” She began graduate school at Purdue (another land grant university), but marriage brought her to Texas, where she attended the University of Texas at Arlington, earning her M.A. in Spanish Language and Literature in 1984 and her Ph.D. in the humanities in 1990. She later returned to the University of Puerto Rico, then in 2003 accepted an appointment as Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at New Mexico State University, also a land grant U. “So, three land grant universities have marked my life,” she states. Though Dr. Cruzado has a long list of accomplishments at Montana State, she is most proud of MSU’s growth, based on the conviction that the mission of the land grant university is as important as it was 156 years ago, when the Morrill Act was established. “We are called every day to do three things,” she says, holding up three fingers—teach, research, and reach out to the public. We are here to educate the sons and daughters of working families. I feel incredible satisfaction when I hear students talking about the fact that they realize the value of this land grant university.” And students appreciate her enthusiasm and vitality: “From what I’ve seen— and I’ve met her personally— she never lets anything get her down or depressed,” says sophomore Caitriauna Olson, a second year Hilleman Scholar studying Environmental Biology. “She’s always pushing for the positive and good goals.” Indeed, when she sets her mind on a goal, Dr. Cruzado goes at it with gusto. In 2010, shortly after

she took the helm, ten million dollars was raised in a record amount of time for a 7,200seat renovation of the south end zone of Bobcat Stadium, a project completed in just 10 months. Eight years later, plans are underway for a facility in the north end zone for operations, a locker and weight room, and coaches’ offices (currently located in the Field House), projected to cost $16+ million. “Once vacated from the Field House, there will be brand new academic facilities for student-athletes in that location,” says Athletic Director Leon Costello. The master plan came from discussions between him and Dr. Cruzado about taking a fresh look at athletic facilities. “He put together a group and had countless meetings with faculty, staff, alumni, fans and community members,” says Dr. Cruzado. “We asked: What do you envision for MSU in general and MSU athletics in particular? This plan is the product of incredible input and support.” While some may balk at a ‘big ask’ for more money for sports, Dr. Cruzado is quick to counter: “We welcome everybody to come tell us best practices, tell us about another school doing this or that, and we’ll consider it. We also have an incredible number of generous donors who feel passionate about scholarships.” She cites Jake Jabs’ gift of $25 million for the College of Business and the $50 million from Norm Asbjornson for the College of Engineering. “If there is an imbalance, it’s in favor of academics. First and foremost, we’re here to educate students and I know Leon is very aware of that. I’m proud of what we do at MSU.” Tact may be one of Dr. Cruzado’s greatest gifts: Holding what is arguably the most powerful job in Bozeman, she comes across 2018

with sincerity when asked about controversial topics. Case in point: should academic tests and legal documents in the U.S. be in both Spanish and English? “There is great value in learning more than one language, period. It opens doors and facilitates relationships. It’s not only the language—it’s that language will immerse you in a different culture and way of looking at things. Your brain functions in different ways [when you speak a foreign language]. I was just having a conversation with ceramics students who went to Brazil to help build a wood-burning kiln. To a person, they all said, ‘I wish we would have spoken Portugese.’ And that goes both ways. When I go back home I get bored; here I’m learning new words and ways to pronounce things every day.” Dr. Cruzado’s son, Dr. Gerald Mazo, a hospital physician, and her daughter, Brenda, a schoolteacher (and the mother of her two grand-daughters, Aurora and Celeste) live in Puerto Rico. All are fine, she reports (after Hurricane Maria devastated the island), though shaking her head and adding with dismay; “it’s very hard, very difficult there.” Meanwhile, here in Bozeman, Dr. Cruzado continues building bridges. Once a semester she holds a breakfast with staff, faculty and students, as well as with small groups of department heads. “It’s a fascinating opportunity for me to learn about projects they care about,” she says. Their opinions do influence the manner in which we operate.” And there’s the monthly Breakfast with Rob (that would be Rob Watson, Superintendent of Bozeman Public schools). “We’re in the same business, after all,” she remarks. She also hosts regular breakfasts with Bozeman Deaconess Hospital, the county commissioner, and 27

BOBCATS

the city manager. Provost Bob Mokwa recalls one of MSU’s oldest faculty members telling him; “’I’ve been here through six presidents and Cruzado has done more than the others combined.’ “I think it’s true,” says Mokwa. “She’s doing what a president should be doing—really championing the university and students. At a recent American Conference on Education in San Diego, I met presidents and provosts from all over the country. People would stop and say; ‘Your president is amazing— I’ve heard so much about your university. I was shocked. It happened time and again.” It doesn’t surprise Samantha Morris, an MSU sophomore studying Agriculture Education Communications. “President Cruzado has definitely been very inspirational to us students and she always loves to be involved 28

with any organization that’s on campus, whether they’re brand new or they’ve been established for many years,” she says. Dr. Cruzado is not only dynamically involved at Montana State: she’s also a recognized national leader. After the Boston Marathon bombing, she was tapped by the University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth to chair a three-person task force on the recruitment and support of international students, and emergency planning. “We looked into whether the University had handled it well,” she comments. “We met with the University Police, department heads, deans, faculty members and administrative officials, and learned that it is not dissimilar from what we learned as a Nation from 9-11. Sometimes the left hand doesn’t know what the right is doing. It is important for us as universities Bobcat Football Magazine

to build a cohesive system so information is flowing—that was our biggest finding,” she states, noting that nothing in how the University was operating made it susceptible. “Universities are complex organizations and it’s important to build networks; we need to ask, ‘how are we taking care of our students? What tools, mechanisms, policies and procedures are in place, so we can communicate and respond adequately’ [if concern is noted about an individual]?” Those components are well established at Montana State, she assures. Ms. Cruzado is also on the Board for International Food and Agricultural Development, a seven-member advisory council (appointed by President Barack Obama) that advises the U.S. Agency for International Development on agriculture, nutrition, and rural development

issues related to global food insecurity. “I had the incredible opportunity to serve,” she reflects. She was reappointed after her three-year term expired last year, so is still working on projects such as helping nations build food security and eradicate world hunger. “For me that’s an important mission, and the MSU College of Agriculture plays an important role in feeding the world,” she states, and expresses enthusiasm about MSU’s Sustainable Food & Bioenergy Systems program. She is proud of the improved quality of food on campus. “Any time, any day, come to our dining halls—you’ll see a lot of locally produced food,” invites Dr. Cruzado, who enjoys cooking (Puerto Rican, Italian, southwestern dishes, desserts— that’s my problem—I love everything!) and spearheaded

the renovation of the awardwinning Miller Dining Hall. “Interdisciplinary interactions help forge relationships with local producers, who can identify ways to increase production and profitability,” she states, adding that this will be expanded through MSU’s new Hospitality Management program. “Imagine the positive impact in the community! These academic programs are great; they give students the tools they need to change the world!” Junior Tyana Murphy, an equine science major in the preveterinary program and Phi Beta Kappa member is out to change the world and appreciates the fact that her university President “always brings in lots of great speakers to inspire us and tell us their life story and how they’ve

GOOD LUCK CATS! 2018

achieved what they have.” Diminutive in stature, this woman is herself an inspiration. A virtual dynamo, she is unfazed when the question of height comes up. “When my name was first announced as a finalist for this position, a local reporter called and asked; ‘Is it true you’re five feet tall?’ She is. On the nose. “Believe it or not, growing up I used to play basketball, volleyball, and ping pong!” She now enjoys watching sports—basketball, baseball, football, the Olympic games. How has she adjusted to Montana’s climate? “I always tell people that, honestly, the most dramatic change was to move from a tropical island in the Caribbean to the high desert— going from one hundred percent humidity to zero. Montana is semi-arid; I got used to cold

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BOBCATS weather quickly because we have so many sunny days. And the snow is beautiful.” She enjoys snowshoeing, but passes on cross country and downhill skiing. “You only get one pair of these,” she says, tapping her calves. “Besides, in my job I already go a hundred miles an hour, so I don’t’ ski.” She does enjoy taking walks with her dogs, Blanco and Lucy, and loves the performing arts, whether that is dancing, theater, or music. “I try to attend performances whenever I can. I love MSU’s School of Music and I love MSU Shakespeare in the Parks, as well as all the impressive shows produced at the Black Box Theatre,” she says. A member of the American Comparative Literature Association, and at least six other educational organizations as well as the Alpha Delta Kappa, Delta Sigma Theta and Phi Kappa Phi national honor societies, Ms. Cruzado has a passion for Latin American studies, and taught a course on the Magical Realism associated with the late Colombian author Gabriel Garcia Marquez. “It enabled graduate students to go beyond the concept that it is a Latin American invention; Magical Realism has roots in Russian and French literature as well,” she says, advising not to get her started on the topic, lest her zeal for it take us on a tangent. Where does she get her seemingly boundless energy? “I am energized by the students of Montana State and the mission of trying to improve their lives and the lives of their families through higher education. That is the honest truth. Being a president is a demanding, 24/7 job and it requires a sense of mission and duty to be successful. I get that from being around our students, from seeing both their successes and their struggles.” 30

Aside from donating money, Dr. Cruzado feels the most important thing MSU supporters can do is come to games. “Be engaged—come be a Bobcat!” she implores. “From that relationship, we can build incredible things. Bobcat Football Magazine

There is no replacement for that. Be part of the Bobcat excitement!” For an overview of Ms. Cruzado’s truly impressive achievements, visit https:// prolearningnetwork.cccco.edu/wadedcruzado

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Quarterback Club Provides Extra Incentive For Excellence “Giving back is the big thing.” ~ Keith Ueland BY PAUL BURNS

ack in early 2000, Mike Kramer was one of the hottest football coaches in Division I-AA. He had led Eastern Washington deep into the playoffs two years earlier and his teams consistently beat Montana State. So, when Cliff Hysell retired after the 1999 season, MSU actively courted Kramer to be the next head coach.

Compared to EWU, the Bobcats’ facilities and fan base were very attractive. Plus, MSU was offering him a substantial pay increase. A handful of Bobcat fans knew Kramer was entertaining attractive offers from other schools as well. So, they joined forces to sweeten the pot. The group, led by Rick Ogle, created a fund to help finance football Bobcat Football Magazine

operations at MSU. The goal was to raise $25,000 to help with recruiting, nutritional meals and off-season training; things that the football coach could use to entice bigger and better players to come to MSU. And it worked. Kramer came on board and used the money that the group had raised to recruit players like Travis Lulay, Kane Ioane and Joey Thomas. During Kramer’s seven seasons in

Bozeman, the Bobcats claimed three Big Sky Conference titles. That initial pool of $25,000 quickly grew to $100,000 that year as word spread of the new Bobcat Quarterback Club. Past presidents Larry Aasheim and Doug Alexander and current president Rick Vancleeve laid down the ground rules: $1,000 a year to be a member. That first group of 100 fans has grown to over 400 tried and true Bobcat faithfuls, and the annual contribution to football operations is now closer to $600,000. It’s not like the money was there for the taking back in 2000, but Kramer’s personality and his success got the bandwagon started. “It was just a good old boys’ deal back then,” Aasheim remembers. “When things change, people get excited. Kramer created

energy and people got excited.” Today there are chapters scattered throughout Montana and one in Boise, and the Quarterback Club looks to expand to Denver, Seattle and Minneapolis, wherever a lot of Bobcat fans live. For a chapter to form there must be 10 members willing to chip in $1,000 each on a yearly basis. Chapters in Great Falls and Billings are easy to create, but Plentywood? Keith Ueland heads the Plentywood chapter, some 500 miles north and east of Bozeman. He attended MSU back in the late 1970s and has been a Bobcat fan ever since. During the Rob Ash era, he was able to create a chapter that represents just about all of Sheridan County, which butts up next to North Dakota and Canada. Through a series of

phone calls, Ueland persuaded Ash to come to Plentywood to spread his Bobcat gospel. At the time, the northeast corner of Montana, like a good part of the entire state, was Grizzly country. When Ash flew into tiny Plentywood, around 85 farmers and ranchers showed up in blue and gold, Ueland says. Ever since, close to 25 fans make the trip to Bozeman for every home game. They tailgate, they see old friends and fellow Quarterback Club buddies, and, lately, they’ve seen the Bobcats get even with those Grizzlies. Ueland is always recruiting new members. “Giving back is the big thing,” Ueland says. “I feel good that I’m able to come (to Bozeman) and I’ve done some of my part to be here. I’m able to pay my way, so to speak. I always say that I come down to see some

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BOBCATS friends, and, Oh, by the way, there’s a football game too.” In addition to the annual membership collection, club members contribute in other ways. The annual banquet, silent auction and golf tournament bring in extra funds. A huge undertaking occurred in 2011 when Bobcat Stadium was expanded. It was reported at the time that $4.4 million of the $6 million raised to enclose the south end zone and add 5,200 seats came from Quarterback Club members, including a contribution of $250,000 from a single member. And this was above and beyond their annual $1,000 contributions. Just what do members get in return, besides a warm fuzzy about MSU football? Perhaps the biggest reason to be a member, if you’re a real football fan, is the weekly video conferences hosted by Jeff Choate, MSU’s head coach. After each game, all the chapters gather at their local watering hole and Choate enters their lives for a couple of hours. He talks about what went right and what went wrong the previous Saturday, rarely mincing words about his players’ performances. It’s a chance for Joe Fan from Havre or Kalispell or someplace to ask direct questions of Choate. It’s a virtual reality method of rubbing elbows with the Bobcat staff. A one-time complaint of the Quarterback Club was that the video session with the head coach wasn’t much different than watching the game on television. But that’s all changed with Choate, who tells it like it is. “Choate gives you the real skinny,” Vancleeve says. “It’s not just the public stuff.” Another important perk for 36

fans is access to each practice. Most of the time, Choate runs his practices inside Bobcat Stadium, making it difficult for other teams to spy on the Bobcats. Practices are closed to all but the most trusted, and the most trusted are members of the Quarterback Club. Choate is the guy who controls the purse strings. Once a year he sits down with the club’s directors and outlines the budget, highlighting his upcoming purchases, which always includes sending some of his staff to visit a Power Five school during the summer to learn from the big boys. “Our job isn’t to tell Choate how to spend the money,” Aasheim says. “But it’s a responsibility to our members to have some semblance of an idea how he’s using it, so we can feel good about it. We don’t want to say, ‘you need to spend more on this or you need to spend more on that.’ It’s his business.” After the annual budget meeting, the directors get out of Choate’s way, because he’s the coach and he knows best. “Our goal is not to be the boosters that say, ‘since we’re giving you this money every year, we want control,’” Vancleeve says. “We do not want control. We want to Bobcat Football Magazine

say, ‘here’s your money, you tell us what you’re spending it on and we’ll report it to our group.’ That’s how we do it.” Choate buys better video equipment and makes sure each player has access to an iPad to watch that video and to do his school work while on the road. He upgrades the training table so players will have more healthy choices. And, one of the nicest things for the staff, the money offers the ability to travel on a moment’s notice to visit a top recruit anywhere in the country. Those are all reasons for a young athlete to join the Bobcats, but it’s also a reason for someone like Choate to become head coach following Ash’s final season in late 2015. The amenities that the Quarterback Club pays for are some of the best in the Football Champion Subdivision, what Division I-AA is now called. “When I did my homework for this job, I don’t think I would have really pursued it if I didn’t feel there was extra support,” Choate says. “I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for them. It wouldn’t have made this job as attractive as it is.” The Quarterback Club ensures that Bobcat success is a grassroots effort. The group contributes financially, and

2018 Montana State Bobcat QuarteRback Club Board of Directors BOZEMAN Larry Aasheim Tanner Aasheim Cory Berkram Ken Eiden Bryan Hall Rick Vancleeve Tommy White Doug Kimball Phil Schneider BILLINGS Jim Bos Butch Bratsky Jim Halverson Rob Swenson BUTTE John Kreis FLATHEAD Greg Hanzel Dave Johnson GREAT FALLS Brian Loucks John McIntosh Kyle Juelfs HAVRE Gordy Thompson HELENA Brent Rehm MILES CITY Stan Markuson MISSOULA Wayne Capp PLENTYWOOD Keith Ueland LEWISTOWN Pete Moe BOISE Shaun Kochivar

Choate and his staff return the favor personally. Every year the staff goes on a tour of all the chapters. “They love to touch the coach and Choate is so dynamic,” Aasheim says of the relationship. “You really learn to appreciate the passion for Bobcat football,” Choate says. “It’s an honor for me, and it’s humbling too. You walk in (to a chapter meeting) and people are really excited to see someone from the Bobcats coming to their home town.” One of the strongest chapters is in, of all places, Missoula. Wayne Capp leads that group from inside his law firm, where the walls are decorated in blue and gold. “There are more Bobcats in Missoula that people realize,” he says. “It’s tough to be a Bobcat in Missoula. You’re getting ribbed all the time, it’s 24/7. Some of it is good natured, but it does wear on you after a while. You’ve got to embrace it, otherwise you feel like a little island out in the middle of enemy territory. Having that connection with other Bobcats who have the same pride and the same passion makes it worthwhile. We are able to come together and say, Hey, we’re not alone.”

student. Being in the Quarterback Club is money well spent, Capp says. “It lets me do something that makes a difference,” he explains. “You don’t just sit back and yell at the TV. You put your money where your mouth is. You make it better by supporting it and living it and doing it.” Which gets back to Choate’s point. “When they join the Quarterback Club, watching the game is different,” he says. “There’s a little bit of ownership. They want us to beat Montana, but they want Bobcat

football to be prominent on the national level.” After two seasons, Choate’s Bobcats aren’t prominent yet, but there’s a sense that they’re about to knock down the barriers that have prevented that from happening. The web site herosports. com stated that the crop of recruits the Bobcats signed last winter was the third best in the FCS. Having access to Quarterback Club money makes it easier for Choate to sell MSU football. “The Quarterback Club wants our student athletes to have the best experience they can have,” he says.

Like Ueland, Capp didn’t play football for MSU, but he did get his degree there and he met his wife while a 2018

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Prayin’ for

the Team BY CYNTHIA LOGAN

Chaplains Offer Spiritual Coaching

hile skills and drills are critical elements in winning football games, asking the Man Upstairs for a little help never hurts. For the past seventeen years, retiring Bobcat chaplain Will Johnson (who played defensive back on the 1984 national championship team) held 38

services Saturday mornings before home games, and the night before out-of-town contests, but not to pray for a win: “I had to learn that it’s not a no-no, but it’s not what you’re looking for—it’s praying for the abilities and talents of the guys to shine.” Johnson’s broad, easy smile lights up his face, and good Bobcat Football Magazine

will radiates from his demeanor. He’s relaxed and means it when he says; “don’t worry about the other guys, the battle starts here” (taps his head, then tips the brim of his Under Armour cap). “Will is one-of-a-kind. I thank God for his time with the MSU

football team,” says Deonte Flowers, who served with Johnson during the 2017 season and assumed the Chaplaincy this February. Flowers will continue the Saturday morning ‘Chapel’ services, and knows he’s stepping into some very large footprints. “Will has a knack for building relationships—and not just with young men, but really everyone he comes in contact with. His personality and presence give off a sweet aroma that draws people in and keeps them,” says Flowers, who is Assistant Pastor of College Ministries at Grace Bible Church and ‘teaches and preaches’ messages around Servant Leader themes. “Coach Choate is thrilled to have Deonte aboard,” says Johnson. “I am honored to see him take over and continue the work of encouraging and inspiring these young men to come to faith in Christ and to grow in their faith.” Sports Chaplaincies have grown in the past 20 years (there were 193 multi-faith sports chaplains at the London 2012 Olympics), and it’s not just players seeking counseling. “A lot of parents come to orientation with the kids now,” notes Johnson, was born in Los Angeles and lived in some rough areas (we’re talking Watts, Compton and West L.A.). He attended Compton Community College and transferred on a football scholarship in 1983, lured by a Montana State recruiter who showed up with a cigarette in his mouth. “I’d never seen a coach smoking,” he laughs. “I chose MSU because of small things that got my attention: community, people who were just kind.” On the recruiting trip, Johnson attempted snowmobiling, something he’d never done before. “I managed to wreck the snowmobile,” he recalls. “That fall the folks assigned as my ‘foster parents’ were the ones

whose snowmobile I’d wrecked! I felt terrible, but they couldn’t have been more understanding.” While attending MSU, Johnson majored in film and TV and, of course, played football. “When I came here I had a chip on my shoulder because I thought I was something I wasn’t,” he acknowledges. The coaches saw that I was very skilled, but my attitude needed to be adjusted.” After graduation, he returned to L.A. and worked on a number of music videos as Second A.D. “We recorded all these old rock bands, he remembers. “It was fun because I could see two parts of my life—before and after committing to Christ.” Johnson converted in 1989, when he was at a crossroads in life: “I needed to make some changes and bumped into a cousin the day after Thanksgiving. He was talking about Christ and I said; ‘I’m ready to do this.’ Those same people I ripped and roared with I was later able to encourage; that translated into the opportunity to work with the football team.”

“You don’t hover over the seed; you just allow it to grow.” ~ RETIRING

CHAPLAIN WILL JOHNSON southern California; he was raised in San Diego in a single parent household. “My mom did a great job with three kids; she instilled morals, but not necessarily Christian values,” he says. “In high school, as a student athlete, several situations led me to think about the purpose of life.” Flowers had a mentor in the Christian faith and, in his senior year of high school, devoted his life to Christ. Graduating from MSU in 2015 with a degree in mathematics,

Johnson had thought about staying in Los Angeles: “I did want to give back to the community that gave to me; it would have been easy to go back to L.A. and be out front, but that wasn’t my calling. Here, you just meet kids where they are and make yourself available. I’ve had the opportunity to encourage coaches as well, and the opportunity to be encouraged. I was fortunate to be mentored by seasoned people in all seasons of my life. I’ve tried to carry out what they planted in me. I’m a seed planter—you don’t hover over it; just allow it to grow. You give your best, then get out of the way.” Like Johnson, Flowers grew up in 2018

BOBCATS chauvinistic attitudes, but I think God can redeem people from that.” And, he says, “it’s important to look at what’s at the heart of that type of comment; it’s clear that there are things going on with them.”

he says coming to college in Montana was a big decision: “I wanted to get my degree, play football and be where I could grow spiritually.” He found New Mexico State “way too crazy,” and turned down an offer from West Point. “Everything was there; I could have emerged an officer and had my financial future assured, but when I came to MSU there was a guy on the football team talking about Bible study, and it just clicked.” Besides, Flowers enjoys the outdoors and loves to hunt. “My wife’s family made it clear that if I was gonna marry their daughter I was gonna have to pick up a rifle,” he laughs. Flowers’ wife Rachel ran cross country and track at MSU; the interracial couple knew each other threeand-a-half years before dating and are thrilled to have recently welcomed a daughter.

In 1991 Johnson moved back to Montana to marry his wife, June. He worked for Northwestern Energy as a meter reader, starting what would become a nineteen-year career. “I was in everyone’s backyard,” he says, noting that being someone of color wasn’t usually an issue. “One day, though, I was walking through a sub-division I hadn’t worked before; there was a caboose in the area and when I got to the end of the road a woman saw me and referred to it with a racial slur. I just said; ‘you might want to rephrase that comment.’ Ignorance you can forgive.” Flowers acknowledges that Montana’s culture is not a melting pot, but says he’s experienced inappropriate racial comments just two times in seven years. “I hope I’d be able to respond in a godly way,” he states. “Sometimes people have

"As the spiritual leader of a football team, I realize that not everybody wants a spiritual influence.” 40

Bobcat Football Magazine

Clearly, compassion is a prerequisite for being a chaplain. Besides patting many a drooping shoulder in encouragement, Johnson’s large, expressive hands have years of experience playing the bass guitar. Brought up with a jazz and gospel background, he ‘pours himself’ into playing, mainly at Journey Church, which he attends regularly with his wife and four children. Though his stepfather was a chaplain for the L.A PD’s 77th division, and though he was ‘raised up in church training’ all his life, Johnson never expected to take on such a role, and had no formal training for the post. “My mentors had a demeanor and I took a part of that,” he says modestly, adding that it helped prepare him for some intense situations during his tenure, such as the murders in 2006, committed by players recruited from California under coach Mike Kramer. “I went to visit the guys in jail. I’d never been in such a situation, and they lied to me,” he shrugs. “My job is not to judge, but to listen, and to plant seeds. Once, a kid came to see me after chapel. He’d lost his scholarship but didn’t go to jail; he changed his life and stayed in touch over the years, which is gratifying. But you can’t hover over the seed.” Another young man (it’s not always out of state kids, he notes) had trouble with drinking. “I said; this is kind of the end of the line. We talked through some things—turned out he was living under a name synonymous with success and he couldn’t live up to his last name.”

So far, Flowers sees his greatest challenge as reigning in his exuberant personality. “As the spiritual leader of a football team, I realize that not everybody wants a spiritual influence,” he grins. “I’m very outgoing and evangelistic, but we live in a day and age when not believing is an option. I need to be there for guys; be in the backseat and wait for guys to come to me.” Kind of like Johnson’s seed planting. “Deonte had the drive and determination to be one of the best defensive backs in the Big Sky conference and incorporated the same mind-set into building great relationships with his teammates and the coaching staff,” states Johnson. “I believe his transition into this position will be smooth because of his ongoing relationship with the team and the coaches.”

Whereas Johnson has mixed feelings on players taking a knee during the National Anthem, Flowers is decidedly not a fan. “I think you ought to respect the flag and what it represents,” he says adamantly. “There are other ways to make statements. It’s made people angry, so why not make the point another way?” Still, thinks Johnson, for those who mean it, it’s about caring. “Our country is divided. I don’t feel divided, but when you try to deal with national issues it gets muddled. Organizations get injured because of an opinion; it’s important not to injure. Kapernick may not work again… I need to mean what I say I stand for. I’m not going to argue about your point of view.” Heading into the 2018 season, Flowers is excited to be the

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ordained spiritual conduit for the guys. “Religiosity is very much a part of who many college athletes are,” he states. “Not only are guys trying to be developed academically and athletically, but also spiritually.” According to true sophomore Derek Marks, who plays defensive end, Flowers is off to a great start; “Deonte has had a really significant impact on my life. He has been a great leader… he’s helped me grow, helped shape me and helped me think through things when I need wisdom. I can’t express my gratitude fully, and I think many guys on the team could say the same.” Flowers’ takeaway: Have fun, use your gifts and talents and maybe get the win—but character is formed more when you lose than when you win.

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Hayden Ferguson: True Blue and Gold “The Guy is Still a Fountain of Information.” ~ M CLUB MEMBER GORDIE HAUGEN BY MATT McLEOD Players come and go. Coaches make the rounds. Some things, however, always seem to remain the same. Back when Hayden Ferguson first made his way to the Montana State University campus, a gallon of gas cost 15 cents, Perry Como's "Prisoner of Love" reigned supreme atop the Billboard charts and a fragile world embraced a weary peace, finally beginning the long trek toward rapprochement after the fiery cataclysm of the Second World War. The year was 1946, and it marked the dawn of an era that continues to this day. The then-freshman Ferguson, a grandson of Montana pioneer homesteaders and Harrison High School graduate who will find himself turning 90 three days before the Bobcats' third football game this season (a September 15 contest against New York’s Wagner College Seahawks) has been a fixture at MSU games for over 70 years now. And while Ferguson was resigned to watch Cat games from home during the 2017 campaign due to health issues, he and his wife, Marlene, once again purchased season tickets this year — and they have every intention of making good use of them. To hear Marlene tell it,

Hayden simply wouldn't have it any other way. "He's always bled blue and gold. There's never been two ways about it," Marlene says. "He's ready to get back to the Bobcats." Professionally speaking, Ferguson is Dr. Ferguson, a retired, highlyrespected longtime School of Agriculture professor at the university and a recent Montana State Hall of Fame inductee, who was so-recognized for his ardent, unwavering support of Bobcat athletics. Not too long ago, he joined the 2001-02 and 200203 women’s basketball teams, Vic Berra, Alira Johnson, Jack Muhlbeier, Neal Smith and Ray Willis in the 2013 consecration class. He's also a recent honorary member of the Montana State M Club, which recognizes MSU letterers and is chock-full of legendary contributors to the school's storied athletic program. When it comes to local standouts, it takes one to know one, and to be sure, one of them is hardwood hero Gordie Haugen. The 79-year-old Haugen, a former Bobcat basketball star and M Club member who earned his own letter in 1962, made a concerted push for Ferguson to become a member of the group. By definition, it isn’t common for M Club members to hail from the sidelines, but Ferguson’s honorary selection into the club was a no-brainer, at least according to Haugen. "I've known Hayden since the mid-1960s and he's always been a huge Bobcat supporter from day one," Haugen says. "He hardly misses a game, even today. It doesn't matter if it's basketball or football — men's or women's games. He's dyed in the wool. He goes to everything. He's always been such a huge, huge fan." Ferguson, who earned his Bachelor of Science from the university in 1950, and later his master's and Ph.D. in soil physics from

Washington State, took a job at Montana State in the fall of 1958, and, other than a couple of brief sojourns, has, rather appropriately for a man of the earth, stayed rooted, making Bozeman his home, with his beloved Bobcats never far from his heart. Not that he didn't have plenty on his plate. After marrying Marlene in 1950, he later took a one-year sabbatical from his post to work at the University of Wisconsin. In the mid-1990s, Ferguson went on to host the Sunday-evening PBS call-in show “Montana Ag Live.” His charismatic charm and easy sense of humor soon made the program a hit, and its host a colorfullymemorable mainstay. Along the way, he became a fellow of the Soil Science Academy of America, as well as of the American Society of Agronomy, and was the recipient of a rededication by the College of Agriculture — which rechristened Leon Johnson Hall’s room 246 as the Hayden Ferguson Soils Teaching Laboratory. He also spent time in Baltimore, where he was involved with the United States Atomic Energy Commission, a government agency developed by Congress after World War II to cultivate the peacetime development of atomic science and technology. By any measure, Ferguson enjoyed a long, respected academic career that kept him firmly at the forefront of his field, and, by degrees, busier than most. But priorities are priorities. And for Ferguson, that was clearly always the case. He and Marlene made time to travel around the country just to catch the odd game or two, and, looking back, he can still recite the details of his favorites. Ferguson revels in recounting the exploits of quarterback Gene Burdette that crisp autumn back in '46, when he led what was then Montana State College to its first-ever bowl game, a New Year’s Day contest against New Mexico in San Diego’s Harbor

Bowl. Burdette and company comprised the first MSC team since its 1941 squad, honoring the 11 members of that group who had died fighting in World War II by their achievement, which stood as a nascent harbinger of the newfound success to come. He smiles as he plays back in his mind the 1968 Brawl of the Wild game against rival Montana, when star sophomore MSU running back Paul Schafer piled up a record-setting 234 yards on 58 rushes for coach Tom Parac’s program, helping the Bobcats dig out of a late 24-9 hole to take the lead with just 12 seconds left on the clock, and handing them their third Big Sky Conference title in as many seasons. Of course, he was too young to watch the 1928-29 “Golden Bobcats” — a men’s squad which won the school’s first and only national basketball title a year after Ferguson was born. Still, he had the opportunity to see the old Brick Breeden MSU basketball teams firsthand — back before the Brick Breeden Fieldhouse came into existence, before Reno H. Sales Stadium had yet to be conceived. He was there at the 1976 Pioneer Bowl in Wichita Falls, Texas, where the Division II Bobcats defeated Akron, 24–13, and became the first Big

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Sky team to win a national title. Those were cheerful days for Bobcat fans, flush with the success of conference championships and the capture of titles that marked the blue and gold banners hanging from the roof above the floor at Max Worthington Arena. And, yet, there were lean times, too. Ferguson has had to slog his way through countless losing seasons and has experienced his fair share of rooter’s heartbreak, just as any fan worth his stripes. But always, win or lose, rain or shine, Ferguson has remained present and accounted for, perched on the edge of his seat at football and basketball contests, volleyball matches and track meets, as well as every other Bobcat event under the sun. And while in that time, time itself has taken its inevitable toll, he's still sharp as a tack, especially when it comes to his running record of Montana State athletics. "The problem is, my memory is the same age as I am, so I don't have the same recall," Ferguson says. "But I could still tell you some stories." And if his memory really is fading, he must have fooled Haugen, among others.

“The guy is still a fountain of information,” says Haugen. “Always has been and always will be. He’s seen everything.” A fixture of the MSU booster scene, Ferguson has never been shy about donating his time or money to a cause near and dear to his heart, whether it meant hosting a breakfast, lunch or dinner at the local chapter of the Elks Lodge, delivering a speech or emceeing a fundraiser or pep rally. He once even served as the official acting teddy burner, fulfilling his duty of lighting a stuffed University of Montana effigy bear afire at a tailgate party in the run-up to an annual Cat-Griz showdown. Call him an anachronism, call him a throwback. Whatever you do, just don’t mix him up with one of those fans from Missoula. He’s certainly no Grizzly coddler. “Once you got to know me, you wouldn’t make that mistake,” Ferguson said. “I’m a Bobcat, always have been, for sure.” That said, while he might allow himself a smirk in the firelight, he isn't one to bask in the spotlight. "I can't really tell you how it feels to have these honors.

Bobcat Football Magazine

I don't have the words," Ferguson says of his Hall of Fame and M Club plaudits. "I'm a little embarrassed, to be honest. There are others that have done more than me." In the current cultural climate of the perpetual news cycle, social media mania, live streaming and multicasts, Ferguson likes his action the old-fashioned way — in person. Of course, at his age, the prospect of taking long, cross-country trips is no longer a viable one. Still, if he has his way, Ferguson will once again be a fixture at Bobcat games, with Marlene right there by his side. After all, they’ve been around since the bygone days of decades past, when MSU football coach Clyde Carpenter paced the sidelines, straight on through to today’s Jeff Choate era. At this point, there's no sense in fiddling with tradition. "We've traveled around. We've done whatever we could, whenever we could," says Marlene. "We're both just avid fans. We've scheduled our lives around it. It's something we just did, something that we’ve always done, and we still enjoy it, so we'll continue to show up as long as we can, and we'll find a way to watch one way or the other."

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Meet Ralph and Linda McCormick

Mr. & Mrs. Bobcat “I was able to stay and live and work in Montana at a very good wage and not have to leave because of the degree I got at Montana State.”

~ Ralph McCormick 46

Bobcat Football Magazine

BY JESSICA BERGMAN

he morning that Ralph and Linda McCormick invited me into their home was a special one. They both greeted me at the door with the most genuine of smiles, and sporting Bobcat attire.

Before we entered their kitchen, they pointed out all the beautiful Bobcat paraphernalia that fills their home. Front and center was the new Golden Bobcat beer can Linda uses as a flower vase. Each of the objects holds a special memory, as some were handmade gifts from friends, and some were bought with stories attached. Ralph McCormick is originally from Three Forks, Montana and has been fortunate enough to never have lived outside the Gallatin Valley. He graduated from Montana State in 1957 with a degree in Agriculture, the first class at MSU to graduate in the Field House. He taught vocational agriculture for six years around high schools before working with the Department of Agriculture for 30 years. Both Ralph and Linda are extremely grateful to still be in Montana today. “I was able to stay and live and work in Montana at a very good wage and not have to leave because of the degree I got at Montana State,” Ralph says with tears in his eyes. “It’s just amazing.”

“It’s a good time to be a Bobcat. Coach, I don’t mean to correct you, but it’s always been a good time to be a Bobcat.” are honored by the ways they’re able to support the Bobcats today. When I ask how many games they have been to, they look at each other, trying to do the math before deciding there are too many to count! Ralph says he remembers a time someone asked him how long he’s had season tickets and he responded; “When did they build the Stadium?” They go to

every home game, and even try to travel to one or two away games each season. They buy the super fans tickets, which allows them to attend all football, basketball and volleyball games, and they even try to make it to the track meets as well. Even when they’re traveling, they try to watch the games on TV somewhere in the area. While Ralph says that football is definitely his favorite

Linda is originally from Roberts, Montana and had spent some time at Montana State as well. She believes that her love for sports came partially from growing up in a small town where athletics were everything. She worked in a lab for a while on campus before getting a job as a field representative for a former congressman. Because of Ralph’s job working for the U.S. government, Ralph and Linda’s paths eventually crossed. They’ve been married for 36 years and both share a love for the Bobcats that is a rarity to find. Ralph used to be on the Bobcat Board of Directors and, since then, the couple has been grandfathered into the Bobcat Club. They are also a part of the Fan Advisory Club, Quarterback Club, Boys 6 Man Club, and Girls Basketball Fast Break Club. They both speak with great pride and 2018

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sport to watch, Linda says hers is basketball. “It’s a little easier to bear the elements,” she laughs. Ralph recalls a time he was talking to former Montana State Head Football Coach Rob Ash, who said; “It’s a good time to be a Bobcat.” Ralph responded, “Coach, I don’t mean to correct you, but it’s always a good time to be a Bobcat.” He upholds a firm belief that the team should be treated like family and it saddens him when he notices Bobcat fans being fickle. “When your family is having trouble, they need more support than they do when they’re doing well,” he states. While the McCormicks of course like to see the Bobcats win, they also feel like the game should never come before academics; both expressed appreciation for how well they feel the coaches and staff are doing to make sure academics are the players’ first priority. Over the years, Ralph and Linda 48

have had the opportunity of befriending and getting to know many Bobcat players off the field and courts. They were a part of the foster parent program (which MSU no longer has) that allowed them to invite players into their home for dinner. Linda says they still stay in contact with some of the players, visiting them and their families and having them over when they’re in town. One particular player, Clamon Jacobs, would come over for dinner and Linda would make her famous cheesecake recipe for him. After graduating, Jacobs went on to start his own cheesecake business in Houston, Texas (now called Big Jake’s Cheesecakes), where he adopted Linda’s recipe in her honor. With how fast Bozeman is growing and attendance increasing every year, I asked Ralph how he feels about the growing numbers and if he’s noticed a change in the Bobcat Football Magazine

atmosphere at Bobcat games. He answered quickly, hardly even thinking about it. “As the years go by, the fans are more sophisticated than they used to be. In the old days, they were entertained, they didn’t know the game as well. Now they know the game,” he says as he explains the complexity of knowing and carrying out the different strategic plays. “As far as the football games, the atmosphere has increased tremendously,” says Linda. “Especially with the new end zone and student participation — it’s become really fun.” During Bobcat Football season, you can certainly find Ralph and Linda McCormick tailgating at every home game with the same friends they gather with every season. If you stop by, you’ll surely be moved and inspired by the love and passion Mr. and Mrs. McCormick share for the Bobcats.

129 e main st • bozeman • 4 0 6 .5 8 7 .8 8 6 0 • oldmaingal l e r y.com

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Riding for the Bobcat Brand BY JESSICA BERGMAN

“It goes right down to football and everything you do in life, keeping everybody together and pointing forward, becoming winners.” ~ Scott Lambert, Owner

he Pony Bar has an outstanding repu tation that reaches far beyond its city limits. Not only does it attract many for its remote beautiful location at the base of the Tobacco root mountains, but Scott Lambert, the owner of the bar has cultivated an environment that truly welcomes anyone who walks through the door. He’s a strong believer in community and what brings people together; and football

season is definitely something that does that. Every year come August, the Pony Bar fills for various football games that bring crowds of people. Bobcat fans travel from near and far to sit on those rustic bar stools and watch some good football. Since Pony today boasts a population of just a little over a hundred people, it’s hard to imagine there were once 5,000 residents during the peak of its gold mining days between 1870-1880. It’s a small, remote town now, in which the Pony Bobcat Football Magazine

Bar is one of the top thriving businesses. Scott Lambert, who is originally from Manhattan, Montana, moved to Pony in 1996 with his two sons before buying the Pony Bar in 2002. “Manhattan was growing so fast and I’m kind of old school, I thought I better get to some bigger country,” he says. “I can go fishing anytime I want and I have my horses right outside of town, I can walk off and be in the mountains anytime I want.” Before moving to Pony, Scott worked at a cement plant for 30 years just outside

Manhattan. Over the years, he’s met a lot of interesting people and has made many friends.

vintage beer cans are lined up along with various pictures, posters, and knick-knacks.

Ralph McCormick, who was recently named Mr. Bobcat, comes up from Bozeman every Tuesday to visit Scott and the Bar. Ralph is responsible for almost all the Bobcat paraphernalia up at the Pony Bar today, from the vintage jerseys hanging from the ceiling and the helmets stored away in the clear case. Besides Bobcat decorations, there are many other teams sported around the Bar, including the Dillon Bulldogs, where Lambert played football for a bit in college. Lambert welcomes anything anyone brings him to put up at the bar, and the shelves and walls definitely show that, as

On Bobcat game days, the Pony Bar is full of folks either staying to watch the game or stopping in on their way to Bozeman before or after the game. Every year, familiar faces Lambert has come to know make their way to the Pony Bar. Everyone is cheering for the same team, and that’s what Lambert likes about MSU. “It’s like riding for the brand, that’s what Montana is about; you know, keeping a ranch together with your hard hands and stuff — it goes right down to football and everything you do in life, keeping everybody together and pointing forward, becoming winners.”

hollering,” Lambert says. “You can feel the floor shake.” During Bobcat games, there’s some friendly betting that takes place and, overall, everyone is there to gather and be together. “We have fun, man,” Lambert says. He also expressed how proud he is of the Bobcats now, and especially the way Coach Choate is doing things; “I’m glad they’re keeping him around; he really cares about those kids and keeping their grades up — because academics is number one. Next is keeping everyone clear about drugs and drinking. I’m just really proud of them! Like I said,” he smiles, “they’re riding for the brand.”

Lambert says when he first bought the bar, fans were pretty equally split between Bobcats and Griz, but it’s mostly Bobcats nowadays. However, it comes as no surprise that the most rowdy days the Pony Bar has seen have been during really close ‘Cat Vs. Griz games. “Everyone just goes crazy with the screaming and

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Bobcat Football Magazine

VIRGINIA Crystal City Sports Club - Arlington

WEST VIRGINIA Kegler’s Sports Bar and Lounge - Morganton WISCONSIN Pooley’s Sports Bar - Madison WYOMING Prime Time Pub & Grill - Casper

BOBCATS

VERSATILE BOBCAT A STANDOUT ON EITHER SIDE OF THE BALL

Bobcat Football Magazine

“… The best thing about Troy is he’ll do whatever we ask him to do to help the organization.” ~ COACH JEFF CHOATE Most offensive players try their best to avoid getting hit. They want to be the hunter, not the hunted. That’s been true for most of Troy Andersen’s football career, first as a high school player in Dillon where he starred at quarterback, and then last season as a running back for Montana State. It’s not that Andersen didn’t mind the contact, but if you’re a ball carrier, you’re running away from the tacklers, not at them. This season Andersen may or may not be a Bobcat ball carrier. Back in the spring of 2018, the plan was to move him to linebacker, where he would be the one initiating contact. “I enjoy the physicality on defense. On offense, you’re the one getting hit, but now on defense, you’re the one making the tackle and I like that; I like that change,” the second-year Bobcat said. The change Andersen referred to was a little unexpected following the outstanding season he had a year ago as a true freshman. He rushed for 515 yards and five touchdowns, while catching seven passes for 45 yards and another score. Not bad numbers for someone who was recruited to play defense. “I did whatever they told me to do at the best of my ability,” Andersen said. But this fall, the Bobcat offense may need Andersen once again. The defense is crowded with newcomers like Dante Sparaco, Bryce Sterk and Daniel Hardy, while the offense is looking to replace the sudden announcement that incumbent quarterback Chris Murray won’t be in uniform this season. While the Bobcats have a handful of highly

regarded recruits and redshirts to replace Murray, Andersen’s name was quickly added to the mix based on his prep days in Dillon. Andersen got his first experience at running back during the 2017 Badlands Bowl all-star game, which pits the best graduating preps from Montana and North Dakota against each other. On the game’s roster as a safety, Andersen saw a handful of chances at running back. Bobcat head coach Jeff Choate watched the game on TV from his living room in Bozeman and liked what he saw when Andersen took a few handoffs. “We were short-handed at running back,” Choate said of the plan to make Andersen a runner. “But we felt like his best position was going to be at the linebacker spot.” Then, in the next breath, Choate gave away his hand: “Make no mistake, Troy will still touch the football. He’s smart enough. Troy’s very adaptable. He’ll play a more significant role on defense than a year ago, but we’ve got to get the ball in his hands, too.”

running backs a year ago. Nick LaSane was suspended for the first four games of 2017, and no one else stepped up to carry the rock with any consistency. No one else, that is, except the true freshman who was thrust into action in last year’s opening game at Pac 12 Conference powerhouse Washington State. Andersen only gained 38 yards that game, but the best was yet to come. By the time the season was over, he had been named Big Sky Conference freshman of the year and a freshman all-America. “That was a lot different than Montana high school football,” Andersen said of his first collegiate tussle. “But when you get out there and they blow the whistle it’s just football again.” Which is why playing defense after a season mostly spent on offense shouldn’t be too difficult; after all, it’s just football again. Except linebacker is not safety, his old high school position. At linebacker, “You read and react to the ball; you’re reading the (offensive) line,” Andersen explained. “At safety you’re back there seeing the whole picture. It’s all a lot more complex than what we did in high school.”

MSU linebacker coach Ty Gregorak watched Andersen in high school, a lot. He watched him lead Dillon to the State A championship in 2016. Like most great high school players, when his team didn’t have the ball on offense, Andersen saw the field with the defensive unit, but as a safety, where he would wait for the action to come to him. Gregorak saw Andersen’s quickness and size and saw a future linebacker. Then came the shortage of 2018

BOBCATS if I didn’t play football, this is still where I’d end up going,” he said. Andersen was highly regarded as a high school quarterback, but neither the player nor the coaches saw him playing that position at MSU. The Bobcats love to recruit quarterbacks and move them to another position. During the past signing period, MSU received commitments from seven quarterbacks. It remains to be seen where they’ll do the team the most good, but there’s only one quarterback versus three linebackers in each game. “I don’t get locked into a guy playing a certain position,” Choate said. “Those guys (quarterbacks) are usually the best athletes on their high school team. They’re pretty smart and good leaders. So, let’s get them on the bus and figure out what category they fit into.”

For the former high school valedictorian and current straight-A mechanical engineering major, the complexity of college football is something he can handle. Not that school comes easy. “It’s a challenge,” Andersen said of his chosen major. “It pushes you; you have to work hard at it.” Growing up on a cattle ranch north of Dillon, Andersen enjoyed working with his hands, but becoming a mechanical engineer was something he couldn’t have predicted. “I enjoy ranching and I think it’s a good option for me,” he said. “I like being out there in the fields and being your own boss.” Following a humanitarian trip to Poland in May to build houses with 56

other Bobcats, Andersen spent the summer in Bozeman getting ready for the 2018 campaign. So, for the first time in his young life he wasn’t helping with the ranch. It was up to someone else to mow the hay and alfalfa, which is used for winter feed for the cattle. His dad, Scott, is a college-educated engineer, and his mother, Nicole, is an accountant, yet both are ranchers first, continuing the Andersen tradition of raising high-quality, purebred Angus beef near the Big Hole River in the extreme southwest part of the state. Because of Dillon’s proximity to Bozeman and because MSU is a highly respected engineering school, becoming a Bobcat was an easy decision for Andersen. “I felt Bobcat Football Magazine

Once LaSane returned to the lineup last season, Andersen saw his offensive productivity diminish, but he made up for it by playing a lot more linebacker, backing up Mac Bignell, an allconference performer himself. “I don’t know that he’ll replace Mac’s productivity — Mac was amazingly productive over a long period of time — but Troy’s a pretty good football player in his own right,” Choate said. “Troy can do a lot of things, but the best thing about Troy is he’ll do whatever we ask him to do to help the organization to be successful. He’s a talented young man and brings a lot of value to our organization.” While there appears to be depth at both linebacker and at running back, the team lacks experience at those spots. Josh Hill may be the only returnee at linebacker as fellow 2017 starter Brayden Konkol is expected to return to his natural position of safety. In addition to the coveted transfers, the Bobcats expect

Balue Chapman, Grant Collins and Jacob Hadley back from injuries. “It’s a volatile position,” defensive coach Gregorak often says. “Not that every position on the field isn’t volatile, but linebacker is just one of those positions where you need depth.” Meanwhile, assuming either transfer Travis Jonsen or redshirt Tucker Rovig is the quarterback, Andersen could share running duties with Karl Tucker and Tyler Natee. Except Tucker’s a converted wide receiver and Natee’s yet another transfer, meaning only Andersen has any experience in the backfield. So, it would surprise no one if the ball is often in Andersen’s big hands. “We’ve got to be smart in how we use him; don’t wear him out,” Choate said. “But we only get him for

three more years, so we’ve got to take advantage of it.” Last season, the Bobcats took great advantage of Andersen in a blow-out win at North Dakota where, as a mere 18-year-old, he rushed for 131 yards. After starting the season 0-2, the UND win turned out to be the game that defined MSU’s offensive success as the Bobcats went on to lead the Big Sky in rushing, averaging nearly 250 yards a game. In reality, Andersen’s built more like a linebacker than a running back. While being 6-foot-3 and weighing 225 pounds makes him a handful to tackle, he lacks some of the elusiveness of the quick, light-footed type. “I can’t quite make the quick cuts those little guys can make,” Andersen

admitted. “But I have some mass and I have some speed, so I can run over some of those guys and it kind of worked for me.” Either side of the line of scrimmage makes no difference to Andersen. Both positions require a good deal of learning and studying, two things he’s more than capable of accomplishing. By all accounts, the offense was kept simple last year to allow Andersen to adapt to the college level, but now, if called upon, he’ll be expected to contribute at a high level right along with everyone else. Whether it’s offense or defense, he’s ready for it. “I’ve always been a competitive person,” he said. “Football has always been awesome for me and I love it. Once you get on the football field, it’s a different thing… it’s just a lot of fun.”

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BOBCATS

The Brott Brothers: A TEAM WITHIN A TEAM

“Growing up, our dad pushed us, made us realize the potential we had.” ~ MITCH BROTT BY CORAM PARKER It was one of those spring days when you can smell the dirt under the grass. Not too hot, not too cold, clear sky, no wind to speak of—in other words, the conditions were ideal for my first ever Little League T-ball practice. My parents walked me from the car toward the baseball diamond, where a drove of kindergarteners swarmed around the ankles of the tallest person I had ever seen. Coach Brott, 58

six-foot-eight, reached down and engulfed my six-year-old hand in a bear paw handshake, then introduced me to his two sons. The older brother, Wilson, was approximately my age, blackhaired, smiling and gentle. Mitch was blond and, if I recall correctly, chewing on his shirttail. He was too young to be an official member of the team, but that didn’t stop him from attending every practice. I didn’t realize it then, but I had just made three Bobcat Football Magazine

lifelong friends. That was almost twenty years ago. It’s tough to square my memory of the scrawny goofballs I knew growing up with the two musclebound collegiate athletes who join me for a round of beers this Saturday. They look like Viking warriors, hulking, bearded, and distinctly formidable. Together, the Brott brothers are a crucial element of MSU’s offensive line. They are, effectively, a team within a team, often lining up elbowto-elbow on the football field.

Wilson has led something of a nomadic career on the gridiron. In middle school, he and I competed for time at quarterback on our Little Guy football team. Wilson went on to play the position for four years at Billings West High School. Post-graduation, he made the bold decision to walk on at Montana State as a tight end, having never played the position before. “I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to make it even one year, to be honest with you,” Wilson says. “I remember coming up here, my dad told me, there will be times when you’re thinking about quitting and you can never give in to those thoughts.” Wilson took these words to heart. He spent his freshman season, 2014, as a redshirt getting familiar with the new position. But 2015 found him in transition once again. This time he learned to play left tackle and saw limited action in that role for two years. The 2017 season was when all the hard work finally paid off. Wilson shifted back to tight end and caught his first career touchdown against North Dakota. For his senior year, he’s been given a partial scholarship. Mitch discovered his niche more easily. At West High, he dominated the offensive line for four years, earning second-team all-state honors. Several universities recruited him, including Missoula. But with Wilson already established as a Bobcat, Mitch’s heart belonged to Bozeman. Besides, he didn’t want to force his parents to divide their loyalties. So, in 2015 he arrived at MSU on a partial scholarship. After redshirting his first season, Mitch received Freshman All-American 2016 honors for contributions at right tackle. By 2017, Mitch had become a starter and his scholarship had been bumped to full ride. The Brott brothers come from a lineage of college athletes. Their

father, Curt, was a Hall of Fame basketball player at Montana State University Billings, and their grandpa Richard was drafted by the Boston Celtics. “So, me and Mitch are really the first football guys in the family,” Wilson says. And their family couldn’t be prouder of them. “Our parents made every single home and away game in 2017,” Wilson says affectionately. “They’re great motivators in our lives, both in football and school.” Mitch credits his father for inspiring them to excel in sports. “Growing up, our dad pushed us, made us realize the potential we had. I think it's that drive that he put in us that allowed us to make that leap when it came to college.” I can’t help but agree with that: there is a grim intensity to Mitch that forcefully reminds me of his father. With the big stage come big pressures. “I’m a person who gets stressed-out easily,” Mitch says. “My first game, I don’t remember much of it because I almost blacked out from anxiety and fear. I know I made a ton of mistakes. I was constantly shaking the whole time.” Two seasons’ worth of experience has boosted Mitch’s confidence on the field, but he still suffers pregame jitters as a matter of routine. It’s something every player learns to cope with in their own way, he explains: “Some people have to scream and yell and some people have to sit there. Some people even sleep.” Mitch seeks solitude and silence, preferring to be alone with his thoughts. “I just picture the plays in my head and picture myself doing them right, so I have the idea that I already did them right and now I can’t mess up. Every game for me is about the same. Until it starts I’m full of butterflies, but after the first snap everything gets settled.” Wilson also rehearses plays in his imagination, and for extra-stressful games, he turns to music to relieve 2018

the tension. “I like to listen to some old country to calm down about ten minutes before we prowl to the stadium,” he says. The prowl itself is an important part of mentally preparing for the contest, not to mention the team’s oldest tradition. “The walk over from our locker room to the stadium holding hands; that’s something we’ve always done as a team, no matter who the coach is,” Wilson says. Having your sibling on the team adds an additional layer of moral support. “It’s brought me and Mitch a lot closer as brothers,” Wilson says. There are practical advantages as well. “A lot of times when I’ll be up late studying or something I’ll text Mitch at twelve-thirty, one, and be like, Hey, can you call me in the morning and make sure I’m awake?” Fatigue is something every college student struggles with at one time or another. For football players, it’s a constant adversary. “Not a lot of people understand that I have to wake up at five every morning to go to six a.m. lifting,” Mitch says. “You’re taking sixteen credits piled on top of twenty, twenty-five hours of football a week, getting sleepdeprived and most of the time being hungry. You can’t really tell someone what that feels like until they actually go through it.” Mindset is the key to overcoming the demanding regimen. “You always want to have that hunger for improvement,” Wilson says. “Always keep moving forward in your life and never dwell on something you’ve done well in the past or bad in the past.” “Making yourself a better football player comes more with the mental side than with the physical side,” Mitch says. “You’re going to play against people who are twice as strong as you sometimes, and you’re going to end up doing better than they do.” Wilson adamantly 59

BOBCATS agrees: “Your mind can really push you through anything,” he says. “Even if you’re dealing with a small injury or fatigue, you can just tell yourself that you’re doing fine and nothing hurts.” This is not an easy trick to master. Luckily, the team gets excellent guidance from head coach Jeff Choate. “Life advice, he’s the smartest person I’ve ever met, hands down,” Mitch says. One of the most important lessons he’s learned from the head coach is the necessity of being present in the moment. “You go from one game to the next, you never focus on the game after or the game before. That’s the only way that you can win and be productive in your life.” During Cat-Griz week, Coach Choate invites a different Bobcat alumnus to speak at every practice. The pride these former players show toward the program is part of why the annual matchup against the Griz means so much to Mitch and Wilson. “It’s the only thing I really look forward to each year,” Mitch says. “The rivalry is just so dear to Montana. You’re either a Cat or a Griz fan, and you stay true to that your whole life.” With so much pride and history on both sides, the emotional stakes are high, especially for the players themselves. There is a reverent tone in Mitch’s voice as he describes the atmosphere leading up to the kickoff. “Just running out of that tunnel with that many people, I mean, there’s nothing like it. That’s probably the happiest I’ve ever been,” he says. Both brothers cite last season’s home victory over the Griz as the highlight of their college careers. “After we won that game I think I blacked out for a couple minutes,” Wilson says, recalling the wave of gold and blue that rushed the field, tore the goalpost down and marched it all the way downtown to the R Bar. “I was running around 60

giving high-fives to everybody who came up. It was definitely an experience I’ll never forget.” On the flip side, Mitch and Will grow somber at the memory of the season-ending loss in Missoula in 2015. “That’s something that just hurt,” says Mitch, who was a redshirt freshman at the time. “Seeing all the seniors crying, and the doubt that everyone had. As long as I stay here, I never want to experience something like I experienced that night.” This season the Brott brothers are looking to take more leadership responsibility as veterans on the offensive line. “If I have an opportunity to help someone, a younger kid, or push them in the right direction and I don’t do it, then I’m just doing my team a disservice,” Mitch says. “Sometimes I’m hard on the younger kids, and that’s something that I took as a younger kid too. We don’t ever try to do too much, to where we’re pushing someone away from the program. We just want to bring everyone together, put everyone in the right direction and assist them individually.” Wilson says his experience as a walk-on taught him the importance of building relationships with newcomers to the team. “When the younger kids come in, the freshmen or Bobcat Football Magazine

transfers, I try to introduce myself the first day and tell them if they need anything just let me know.” When their football days are finished, Mitch and Will intend to put down permanent roots in Bozeman. “I think Bozeman is a great spot to live and raise a family,” Wilson says. He plans to put his exercise science degree to use selling orthopedic devices. Mitch, a construction engineering major, hopes to find a lowstress management position. “I just want to live a decent life, you know, not anything too hectic.” Like their father, Mitch and Will are avid hunters and fishermen, and both aim to devote significant time to their outdoor hobbies after college. For now, their number one priority is to savor every second that remains of their college careers. “I just want to sit back and take in every moment, because I know it’s going to be gone in a year and a half,” says Mitch. For Wilson, it is even sooner. “This’ll be the last time I get to play college football with my teammates,” Wilson says. “This’ll be my last time ever playing football. I just want to enjoy my time with my teammates and friends and just cherish it. It’s the best thing that I’ve ever done.”

BOBCATS

Bobcat Football Magazine

Linebacker

Josh Hill

Exploits The FBI Factor BY PAUL BURNS Take a look at Josh Hill. He could pass for a newspaper boy, if you still subscribed. Perhaps he looks like the guy down at the library, the one hiding among the shelves. Or maybe he could be the guy working retail out at the mall. The point is, at first glance, Hill doesn’t look like a linebacker. He’s a shade under six-feet tall. He weighs around 215 pounds. But don’t be fooled by appearances: the guy’s a football player. “I don’t have the natural ability of being the biggest or the fastest,” the Montana State junior from Kalispell says. “I have to rely on the mental side of the game.” Football IQ is a bit of a cliché. How do you measure that? What does it mean? Hill is the classic case of a football player who gets

by on his football smarts. But how? “I never had a player who understood angles like him,” says Glacier High School coach Grady Bennett, Hill’s prep coach. “He

knows what the offensive play is going to be even before the ball is snapped. How else do you explain the MSU season-best 17 tackles he registered for the

“He’s Just a Good, Solid Football Player with a Huge FBI — Football Intelligence.” ~ TY GREGORAK

was such a natural. He just got it. He has such great instincts. He doesn’t miss tackles. It’s an uncanny ability.” Hill puts just as much time — perhaps more — into preparation as he does into the actual game itself. He watches hours of film; so much, in fact, that he often

2018

Bobcats last fall against Eastern Washington? “When you say somebody’s an over-achiever, there’s almost a negative connotation to it,” Bobcat head coach Jeff Choate says. “But it’s really a compliment. While he’s not the biggest, strongest, fastest on the field, he’s one

BOBCATS From Bennett’s view, the team of choice for his graduates usually shifts with the winner of the annual grudge match between the Bobcats and Grizzlies. Until this year, that is. “Ten years ago, you couldn’t find any Bobcat material anywhere around here,” Bennett says of the Flathead region. “Now you can’t find any Grizzly stuff, but (Bobby) Hauck is going to change that.” Only wide receiver Mark Estes chose MSU over UM among this past winter’s high school signees. Four others went to the Grizzlies, as new coach Hauck has pledged to start hitting the state harder than his predecessor, Bob Stitt. “I know I will see Choate and his staff a couple of times a year,” Bennett said. “We never saw Stitt; it was just a different philosophy.”

of the most productive. He’s consistently a very good player.” It’s been that way Hill’s entire football career. As a younger player at Glacier High, he hardly raised eyebrows among the college coaches who flocked to Kalispell to see all the talent being produced by Bennet. But as Hill grew and came to understand the nuances of football, he became a highly decorated athlete, earning the Class AA defensive player of the year award in 2014 as the 64

Wolfpack went 13-0 his senior season. “He really makes us proud as a coach,” Bennett says, “He’s a good athlete, but he’s not a freak. He’s not a player who we said early that he’ll play Division I football. He really developed.” Bennett knows a thing or two about producing college athletes. A one-time Bobcat himself who later transferred to Montana and became a three-year starter at quarterback, Bennett has been sending his players to both Bozeman and Missoula for years. Bobcat Football Magazine

During Hill’s redshirt season, he was one of six former Glacier players on the MSU roster. This season there are five, with Estes joining Hill, Logan Jones, Brady McChesney and Tadan Gilman. “It’s like Glacier Southwest down there,” Bennett quips from the northwest corner of the state, some 120 miles away from Missoula, and over 300 miles from Bozeman. “I’ve taken a little bit of flack over the years. It’s like, ‘Geez Bennett, we thought you were a Griz.’ I want my kids to go wherever they’re going to have success. I’ll be honest, I want the Griz to win ultimately, but I want Montana kids to succeed.” Of the current group at MSU, Hill has had the most success. After redshirting, he played in all 11 games in 2016, but injuries limited him to eight last fall. He also missed most of this past spring’s drills due to a nagging back injury that seems to have responded well to surgery last April. None of that will hold him back academically. He figures he’ll graduate in December of

BOBCATS 2019, shortly after his Bobcat career comes to an end. A graphic information systems major, Hill does OK in the classroom, although it’s not how he prefers to spend his time. “It’s probably a little harder to get motivated for school than it is for football,” he says. “I study football the way I should study for school.” Hill is part of what’s expected to be a successful 2018 season, after two years of 4-7 and 5-6 under Choate. “You can look at the quality of football that we played (in 2017) and see we were a much better team,” Hill says. “Coach Choate’s vision is going to work, and we’ll be a successful program.” It was Bennett who sold Choate on the undersized do-whateverit-takes linebacker. Choate had just been named head coach and Bennett came to Bozeman for the state high school basketball tournament just as Choate was moving into his office in early 2016. The pair sat and talked football for a couple of hours and Bennett kept bringing up this kid named Hill. And Choate kept saying, ‘Yeah, but he’s not particularly fast or strong.’ “I told him, ‘the one kid I guarantee will play for you is Josh Hill,’” Bennett recalls. “All college coaches hear that from high school coaches, but a year later Choate said to me, ‘You’re totally right about Josh Hill.’” “Some guys just have it,” Choate says. “I don’t know any other way to say that: the great ones just know.” And it’s not just shedding blockers and making tackles. Hill has two interceptions to his credit, including one in 2016 that helped the Bobcats defeat the Grizzlies. “He’s got great anticipation, which comes from his preparation,” Choate says. “There’s a lot of things that allow you to be one step 66

of heralded recruits crowd the position, which should be the strength of what’s expected to be the stingiest defense in the Big Sky Conference. Hill and Brayden Konkol are the returnees this fall, after all-conference pick Mac Bignell graduated. “I think we’ve got some good young talent,” defensive coordinator Ty Gregorak says. “We’ve got a couple of old dogs in Josh and Brayden. Josh is probably one of our smallest linebackers, but Josh is one of our smartest linebackers. He’s just a good, solid football player with a huge FBI, football intelligence.”

ahead when the ball is snapped, and that’s what Josh gets.” The Bobcats beat the Grizzlies again last year, which helps unite Hill and Choate, part of a handful of Bobcats who have never lost to Montana. “It’s super satisfying, beating your rival like that,” Hill says. “That’s what everyone in the state of Montana talks about.” While redshirting in 2015, Hill didn’t always enjoy the afterseason trips back to Kalispell due to UM beating the Bobcats that season. “Now they don’t have a whole lot to say about the Cat-Griz game back home.” But two wins over the Grizzlies in back-to-back season finales aren’t enough to satisfy the Bobcats. “It’s a great feeling beating the Griz, but it would have been a greater feeling to play that next week (in the playoffs) instead of watching from the couch,” Hill says. The Bobcats are loaded at linebacker this season. Fellow Glacier standout Gilman had an excellent spring and a couple Bobcat Football Magazine

While he always wants his players to be healthy, not having Hill or Konkol for spring drills didn’t particularly trouble Gregorak. Hill had the back issue and Konkol was bothered by a shoulder injury, but both are proven players, and their injuries allowed youngsters like Walker Cozzie to get some attention. “Those two are going to work hard to get back,” Gregorak says of Hill and Konkol. “They’re going to be alright because they’re such savvy football players.” As a matter of fact, those two were the only Bobcats to reach double digits in tackles twice during the 2017 season. Hill is ready for the challenge that the newcomers bring to his position. Ever since he arrived, Choate has pledged to get a bigger, faster version of Hill, but so far Hill’s smarts have proven to be superior to anyone else’s athleticism. “Choate told me last year, ‘we’re going to recruit to out-athlete you,’” Hill says. “He knows what he’s going to get from me day in and day out.” It’s the same thing Bennett got from him back in high school. “He’s a great competitor,” Bennett says. “He hates to lose, and he plays his tail off.”

BOBCATS

EN ER G Y & PA S SI O N D R I V E ‘ M O N TA N A’ S A M B A S S A D O R ’ “… Nobody has any more passion for Montana and Montana kids than BJ” ~ COACH JEFF CHOATE BY PAUL BURNS Before a player ever takes the field for the Montana State football team, he played in high school, and if it was a high school in Montana, BJ Robertson knew all about him. Robertson knew the player’s parents, knew his teachers and coaches and knew what kind of a student he was. Robertson probably even knew how the kid liked his eggs cooked for breakfast. That’s how close Robertson is to Montana recruits. There are no stones left unturned when it comes to deciding if a player will fit in at MSU, not just athletically, but academically as well. In fact, to Robertson, academics are why someone should play for the Bobcats. Before he sells a kid on the chance to wear the blue and gold, he sells the kid on a chance to get an education from the state’s premier 68

Bobcat Football Magazine

institution of higher learning. “What can you do for them for the next 40 or 50 years, not just the next four or five,” Robertson says of his duty as the Bobcats’ director of high school relations. “I tell kids that it’s an investment, and there’s no better investment you can make than in yourself.” So, Robertson scours the state looking for talented students who can also play football. He cultivates connections with the state’s high school coaches to ensure the Bobcats get the best and the brightest. “It starts with the relationships,” he says of the recruiting process. “It’s a people business. They say you don’t win with Xs and Os, you win with Jimmies and Joes.” Robertson taps into his database of coaches to learn about a player: his background, his home life, his study habits. “We have to rely on them (coaches). They see them every day. They know them inside and out. That’s the big thing, just building those relationships.” And it turns out high school coaches love to have Robertson on their campus. It’s an honor to have a player that MSU is considering, and when the pied-piper of the Bobcats comes calling, everyone gets excited. “He’s our statewide ambassador,” MSU head coach Jeff Choate says. “He’s got a great deal of energy and is just a very positive person.” Robertson’s been on Choate’s MSU staff from the beginning. He was a successful head coach at Montana Western for three years, compiling a 17-14 record before Choate came calling in early 2016. Robertson played at Western in the mid-1990s with MSU offensive coordinator Brian Armstrong, and Choate himself was a player at the Dillon school back in the late 1980s. “What really attracted me about the idea of BJ having

this role, was nobody has any more passion for Montana and Montana kids than BJ,” Choate says. “I’ve always been blown away by his energy. He’s just got a passion for life. I just don’t know if the guy’s ever had a bad day. Players really connect with him and love playing for him.” Robertson sends coveted high school players seasonal updates on how MSU is doing and, just as importantly, digital pats on the back when a player has a successful game. It’s important for the player to know the Bobcats are paying attention. It’s all about Choate’s mantra of Beat the Sky, Own the State. Owning the state is more than beating the Grizzlies, something Choate has done in each of his first two seasons at MSU. It also means getting the best preps in the state to play for the Bobcats. So, Robertson sends texts and emails to players to let them know their efforts are being noticed in Bozeman. High school coaches aren’t fools; they know which programs are the best fit for their players. “They’re on the cusp of something great,” says Grady Bennett of Glacier High in Kalispell. 2018

“BJ’s done a fantastic job.” Robertson’s love for all things Montana is so great that if Choate’s strategy didn’t include hitting the state hard, Robertson may not have joined the staff. “The heart and soul of our team will always be from Montana, and then we’ll get our arms and legs from out of state,” Robertson says of the team’s anatomy. “Working for a guy (Choate) that believes in Montana kids: kind of blue collar, and coach talks about the ‘blue collar gold standard,’ that’s what Montanans pride themselves on.” Robertson, who turns 44-yearsold just prior to the Bobcats’ visit to South Dakota State this fall, was a high school standout himself back in his Twin Bridges days. “Who doesn’t want to be a Bobcat? I know I did, but they never called me to come play,” he says. In some ways, Robertson has come full circle: now he’s the one who comes calling, leaving no doorbell unrung. “If I could come (to MSU) to help coach, that would be awesome.” “I know it’s easy to coach the cream of the crop, but there are guys like me out there where my 69

BOBCATS kicking duty this season. “The crazy thing about specialists, you trot out there and you are cheered or jeered on a limited number of snaps,” Robertson says. “It’s such an interesting position. I understand why they have to be unique people. You have to have a unique personality to want to take on that role.” The Bobcats do benefit from the return of Jered Padmos, an allconference punter last season.

coaches made me feel I was better than what I was,” he says. “If I could make guys feel half as good as my coaches made me feel, I could pay it back,” he says of the early days of his coaching career. Following his playing days, Robertson, whose initials stand for Bennie John, got a job teaching and coaching six-man football in Rapelje, a small Montana farming community that isn’t really close to anything. It was an eye-opening experience. “My passion for football didn’t necessarily match the kids I was coaching,” he remembers. “Not that they weren’t passionate about things.” One season his team lost in the playoffs; a tough pill to swallow. Robertson was sure his team had the potential to make a deep run in the playoffs the following year. “I knew we could beat those guys if we went to camps and spent a little more summer time training, but the kids were farming and rodeoing (in the summer). I realized I needed to be somewhere that was as passionate about football as I was.” So, he elected to hone his skills at tiny Rockford College, a Division 70

III school in Illinois. After five years there, he headed back west for a single season at Southern Oregon. When Armstrong became the head coach at Rocky Mountain College in Billings in 2009, he hired Robertson as an assistant. “I felt bad about leaving Southern Oregon after one year, but I said, ‘Let me get this straight: doing what I love in the state I love?’ No brainer,” he says. From Billings, it was back to Dillon as the Western Montana head coach, and now he’s firmly entrenched in all things Bobcat. His duties at MSU include special teams; punts, field goals and kickoffs. “The one thing about BJ is he is a jack-of-all-trades,” Choate says. “He brings energy, no matter what. Part of BJ’s value is he can coach a lot of things.” Kickers are a unique group. They may only be on the field for a few plays a game, yet they’re expected to remain alert and warmed up, ready for anything, like last fall when Gabe Peppenger kicked a 27-yard field goal as time expired to give MSU the win at Northern Colorado, 27-24. New recruit Tristan Bailey, a junior who played last fall at Coffeyville Community College in Kansas is taking on Bobcat Football Magazine

But it’s recruiting that really gets Robertson excited. As a seller of what MSU has to offer, he’s in tune with campus-wide comings and goings. “The campus is vibrant; new engineering building, new cafeterias, new dorms. The vibe around Bozeman is it’s an awesome time to be a part of Montana State because it’s so vibrant. There’s so much going on and people want to be a part of it.” When his coaching days are over, Robertson could work for the Bozeman Chamber of Commerce. “The quality of living in Bozeman; what do you want to do? Do you want to go skiing? Where do you want to go, 20 minutes that way or 40 minutes the other way?” he says. “Do you want to go fishing? What kind of fishing do you want to do? Do you want to go 20 minutes that way or 40 minutes the other way? The quality of life, the quality of education, the pace of life, the safety.” With no family of his own, Robertson is married to his job, which means that his inlaws and cousins are the state’s coaching community. “When people ask me about kids, I laugh and say, When the season starts we have 104 of them.” And those 104 kids are playing for the Bobcats because Robertson sold them on Bozeman and the value of a good education.

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BOBCATS

BRIAN ARMSTRONG

Offensive Coordinator Sees His Job As ‘Not To Screw It Up’

BY PAUL BURNS

cursory look at the Montana State Bobcats in 2017 and it doesn’t appear that they were too much better than in 2016. After all, the first year of the Jeff Choate era, the Bobcats went 4-7. Last season they were 5-6. Nothing to get excited about, right? But a cursory look doesn’t tell the whole story about how much better the Bobcats were in Choate’s second season. Yes, there was only one more win than the season before. Yes, the

after going 9-13 in his first two seasons. Which is something, considering that over in Missoula, the previous Montana coach was run out of town after going 21-14 in three seasons. Why the love in Bozeman? Mainly because the Bobcats faced much tougher competition last season compared to the prior one. They started the season with a loss at Washington State of the Pac 12 Conference and, before the dust finally settled on the thumping of Montana in game 11, four 2017 opponents

“He’s good at finding the hot hand. But the evolution continues, and we have to make strides in the passing game.” ~ COACH JEFF CHOATE offense averaged 25.6 points per game in 2016, a number that declined by a hair last season to 25.3. And yet, the Bobcats were so much better against a ridiculous schedule that the citizens of Bozeman are ready to make Choate the mayor 72

advanced to the FCS playoffs. While it’s doubtful the city of Bozeman will change mayors any time soon, there’s still a lot of work to be done before MSU joins those other teams in the playoffs. “We were in every game we played except for Washington Bobcat Football Magazine

State,” says MSU’s offensive coordinator Brian Armstrong. “But we were 5-6; we don’t have a whole lot of laurels to rest on.” The bulk of the offense’s successes and failures falls on Armstrong, who is entering his second season as the team’s offensive coordinator. Armstrong, who turns 45 years old two days after the Bobcats play at Portland State this fall, came to MSU with Choate following the 2015 season when then-coach Rob Ash and his staff were let go. Courtney Messingham was the offensive coordinator during that first season at MSU, while Armstrong was in charge of the offensive line. Now that Messingham is calling plays for defending national champion North Dakota State, Armstrong’s the guy in charge of the offense. “We’re making progress,” Armstrong says. The personnel are still young, and players’ positions are still unsettled. But, “we’re farther along than last year. My job is not to screw it up, and I try my best not to screw it up.” This season Armstrong’s offense will feature a revamped backfield with plenty of unknowns. With the unexpected departure of two-year starter Chris Murray,

who will play quarterback for MSU won’t be decided until late in fall camp. It could be Troy Andersen, who guided Dillon to the 2016 Montana State A title as a signal caller. Or it could be redshirt Tucker Rovig or transfer Travis Jonsen. None of the three have ever played quarterback for MSU. Or, Andersen could be the starter at running back, as he was for much of the 2017 season after Nick LaSane missed six games due to off-field issues. If not Andersen, who spent most of the spring learning how to play linebacker, the bulk of the running chores could come from Indiana transfer Tyler Natee or converted wide receiver Karl Tucker. “We want to run the football and we’ve done a fairly good job at that,” Armstrong says. “For a myriad of reasons, that hasn’t led to

more wins. Yet.” Also, Armstrong is high on incoming freshmen runners Sherrod White and Isaiah Ifanse, but one or both could redshirt this fall. The Bobcats led the Big Sky Conference in rushing last year, but the passing game was a different matter. “We made some steps throwing the football, but we’re not where we need to be. That’s something we need to do more,” Armstrong says. The bottom line is, “we need to score more points. That’s the job of the offense, to score points.” Had the Bobcats been more careful with the football last season, they might have scored more points. Going into the 2017 season, “My charge to him was, ‘let’s take better care of the ball, and let’s get better on third downs,’” Choate says. 2018

“We improved dramatically in those areas. We were very good in the red zone under Courtney, but ironically, not as good last year.” MSU turned the ball over 12 times in 2017, but six of those occurred in the red zone. “When you break it down to the nuts and bolts of it, we want to have a solid run game, establish the run, and then after that (pass) the ball to our playmakers in open space,” Armstrong says. Just who those playmakers in open space will be remains to be seen. Last season’s top two receivers are unavailable: Mitch Herbert graduated, and Jabarri Johnson blew out his knee during spring action and is expected to miss the entire season, which leaves Kevin Kassis as the top receiver from a year ago, and he only hauled in 21 passes. 73

BOBCATS But Armstrong has a history of guiding teams that throw the ball well. Prior to landing in Bozeman, he was the head coach at Rocky Mountain College in Billings for seven seasons, where he twice was named the Frontier Conference coach of the year and had two quarterbacks throw for over 10,000 career yards. That success has not yet been seen at MSU. “It’s not that we can’t throw the football, but when you’re kind of in a groove and able to run the ball, it makes it a little bit easier,” Armstrong says. Whoever takes over at quarterback this fall, the Bobcats shouldn’t see any dropoff in the passing game. The question is, will they still be able to run the football? Choate wants the Bobcats to be more balanced, but he’s OK with the offensive results so far. “He learned a lot and grew a lot as a coach,” Choate says of Armstrong. “I think he did a nice job at using what (Murray) did well; he’s good at finding the hot hand. But the evolution continues, and we have to make strides in the passing game.”

Choate and Armstrong first met while Choate was an assistant coach and Armstrong an NAIA all-America offensive lineman at Montana-Western in Dillon back in the mid-1990s. After his playing days were over, but before he graduated, Armstrong got married and then was offered a spot as a student assistant with the Bulldogs in 1996. According to his father David, Armstrong initially declined the offer to become a student assistant, but head coach Nels Kludt persisted. After being asked again and again, Armstrong finally became a football coach, something he’s never stopped being. After two seasons at UMW, Armstrong bounced around with various programs, which is typical of young coaches finding their way, making connections and learning the trade. He spent time teaching high school in Utah and then it was back to Montana in Townsend, much to the delight of his parents, who still live in Helena. One day Armstrong called his folks and said he was taking a job in Lakeland. David

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was confused, he assumed it was somewhere in Montana, but he’d never heard of a town called Lakeland in the Treasure State. Turned out to be Florida. Eventually, Armstrong and Choate reunited as part of Mick Dennehy’s staff at Utah State in 2003. Not surprisingly, Dennehy, too, had UMW connections: his first head college coaching job was in Dillon in the late 1980s, where a rising young linebacker named Jeff Choate played for him. All those Montanans on the staff is by design, according to Choate. “It’s two-fold,” he says. “One is having guys that have that kind of connectivity to Montana. The other is getting people I know and trust. It just so happens a lot of those people are from Montana. Maybe that’s one of the reasons I was a good fit here at Montana State.” After Dennehy’s staff was fired at Utah State, it was back to Florida (again, to the dismay of his parents) for Armstrong, before Rocky Mountain offered him a spot on David Reeves’ staff. Illustrating how small the circle of coaching can be, Reeves and Armstrong knew each other from their days coaching together at Utah State. Further, following his playing days in Bozeman, Bobcat legend Sonny Holland was also part of the UMW (it was called Western Montana in those days) coaching tree in the late 1960s, prior to returning to MSU as a coach. The brotherhood of college coaching is unique, but Armstrong never saw it coming. After graduating from Helena High and later UMW, “my goal was to be a Double A head coach (in Montana),” he says. “I thought if I could ever get to be a Double A head coach, I would be bigtime. And it’s crazy how things worked. I am really blessed to have the opportunity that I have here — and I don’t take it lightly.”

BOBCATS

FUELING A FOOTBALL TEAM BY JACQUELINE R. BERNING, PHD, RD, CSSD

 Despite the fact that many football players focus their dietary intake on large amounts of protein, at the expense of carbohydrates, their repeated bouts of high-intensity movements throughout a game are dependent upon muscle glycogen and ultimately carbohydrate intake.  Kilocalorie requirements for players are based upon

multiple factors, including body composition, height, weight and position on the football team.  Football players benefit from consuming enough protein to stimulate muscle protein synthesis (MPS); however, consuming more than what the body can handle does not offer any further benefits for stimulating MPS and the excess amino acids are Bobcat Football Magazine

oxidized by the body. Due to their increase in energy intake, players meet or often exceed the dietary recommendations for fat. Additionally, saturated fatty acid intake tends to be high in football players and puts them at risk for cardiovascular disease.  The pre-game meal should supply enough energy so players are not hungry during the 

game and should be composed of mostly carbohydrates with moderate protein and limited fat.  New recommendations for carbohydrate intake during exercise for intermittent bouts of activity recommend small amounts of carbohydrate intake along with mouth rinses to maximize carbohydrate intake for both muscle and brain function.  The post-game meal should focus on vegetables and fruit, lean protein, whole grains and healthy fats and fluids for rehydration.  Hiring registered dietitians (RDs) has improved the food selection at training tables and increased nutrition education, allowing players to perform at their athletic potential. The way football players are fed has changed dramatically since the late 1970s and early 1980s, when professional football organizations most likely had a food truck outside the back door. This mobile canteen usually showed up just as the team was finishing the morning viewing of films and meetings before players changed into practice uniforms for drills in the afternoon. Most players bought their “noon time meal” from the truck while others would sometimes run to a fast food restaurant to eat. The meal from the truck or fast food restaurant was often the first meal of the day. The second meal was either consumed after practice (again, often fast food), or purchased at a restaurant, then reheated in a microwave. In 2015 professional football organizations began building full-size kitchens and dining rooms in their facilities. Most have hired full-time chefs and full-time sports RDs (Registered Dieticians) and serve 2-3 meals a day in addition to pre-practice snacks and recovery

meals. While food trucks are still delivering food, they are now coming from farms and facilities that provide local and sustainably grown vegetables, fruits, dairy products and meats. Physiologic energy systems used by football players determine what fuel they need to consume and replace before and after training and competition. While American football has not been studied like soccer or rugby, extrapolations can be made regarding the physiologic energy systems used during football games. A rugby study showed that about 85% of the game was spent in low-intensity activities while 15% was spent in high-intensity activities. Of the high-intensity activities, 9% was running and 6% tackling and wrestling for the ball. During high-intensity sprints or tackles, energy is provided by anaerobic metabolism, while simultaneously aerobic metabolism continues to supply energy to the vital organs. The predominance of the energy system used during football is determined by the player’s position. Wide receivers, linebackers and defensive backs rely more heavily on aerobic metabolism than linemen, who rely more on anaerobic metabolism. Anaerobic metabolism is fueled by intramuscular phosphocreatine (PCr) and glycogen, while aerobic metabolism is fueled by glycogen and fatty acids. It is important to note that glycogen (or carbohydrate) is a substrate for both aerobic and anaerobic activity and is the substrate of choice for highintensity activity. If a player is not eating adequate amounts of kilocalories or carbohydrates or the correct proportion of macro and micronutrients, ATP cannot be made, and over the 2018

course of a game or season, a player may not be able to maintain athletic performance.

Dietary Recommendations for Football Players — Kilocalories Determination of energy needs for football players includes physical characteristics and position on the team. For example, defensive linemen, particularly defensive ends, are generally smaller than offensive linemen, while running backs, linebackers, wide receivers and defensive backs are generally the same size and have common physical measurements and similar body composition. Linemen generally have a higher percentage of body fat than linebackers, running backs, defensive backs and wide receivers. This wide range in body size and composition can make kilocalorie requirements extremely variable. Resting metabolic rate (RMR) is the energy required to maintain bodily functions such as heart rate, respiration and circulation while the body is at rest. It accounts for approximately 6080% of total energy expenditure. It is measured by indirect calorimetry, where oxygen consumption (L/min) and carbon dioxide production (L/min) are collected and analyzed for a specific amount of time. Because most practitioners do not have access to the equipment to actually measure RMR, a number of prediction equations are used to estimate RMR. Carbohydrates are the primary energy source for the exercising muscle when exercise intensity reaches 65% of maximum oxygen consumption (VO2max) or greater. Carbohydrate is the fuel of choice for high-intensity aerobic exercise and also for 77

BOBCATS CUNNINGHAM (1980) EQUATION PROVIDES AN ACCURATE ESTIMATE OF RMR WHEN DETERMINING ENERGY NEEDS OF ACTIVE INDIVIDUALS Position

RMR* (RMR = 500 + 22) LBM kg)

PA Factor**

Thermic Effect of Foot (TEF)

Estimated Range Kilocalories

Defensive Lineman (DL)

2,777

2.0 – 2.1

1.1

6,100 – 6,400

Offensive Lineman (OL)

2,839

2.0 – 2.1

1.1

6,200 – 6,500

Running Back (RB)

2,478

2.1 – 2.2

1.1

5,700 – 6,000

Tight End (TE)

2,632

2.1 – 2.2

1.1

6,000 – 6,300

Linebacker (LB)

2,542

2.1 – 2.2

1.1

5,900 – 6,200

Quarterback (QB)

2,352

2.0 – 2.1

1.1

5,200 – 5,400

so-called anaerobic exercise, where sprint and ballistic-like movements occur. Because football players have highintensity and vigorous workouts for sometimes more than an hour a day, they may need as much as 5-7 g of carbohydrate/ kg/day of body mass in order to maintain and replenish muscle and liver glycogen stores. In the past, carbohydrate recommendations have often been expressed as a percentage of total kilocalories; however, this percentage is poorly correlated to both the amount of carbohydrates actually eaten and the required fuel needed to support an athlete’s training and competition. It is important to match the players’ carbohydrate intake to their fuel needs for games, training and recovery. This concept has been defined as carbohydrate availability and attempts to match increased carbohydrate intake specifically to training and competition needs. When players fail to consume adequate carbohydrates and energy during daily training, muscle glycogen levels decrease, and training and competition performance may be impaired. Because football players practice at least 5 days per week, carbohydrates need to be consumed every day. A variety of whole grain pasta, 78

breads, rice, fruits and starchy vegetables provide the carbohydrates players need, as well as a variety of essential vitamins, trace minerals and fiber. Too often players choose carbohydrates with higher amounts of fats and sugars (such as French fries and cakes, cookies or candy). While football players are expending more kilocalories from carbohydrates and can afford to consume more kilocalorie dense foods such as sports drinks, gels and other simple sugarcontaining food products, they should limit consumption of these types of foods for preand post-game refueling.

Protein Adequate protein intake is a major focus for most football

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players. Proteins are in constant flux in the body as they are involved in the processes of synthesis and degradation. Athletes benefit from consuming enough protein to stimulate muscle protein synthesis (MPS) and repair muscle damage. Protein recommendations for strength athletes range from 1.61.7 g protein/kg body mass, more than double the requirements for a sedentary adult. While protein is important for football players to facilitate muscle synthesis and repair, many players exceed their protein requirement with shakes, powders and protein bars. Most players can easily meet their protein requirements through a well-planned diet that includes high quality protein spread throughout the day rather than consumed in large amounts in a single

meal. Excess amino acids are simply oxidized by the body. The quality of a protein is partially dependent upon its digestibility, but primarily on its essential amino acid profile including both the specific amount and the proportion of essential amino acids. Branched chain amino acids (BCAA) are absorbed faster than smaller amino acids, and essential amino acids (EAA) are absorbed faster than nonessential amino acids (NEAA) with leucine, isoleucine, valine and methionine being the most rapidly absorbed. These physiological properties give BCAA, which are found in dairy and meat products, a high protein digestibilitycorrected amino acid score (PDCAAS). Evidence has shown that dairy products, especially milk, stimulate MPS. Lastly, the BCAA leucine can activate key signaling proteins of the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway, which plays a crucial role in turning on MPS. Ideally, a mix of protein sources should be included in a football playerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s diet. Overconsumption of animal products can lead to a higher intake of saturated fat, which can put individuals at risk for cardiovascular disease and metabolic syndrome (MS). Dietary fats supply a source of essential fatty acids and fatsoluble vitamins; however, players who consume a high-fat diet not only have adverse health effects but may also displace the storage of carbohydrates by fat. On the other hand, players who eat a very low-fat diet (less than 15% of total kilocalories from fat) do not have additional performance benefits. So, neither a high-fat diet nor low-fat diet is advised. Despite the fact that most players fall within

WHAT SCIENCE RECOMMENDS FOR PRE-GAME MEALS

5-60 min before competition, it is suggested to consume lower amounts of carbohydrates that digest quickly: Liquids that contain 30-60 g carbohydrates from a sports drink or gel

2 h before competition, solid foods can be introduced if it sits well with the player. Examples could include: Small bowl of a whole-grain cereal and low-fat milk

Whole-grain toast or a small lowfat muffin 1/2 whole-grain bagel, low-fat yogurt and fruit

Fruit smoothie made with low-fat yogurt or milk 3-4 h before competition, larger meals can be consumed. However, watch the amount of fat consumed because it takes the longest to digest. Try pre-game meals like: Turkey sandwich on whole-grain bread with low-fat cheese, yogurt, fruit or granola bar Pasta with 3-4 ounces of meat sauce, bread sticks, low-fat milk Steamed rice with vegetables with 3 ounces of chicken and a piece of fruit French toast or small stack of pancakes with limited syrup, 1 egg, low-fat milk and a piece of fruit

the recommended range of fat intake, players of all ages should be encouraged to consume more heart healthy fatsâ&#x20AC;&#x201D; monounsaturated (olive and peanut oil) and polyunsaturated fatty acids (safflower & soybean oil), and lower amounts of saturated fatty acids (butter, lard, cream) and trans fats 2018

(processed foods like cookies and crackers) with the addition of fruits, vegetables and whole grains. Consuming too much food (especially high-calorie food from fat) can result in the accumulation of abdominal fat, a risk for cardiovascular disease. The foods consumed before, during and after competition and training can affect performance and how quickly the body can recover.

Pre-game Meal One of the goals for the pregame meal is to keep the player from feeling hungry before and during the game. Other reasons to consume a pre-game meal include refilling liver glycogen and to continue to replenish muscle glycogen from the last workout. Allowing for personal and psychological factors, the pre-exercise meal should be high in carbohydrates, moderate in protein and low in fiber in a form that is readily digested. Foods with high fat content delay emptying time from the stomach and take longer to digest while foods with high carbohydrate content empty faster, with liquid carbohydrates emptying the fastest out of the stomach. The meal consumed before exercise should be large enough so that players are not hungry during the game, but not so large as to leave undigested food in the stomach. ADA guidelines suggest that smaller meals should be consumed closer to the event to allow emptying of food and absorption of nutrients. Generally, carbohydrates should compose most of the pre-exercise meal and 1 g carbohydrate/kg body mass is appropriate 1 h prior to the start of the game, whereas 3-4 g carbohydrate/kg body mass can be consumed 3-4 h before 79

the game. In some cases where adrenaline levels are increased before the start of a game, a liquid meal replacement high in carbohydrates or carbohydrate drinks with a small amount of solid foods work well for the player. Preparation for competition includes nutritional strategies to replenish energy stores in the week leading up to competition and includes the pre-game meal and the foods or beverages consumed just before the game starts.

Eating the Hour Before the Game In the past, there was a concern that if players ate carbohydrate foods or beverages immediately before the start of a game, insulin levels would rise and cause a decline in blood glucose and players would take

the field in a hypoglycemic state. The notion of creating a hypoglycemic effect by eating carbohydrates immediately before exercise came from a study published by Foster et al. in 1979. While these authors did find a reduction in exercise capacity when subjects consumed glucose the hour before exercise, in most athletes, this transient hypoglycemia is not detrimental to performance. Most studies now find that carbohydrate consumption the hour before exercise has no detrimental effects and provides an improvement in performance. Within the hour before the game, players may benefit from consuming liquid carbohydrates, such as a pre-game beverage or gel (25 g carbohydrate/4 oz or 118 mL) or sports drink

(~14 oz or 400 mL of solution containing ~6% carbohydrate).

Fueling During the Game American football can be riveted with long breaks between offensive and defensive plays. Along with actual playing time, environmental conditions such as temperature, altitude and humidity change from game to game and can differ from the beginning to the end of the season, which can affect carbohydrate consumption. Because studies have not been performed specifically on football, extrapolations from other studies on intermittent exercise are used to make recommendations on carbohydrate consumption during a game. In 2010, Jeukendrup and Chambers reported that for higher-intensity exercise with shorter durations, a mouth rinse

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containing carbohydrates can improve performance, potentially by stimulating centers in the brain related to fatigue, pleasure and/or motor control. In 2014, Jeukendrup suggested that athletes ingest smaller amounts for shorter bouts of exercise, whereas exercise of longer duration requires more carbohydrates of multiple transportable types. Consuming a carbohydrate-containing beverage during exercise may be important for players who have not consumed a pre-game meal; skipped a meal throughout the day; participate in intense training or at a moderate intensity for a prolonged period; participate in two-a-day practices, or train in the heat, cold or altitude.

Post-game Nutrition Players usually have a week before their next competition and a full day off before resuming practice, so they do not necessarily need immediate post-game recovery. However, most football teams practice 4-5 days per week and recovery nutrition after practices is important. Football players need to consume post-game meals that provide nutrients that will maintain health, well-being and healing, and replace the energy that was expended during the game. AT HOME: Consuming a post-game meal in playersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; homes is much easier than when the team is traveling on the road. Generally, teams will provide post-game meals in an area close to the locker room. In the past, the post-game meal was more of a smorgasbord of food focusing on massive amounts of protein. Post-game meals are now planned by the team RD with a focus on healthy foods and fluids for hydration. ON THE ROAD: Football teams usually spend between 24-36 h on the road per week. Typically, teams leave the day before a game and return immediately after the game. Meals on the road usually include a dinner the night before the game, maybe a late evening snack and the pregame meal, which is provided by the hotel. After the game, fluid is available and possibly a small post-game snack. The main post-game meal is most likely served on the plane returning home. Football teams usually leave right after the team has showered, cleaned up and answered media questions. The teamâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s post-game meal can be catered by the airlines or by a local restaurant. In the past this meal was high in protein and fat; now, under the direction of the teamâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s RD, the post-game meal focuses on vegetables, fruit, lean protein, whole grains, and monounsaturated

or polyunsaturated fatty acids.

Training Table Just about every professional football team in the NFL has adopted the concept of properly fueling football players for optimal performance. The largest change has been in hiring RDs, who greatly influence what foods are being served. Todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s training tables are no longer dominated by protein and saturated fat. For example, here is a recent lunch menu from the Denver Broncos training table: Pistachio encrusted salmon with lemon caper reduction sauce and micro greens Bison Bolognese over pasta Sweet potato gnocchi with walnuts Albert Bartlett red potatoes Asparagus and heirloom tomatoes; salad bar The Broncosâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; new kitchen and dining room is approximately 6,200 square feet of professional-grade equipment and includes dedicated areas for a smoothie station, an area for fresh fruit, a fuel bar and a recovery station. The staff includes an RD as director of team nutrition, an executive chef and a culinary team that replaced a catering company that served the team in the 82

past years. The kitchen and dining room are open 11 months of the year and during preseason training camp, serve three meals/day plus two snacks for both players and coaches. During the season the staff will prepare breakfast and lunch with snacks. One NFL team has a cafeteria line based on the American Heart Association Guidelines. Many RDs use food served at the training table as a means of nutrition education. Some use a color-coded system to identify the best foods for optimal performance, or for the correct proportions to eat for body composition changes, recovery and healing from injuries. Other means of nutrition education include signage around the dining room identifying foods that provide fuel, help with recovery & healing, build muscle mass, and boost the immune system. The energy systems used to fuel football players rely upon glycogen and therefore carbohydrate intake. Players need to consume adequate carbohydrates daily to maintain glycogen levels. The pre-game meal should be consumed 1-4 hours before the start of the game and should be composed primarily of carbohydrates that

will enhance liver glycogen, continue to replenish muscle glycogen and provide energy to the brain. Additionally, the fluid consumed will help with maintaining hydration. Carbohydrate consumption during intermittent sports like football has been shown to enhance performance. Consuming a sports drink during exercise may be important for athletes who have not consumed a pregame meal, skipped meals throughout the day, train in the heat or cold, or have multiple workouts during the day. Post-game meals for professional football players are now focused on healthy portions of vegetables

and fruit, lean protein, whole grains and the fat that is found in the meal is a healthier fat such as monounsaturated or polyunsaturated fatty acids. Fueling a football team has moved into the era of evidence-based science and the employment of RDs and professional chefs. Educating football players about what foods to eat, how much to eat and the timing of pre- and post-game meals is of prime importance for athletic performance. These guidelines can apply to football players of any age and instilling good nutrition habits early in a football career can teach players how to eat for a lifetime.

REFERENCES Abbot, J.M., and C. Byrd-Bredbenner (2007). The state of the American diet. How can we cope? Topics in Clin. Nutr. 3:202-233. Baron, S., and R. Rinsky (1994). NIOSH mortality study of NFL football players 1959-1988. Cincinnati (OH): Jonnalagadda, S.S., C.A. Rosenbloom and R. Skinner (2001). Dietary practices, attitudes, and physiological status of collegiate freshman football players. J. Strength Cond. Res. 15:507-513. Jeukendrup, A.E. (2014). A step towards personalized sports nutrition: Carbohydrate intake during exercise. Sports Med. 44:S25-S33. Jeukendrup, A.E., and E.S. Chambers (2010). Oral carbohydrate sensing and exercise performance. Curr. Opin. Clin. Nutr. Metab. Care. 13:447-451. Long, D., C. Perry, S.A. Unruh, N. Lewis, and K. StanekKrogstrand (2011). Personal food systems of male collegiate football players: A grounded theory investigation. J. Athl. Train. 46:688-695.â&#x20AC;¨

BOBCATS

BOBCAT FUEL Sharpening the Cats’ Competitive Edge “This summer we hit the ground running by implementing hydration testing using a refractometer.” BY BRITTNEY PATERA, MS, RD, CSSD, LN 84

Bobcat Football Magazine

to providing students with foods that are best to consume before, during or after lifts and practices, as well as a place to optimize nutrition education. Before Bobcat Fuel, the football program was already executing nutrition practices, as Coach Choate knows the impact nutrition has on performance. Now, almost every team has integrated nutrition strategies by offering nutritional support at practices and competitions. The Bobcats are continuously looking for what they can do to increase this slight edge that has been contributing to better performance.

t takes dedication, hard work and consistent practice to win games. This past year, this has certainly been the case with student-athletes at Montana State University with regard to their commitment to nutrition. The Bobcats’ performance has increased tremendously, and athletes are recognizing this. Bobcat Fuel started out as a fueling station, a place dedicated

Student-athletes are recognizing the important role nutrition has on their performance, not only on the field or court, but in the classroom as well. The athletes have started to utilize the nutrition services offered at MSU to learn to fuel their bodies and to confidently identify what food items in the Fueling Station will positively impact the stage they’re at in their training. One day I had an athlete come up to me and say, “Brittney, I’m having cereal before practice!” I asked, “Why would cereal be a good option before practice?” The athlete’s response? “Because it’s a carb!” Each day, at least two athletes contact me to set up a meeting to figure out their individual nutrition needs to optimize performance. Athletes who do not follow a dietary regime notice they have low energy levels and, for the football players, that they can’t put on weight. After meeting with the athletes and implementing a nutrition plan, every single one of them notices differences in the way they feel. They have increased energy levels and are finally increasing their lean muscle mass. I even have athletes sending me pictures of their meals to make sure they’re getting enough of the right foods! Athletes are now excited about 2018

grocery shopping, about trying new foods, and correctly building their plates—they take pride in it. Not only has nutrition changed for the student-athletes, but throughout the athletic department. Bobcat Fuel now has a meaning to it. Athletic Trainers automatically send athletes to me if the athletes are injured, having surgery, present low blood iron, or are lethargic. They keep me informed about an athlete’s health status and, if compromised, will ask what steps can be taken to improve their condition. The Strength and Conditioning Coaches never hesitate to approach me to discuss concerns they have with a team member. Emphasizing fueling for performance, the strength coaches will make sure to schedule a team talk with me to address nutritional strategies to accelerate results in the weight room. The coaches have noticed the impact nutrition has had on their players and want to provide them with more. They have turned to me as the expert and value the nutritional services provided to athletes. Coaches have requested nutritional support at their competitions; I send fuel on the road with some teams. Bobcat Fuel has allowed MSU students studying nutrition and exercise science to explore the area of sports nutrition. I have had a lot of dietetic and nutrition students approach me about getting involved with the program. My goal is to expose them to a sports nutrition program for collegiate athletes and to be able to identify foods that will result in peak performance. It is the students that run the fueling station and facilitate educational materials for the studentathletes. With the students’ help, there is now nutrition education available throughout the Fieldhouse and on social 85

BOBCATS and am present at pre-game meals to ensure they’re eating enough; I assist them with building their plates, and emphasize hydration. To make sure athletes receive optimal nutrition, I am on the field with them during practices and games to offer rehydration and quick fueling options.

DEPENDING ON THE ATHLETE’S HEIGHT, POSITION, AND WEIGHT GOAL, CALORIE RANGES PRESCRIBED ARE ANYWHERE FROM 3,000 – 5,100 CALORIES PER DAY. media. Currently I am working on cooking demonstrations and videos that will be available to student-athletes. Nutrition has increased throughout athletics, but with it having already been on their radar, Coach Choate and his staff have taken it to the next level to support their athletes. 86

Every football coach emphasizes the importance of nutrition and encourages the players to come see me to discuss their performance goals. Last season, there was a consistent nutrition presence for the team, which has made a huge difference. Nutrition is now a part of what they do, and it makes my job so fun. I help plan their home and away game menus Bobcat Football Magazine

One of the supplements I always have with me is an electrolyteenhanced drink to supply carbohydrates and replace the fluids and sodium lost during activity. This drink has a strong salty taste, which can make it difficult for some players to voluntarily drink. Last year during fall camp, I had to consistently explain the benefits of the drink to get them to try it. I was going through four 32 ounce water bottles per practice. After about two months of having it available at practices and games, I couldn’t make enough of it. I now make sure I have twelve 32 ounce water bottles ready to go and hope they last the entire practice! The players now look forward to and ask for the specialty rehydration drink, and count on it as a part of their performance. This has also been the case for pre- and halftime snacks at games. The guys take advantage of topping off their “energy tank” and know the foods they like that will help them perform to the best of their abilities. The players are always asking questions regarding nutrition to find ways to achieve peak performance. They have become more aware of what they’re putting into their bodies, even if it’s just a small change, like trying a new fruit or vegetable once a week. To me, these are big accomplishments. Spring semester, Coach Choate decided to take nutrition even further for his athletes. Each player had to meet with me to get his body composition measured using

skinfold calipers. After doing so, they were required to meet with me one-on-one, so I could develop individual meal plans to reach their performance goals. One of the biggest struggles the players face is getting enough calories. Depending on the athlete’s height, position, and weight goal, calorie ranges prescribed are anywhere from 3,000 – 5,100 calories per day. Since they require so much energy, it has become a habit for the guys to fill a gallon bag with snacks while they’re in the fueling station. If built right, this will provide them with the extra 1,400 calories they need as a snack, not a meal replacement. And it doesn’t stop there. This summer we hit the ground running by implementing hydration testing using a refractometer. Every week, I would collect a sample of urine from each guy and monitor his hydration status. If dehydrated,

this allowed the players to learn how much they should be rehydrating with and take necessary measures to reach a state of euhydration. Adequate fluid intake is necessary to transport nutrients and remove waste products, regulate body temperature and blood pressure, support cardiovascular function, and maintain the body’s acid-base balance. As little as 2% loss of total body water can result in physical and mental impairments, which is why we are teaching them to know their individual needs. Each player is different; some sweat more than others, which results in more sodium loss. Sodium promotes muscle contraction and is essential for optimal hydration since it promotes fluid retention and replenishes intracellular fluids. The ‘heavy sweaters’ may require electrolyte replacement to enhance the rehydration process. During fall camp, when temperatures are

2018

high and practices are long, I will provide the guys with sodium containing foods, like pickles and beef jerky, to promote rehydration and optimal recovery. Nutrition was introduced to the football program a little over a year ago, and it is now a part of the Bobcat culture. Their dedication to nutrition has resulted in minimal illnesses during the season, quicker recovery time, improved muscle mass and stamina, and increased energy and longevity during practices and games. Bobcat Football’s commitment to nutrition has been put into action on the field, and the gains they are getting is transparent. They have changed and adopted new dietary habits and are consuming more food than they thought was possible. This was only year one of Bobcat Fuel, and it is only the beginning of fueling these champions.

The Future of Bobcat Football BY CHAD NEWELL

â&#x20AC;&#x153;We will continue to walk hand in hand with the Bozeman community to affect positive change.â&#x20AC;? In order to forecast the future of football at Montana State, it is important to first look back at our programs storied history. When the Bobcats take the field this fall, it will mark the 121st anniversary of football at our university. In those 121 years, Montana State has championed its conference on 20 occasions. The program has garnered three 90

national titles, and is the only program in the nation to win on three different levels. We have lost 14 players to a World War. We have grown hand in hand with the university to become a national powerhouse. We have developed our reputation by intentionally focusing on excellence in every facet of collegiate football. There are now firefighters, police officers, Bobcat Football Magazine

engineers, and businessmen alike who proudly represent Bobcat Football. Teachers and preachers alike, lean on the values instilled in them as Bobcats as they mold the minds of the next generation. I believe that where we have been is the best indicator of where we are going. At Montana State we have a championship heritage, and for that reason we have a championship future. The future of football at Montana State, just like the past, will be rooted in the pride we take in doing things the right way. We have a first-class program at Montana State, we do things honestly and all of our

accomplishments are the result of hard work. Coach Choate, the man leading our charge into the future, references a phrase when discussing how things ought to be done. He says there are two ways to get something done, “either first class or no class.” This outlook is profoundly impactful to me. The way we are taught to approach everything as Bobcats is first class, there is no gray area. I believe this system of behaving is why the trajectory of football at Montana State is so radically vertical. By recruiting and producing men of character, we have realigned ourselves with the culture of Montana. Montana, a state where hard work is the norm. A state wherein people care and are proud to call home. A state that I am proud to call home.

of the team and community will drive our success. As Bobcats, we approach every day with an expectation to win, and to embrace every challenge with passion. The passion for Bobcat football is driving our growth and is allowing us to color the Treasure State blue and gold. The support and opportunities Montana State is creating for the Bobcat community are allowing the same individuals changing games on Saturdays, to change lives when their playing days are done. The future of football at Montana State will be reflective of the growth of its one-of-a-kind setting. As we continue taking strides toward our vision of becoming

champions on the field, our program will remain rooted in its values. Our facilities will soon reflect the world class program we have built. As we attract the Montana’s best talent, we will continue to embrace those calling our beautiful state their new home. The faces and names of our favorite Bobcats will change. The character of Montana State football, however, will remain constant. We will continue to walk hand in hand with the Bozeman community to affect positive change. There is something special building in Bozeman that will forever fill every Bobcat with pride. The future of football at Montana State is here and, as always, it is a great day to be a Bobcat.

We have created a culture that is spearheading a movement within this state and creating an authentic sense of excitement around Bobcat Football. The future is no longer distant, but tangible. To quote the greatest Bobcat of all time, Sonny Holland, “Now is the Time, This is the Place.” The future of Bobcat football is here. This fall will not represent some great rebirth of Bobcat Football, but a continuation of 121 years of winning tradition. Winning is the expectation of players, coaches, and fans alike at Montana State. That expectation, although not always realized, is what drives the competitive spirit that is at the heart of every Bobcat. As I look forward to what the future holds for us, I relish in the moments I shared with fellow Bobcats. The community members, young and old, whose passion for Bobcat Football is unquestionable. It is through these very community members that I learned how much it meant to be a Bobcat. As we move into the future, the unity 2018

Bobcat Football Magazine

2018

THE BOBCATS PREVIEW The Cats went 5-3 in Big Sky play last year and 5-6 overall, finishing the season with a heartwarming victor y over the University of Montana in Bozeman. Jeff Choate hopes to continue the momentum in his third year as the Bobcats’ Head Coach. Defensive Co-MVPs Zach Wright and Tucker Yates are back in force, along with Mitch Brott, Lewis Kidd, Alex Neale and Taylor Tuiasosopo on the offensive line. With 16 returning starters and a batch of promising recruits on the 2018 roster, the biggest variable heading into fall camp is the role of starting quarterback. Top contenders for the job include Travis Jonsen, a junior transfer from the University of Oregon, and Troy Andersen, winner of the 2017 Big Sky Freshman of the Year Award, who contributed as both a running back and linebacker last year. Coach Choate has indicated that redshirt freshman Tucker Rovig, and true freshmen Casey Bauman and Ruben Beltran will also be in the running. "I think the best guy for our team and our system will end up being our quarterback,” Choate said.

QUICK HITS LOCATION: Bozeman, Montana NICKNAME: Bobcats, Cats FOUNDED: 1893. Originally called the Agricultural College of the State of Montana, MSU began with two faculty members and eight students. The land-grant institution celebrated its 125th anniversary this year. ENROLLMENT: The university has 16,703 students and an endowment of 127.4 million dollars as of 2016. STADIUM: Bobcat Stadium. Constructed in 1973 under the name Reno H. Sales Stadium, the outdoor complex has undergone multiple expansions. The attendance record was set on November 23, 2013 at 21,527. The playing surface is FieldTurf.

Bobcat Football Magazine

The 2018 season kicks off on August 30 in Bozeman, with the Cats facing Western Illinois of the MVFC. MSU will take on Wagner College for the first time ever, hosting the Seahawks at Bobcat Stadium on September 15. Big Sky play begins on September 22 with a road match against Portland State. Foremost in most Bobcats’ minds is the possibility of a third-straight win against the Grizzlies. This year, the 118th Brawl of the Wild will take place in Missoula on November 11 to conclude the regular season.

WHO TO WATCH— THE OFFENSE Troy Andersen, Running Back, 6’3”, 215 lbs, Sophomore In 2017, Troy Andersen became the first true freshman Bobcat to start his first game at the running back position in over twenty years. The former high school superstar from Dillon, Montana went on to start at linebacker in other games, notching nine tackles and one sack. On offense, Andersen logged 515 rushing yards, 45 receiving yards and six touchdowns, making him the third highest scorer on the Bobcats. His dual ser vice earned him the Big Sky

Conference Freshman of the Year award. In 2018, Andersen will focus exclusively on offense, and may even take some snaps at quarterback. Mitch Brott, Left Tackle, 6’6”, 290 lbs, Redshirt Junior Mitch Brott is a veteran of the Bobcats’ offensive line. Born in Billings, he earned allconference and all-state honors at West High School, before arriving at MSU in 2015. After a freshman redshirt, Brott received First Team Freshman All-America honors in 2016 for his debut performance at right tackle. Brott continued to start at right tackle throughout 2017, but this year he’s switching to the left f lank of the offense. Former left guard Lewis Kidd will play right tackle, while Brott takes on the job of left tackle, and the responsibility of the quarterback’s blindside. Travis Jonsen, Quarterback, 6’2”, 210 lbs, Redshirt Junior Graduating high school ahead of schedule, Travis Jonsen enrolled at the University of Oregon in the Spring of 2015 to begin his training as the Ducks’ top quarterback recruit. An early-season injur y put a halt to what would have been his 2015 fall debut. Since then, the Fullerton, California native has seen negligible playing time at Oregon. He transferred to MSU this Januar y but was unable to participate in spring drills due to a broken foot. Now healthy, Jonsen will compete with Troy Andersen and true-freshman Casey Bauman for the job of starting quarterback.

WHO TO WATCH — THE DEFENSE Tucker Yates, Tackle, 6’0”, 290 lbs, Redshirt Senior A three-time Class A State Champion wrestler in high school, Tucker Yates of Great Falls joined the Cats in 2014 as a top defensive recruit. Following a redshirt freshman season, Yates played in eight games in 2015 and started five, notching 22 tackles on the year. In 2016, he saw action in nine games and started six, missing two because of injur y. Last season Yates delivered in all 11 games, amassing 41 tackles, one sack and a blocked kick. He received a 2017 All Big Sky Conference Honorable Mention, and a 2018 Preseason AllBig Sky selection. Josh Hill, Linebacker, 5’11”, 215 lbs, Junior The scrappy linebacker from Kalispell, Montana heads into his third year on the Bobcats’ starting lineup. As a high school senior, Josh Hill was named Class AA All State Defensive MVP for his contributions to the Glacier High Wolf Pack’s undefeated 2014 campaign. Being shorter than the average linebacker, Hill proved his mettle as a 2015 walk-on with the Bobcats. The past two seasons he’s been MSU’s forth ranking tackler, recording 69 total tackles in 2017, along with five pass breakups, two quarterback hits and a forced fumble. Hill has been particularly effective against the Grizzlies, with a combined 14 tackles and two pass breakups in the Cats’

2018

2016 and 2017 victories. Zach Wright, Defensive Line, 6’2”, 265 lbs, Senior The Bobcats have played 22 games in the past two seasons and Zach Wright has started all of them. The defensive tackle from New Braunfels, Texas took a redshirt upon arriving at MSU in 2014 and saw limited action in 2015. Wright emerged as a defensive force in 2016, logging 23 tackles, two quarterback hits and a pass breakup. Last year he added 35 tackles, two sacks, two quarterback hits, one pass breakup and a forced fumble to his career statistics. Wright received an All Big Sky Honorable Mention and shared the Joe Tiller Defensive CoMVP Award with Tucker Yates.

THE TEAM & COACH (5 -3 BIG SKY CONFERENCE, 5 - 6 OVERALL IN 2017)

Head Coach Jeff Choate launches his third season with the Bobcats, holding a career record of 7-9 in the Big Sky Conference, and 9-13 overall. Among this fall’s incoming talent is his son, Jory Choate, who joins the team at linebacker after graduating from Bozeman High this spring. Though a starting quarterback remains to be chosen, a core of experienced players provides the 2018 roster with a sturdy foundation.

THE OUTLOOK

Despite a challenging schedule, the 2018 Bobcats are equipped to have their winningest season yet under Head Coach Jeff Choate. The roster is deep, and the Cats are hungr y for a playoff bid and another proud year with the Great Divide Trophy.

LEATHERNECKS PREVIEW

AUGUST 30TH - GAME IS IN BOZEMAN, MT - NON-CONFERENCE

The Leathernecks went 8-4 overall in 2017, and 5-3 in the Missouri Valley Conference, but the 2018 season marks a new era for the team. Western Illinois has a new head coach, former associate head coach Jarad Elliot. His first game as head coach will be against the Bobcats on Aug. 30. The Leathernecks have never beaten MSU in footballâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;the last time these teams met was in 1993, and so far Montana State holds a 2-0 lead in the all-time series. The game will mark the kickoff of the 2018 season, challenging the Leathernecks' 6-year winning streak for season openers.

Four Leathernecks earned AllAmerican honors for the 2017 season: defensive linemen Brett Taylor and Kahlen Saunders, receiver Jason Acklin, center Jacob Judd. Taylor was also a runner-up for the STATS FCS Buck Buchanan Award. The team is rebuilding after the loss of these star players. Western Illinois aims to build on last year's winning season. To do this, they are making many staff changes alongside a wave of 21 fresh recruits. Ty Howle will take the position of assistant coach and will also direct the offensive line. Josh Zidenberg is being brought in for defensive backs,

and John Haneline for defensive line. Former NFL safety Mike Brown will be working with the wide receivers. This is a dangerous football team," said Coach Elliott. "It's a dangerous football team because we have a lot of people that are bought in. They are committed, and they understand what's at stake. They understand that a first-round playoff appearance isn't good enough, and I think when you have a group of guys that have a mindset of attacking this offseason and going deeper into our playoffs next year, it's a dangerous feeling."

QUICK HITS Location: Macomb, Illinois Nickname: Leathernecks Founded: 1899. Located near La Monie River, the land for the university was donated to the state of Illinois by the Freemasons. Enrollment: The school has 9,441 students and an endowment of 50.9 million. Stadium: Hanson Field. The stadium opened in 1950 with a capacity of 16,368. The Matrix Turf surface was added in 2011. The average home game attendance was 3,477 in 2017.

The Leathernecks have a new head coach this year. Jared Elliot served as ISUâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s aassistant head coach and co-offensive coordinator in 2016 and 2017. The former Miami University quarterback was a recruiter and assistant quarterback coach for WIU in from 2010 to 2012, before spending 2013 to 2015 as an assistant coach and co-offensive coordinator at Carthage College. In his first two seasons back at WIU, Elliot helped the Leathernecks to a combined 15-10 record. The team aims to build on winning momentum of the past two seasons with their new head coach in 2018. 96

Bobcat Football Magazine

Steve McShane, Running Back, 5'8", 185 lbs, Senior A two-sport athlete, Steve McShane plays baseball for WIU as well as football. The running back from Freeport, Illinois was the Leathernecks' second leading rusher in 2017 with 582 yards on 138 carries, averaging 4.2 yards per carry. McShane, who played in 11 of 12 games, was also productive as a receiver, catching 31 passes for 307 yards and three touchdowns. With 66 points, he was the third-highest scorer on the team. McShane earned Second Team All-MVFC honors in both 2016 and 2017.

Sean McGuire, Quarterback, 6'", 228 lbs, Redshirt Senior Team captain Sean McGuire has played in every WSU football game since his 2015 debut as a redshirted freshman. In 2017, he completed 219 of 342 passes for 2,852 yards and 25 touchdowns. On a trick play against Coastal Carolina, the quarterback from Franklin, Wisconsin caught a nine-yard touchdown pass from wide receiver Isaiah LeSure. McGuire also rushed for 33 yards and one touchdown, earning him an All-MVFC Honorable Mention for the second year in a row.

Sam Crosa, Kicker, 5'8", 155 lbs, Redshirt Junior In his first season starting for the Leathernecks, Sam Crosa didn't miss a single kick. He finished 2017 with a 100% accuracy rating, sending the ball through the uprights 58 times for 12 field goals and 46 extra points. The Columbus, Ohio native started his college career as a walk-on at Bowling Green, where he redshirted in 2015. Crosa did not play in 2016, while he made the transition to WIU. He made the MVFC Honor Roll in 2017.

Khalen Saunders, Defensive Lineman, 6'2", 310 lbs, Redshirt Senior Since redshirting in 2014, Khalen Saunders from St. Louis, Missouri has played in all 36 Leathernecks football games. The defensive lineman started every game in 2016 and received an All-MVFC Honorable Mention. In 2017, he registered 57 tackles, tying for third-highest on the team. Saunders led the Leathernecks in sacks, with 7.5 last season. He also broke up three passes and forced three fumbles. In WIU's road win against Tennessee Tech, Saunders played one offensive down, carrying the ball one yard for a touchdown. He was named First Team All-MVFC in 2017.

Justin Fitzpatrick, Defensive Back, 6'1", 200 lbs, Senior As a true freshman, Justin Fitzpatrick played in nine games in 2015. In 2016, he earned an MVFC Commissioner's Academic Excellence Award and made the MVFC Honor Roll, while playing in 11 of 13 games. His 57 tackles tied for third-most on the team in 2017. Fitzpatrick led the Leathernecks with five interceptions and six pass breakups in addition to two forced fumbles. In 2017, he was named Second Team All-MVFC, and made the MVFC Honor Roll for the second year running. The defensive back from O'Fallon, Missouri also plays baseball for the Leathernecks.

Quentin Moon, Linebacker, 6'2", 232 lbs, Senior The son of former Indianapolis Colts quarterback Warren Moon, Quentin played in all 13 games as a true freshman in 2015. As a sophomore, he started all 11 games and ranked second on the team with 88 tackles and two sacks. In 2016, the linebacker from Indianapolis, Indiana received an AllMVFC Honorable Mention and the MVFC Commissioner's Academic Excellence Award. Quentin played in 11 of 12 games in 2017, again ranking second in tackles with 70 total. Additionally, Quentin had two sacks, one forced fumble, one blocked kick, two interceptions and three pass breakups. In 2017, he again earned an All-MVFC Honorable Mention and the MVFC Commissioner's Academic Excellence Award and made the MVFC Honor Roll.

2017 was a winning season for Western Illinois, but they have lost many of their star players. A new head coach, several changes to staff, and a new round of recruits make for a hungry new team. The Bobcats haven't faced the Leathernecks since 1993 and will be defending a 2-0 lead in their all-time series. 2018

SOUTH DAKOTA STATE UNIVERSITY THE JACKRABBITS PREVIEW

SEPTEMBER 8TH - GAME IS IN BROOKINGS, SD - NON-CONFERENCE

The Jackrabbits went 11-3 overall in 2017, with 6-2 in the Missouri Valley Football Conference, and 5-1 in non-conference games, the most wins in Jackrabbit history. They finished second in the Missouri Valley Football Conference, and 4th in the FCS Coaches Poll. South Dakota State made it to the FCS playoffs for the first time in school history last year but were shut down in the semifinals 51-16

by defending champions James Madison University. Head coach John Stiegelmeier will surely be looking to reinforce his offensive line: the team's demise was sealed with a disastrous total of 10 turnovers. The Bobcats were defeated by the Jackrabbits last year, but only by four points, with the final score 31-27. This year the Jackrabbits must play without their 2017 star

player, four-time All-American wide receiver Jake Wieneke. His brother, Clark Wieneke, a junior, will stay on with the Jackrabbits as safety. Last year Jake Wieneke led the Jackrabbits in scoring, earning a total of 104 points. But his close second with 103 points, kicker Chase Vinatieri, will return as a Junior, alongside running back Mikey Daniel, who came in third with 66 points.

John Stiegelmeier is the winningest football coach in SDSU history, with a career record of 148-97. Stiegelmeier has taken the Jackrabbits to the FCS playoffs six times in his 20 years as head coach. Only four of those 20 seasons had losing records. The Jackrabbits won their first-ever league title of the MVFC in 2016. Stiegelmeier ranks fourth in league history with 49 wins in MVFC; his 69 league victories also rank fourth in MVFC history. 98

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QUICK HITS Location: Brookings, South Dakota Nickname: Jackrabbits Founded: 1881. A public, landgrant institution, SDSU is the oldest continually operating university in South Dakota. Enrollment: The school has 12,725 students and an endowment of 113.3 million. Stadium: Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium. The stadium opened in 2016, funded by private donations and revenue streams. Its capacity is 19,340. The record attendance of 18,130 fans was set last year, with an average attendance of 12,030. The surface is Astro Turf.

Taryn Christian, Quarterback 6'2", 220 lbs, Senior Team captain and two-time winner of the Jim Langer MVP award, Taryn Christian from Sioux Falls, SD returns for his senior year at the helm of the Jackrabbit offense. In the three years he's been starting quarterback, the Jackrabbits have gone 23-8. His sophomore year, Christian set the record for passing yards in single season with 3,714. In 2017, Christian's 35 touchdown passes set a SDSU single-season record. He also scrambled for 500 yards and 9 touchdowns, including a pair in SDSU's road win against Montana State. In total, the Sioux Falls native holds seven single-season school records. Christian boasts an impressive 72 career touchdown passes and 9,697 yards total offense.

Mikey Daniel, Running Back, 6'0", 230 lbs, Redshirt Junior After redshirting in 2015, Mikey Daniel from Brookings, South Dakota saw playtime in nine games during the 2016 season and scored his first career touchdown. He was a key contributor to the Jackrabbits' running game in 2017, playing in all 14 games and averaging 4.8 yards per carry. Daniel ranked fourth in total rushing yards with 482 on 101 carries. He also returned two kickoffs for 22 yards and caught two passes for five yards. With 66 points from 11 touchdowns, Daniels was the 3rd-highest scoring Jackrabbit. In 2017, Daniel made the MVFC Honor Roll and received the MVSC Commissioner's Academic Excellence Awards.

Chase Vinatieri, Place Kicker, 6'1", 210 lbs, Redshirt Junior Many will remember Chase Vinatieri for his game-deciding 31-yard touchdown run off a faked field goal in the Jackrabbits' road win at Montana State. The place kicker from Sioux Falls, South Dakota is the nephew of former Jackrabbit and current Indianapolis Colts kicker, Adam Vinatieri. Chase was NDSU's secondhighest scorer for the second year in a row in 2017, with 103 pointsâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;a single-season total that ranks second in school history. Chase holds the SDSU single-season record for extra point conversions with 58. His 92.9 field goal percentage was the highest in the FCS in 2017, and he was named Second Team All-MVSC, HERO Sports All-America First Team and STATS FCS National Special Teams Player of the Year.

Christian Rozeboom, Linebacker, 6'2", Redshirt Junior The 2016 MVFC Freshman of the Year started all 13 games and led the team with 132 tackles after redshirting in 2015. Rozeboom again led the Jackrabbits in tackles in 2017 with 127, along with two interceptions, three recovered fumbles and one sack. He logged 10 tackles and blocked an extra-point attempt in the fourth quarter of the Jackrabbits' win against Montana State. The linebacker from Sioux Center, Iowa received the Doug Miller Award for NDSU defensive MVP in both 2016 and 2017. He earned First Team All-MVFC honors in 2017 as well as American Football Coaches Association All-America Second Team, and HERO Sports All-America Second Team.

Jordan Brown, Cornerback, 6'1", 190 lbs, Redshirt Senior A veteran of the Jackrabbit defense, Jordan Brown from Scottsdale, Arizona returns for his final season, alongside his younger brother, Jacob, who is a Junior wide receiver for SDSU. Jordan saw action in 11 games as a redshirt freshman in 2015. In 2016, he started all 13 games, registering four tackles and one interception return for 11 yards. He also returned two kickoffs for 25 yards. He again played all 14 games in 2017 and ranked second on the team in tackles with 72. Jordan also snagged three interceptions with 22 yards total in returns, and forced three fumbles. He made the MVFC Honor Roll in 2017 and earned First Team All-MVFC.

Ryan Earith, Defensive End, 6'4", 255 lbs, Redshirt Junior Following his redshirt season in 2015, Ryan Earith played in all 13 games in 2016 and started nine of them. In 2017, the defensive end from Papillion, Nebraska led the Jackrabbits' defense with five sacks and eight tackles for loss. Earith ranked eighth on the team in total tackles with 40. He broke up a pass and registered three tackles against Montana State. Earith made the MVFC honor roll and received the MFC Commissioner's Academic Excellence Award in 2017.

The Jackrabbits narrowly defeated the Bobcats last year, but they will have to play this year without several key players, especially top scorer and four-time All-American Jake Wieneke. SDSU had a hot season in 2017, but they have to develop their new and returning players to match their record-breaking year. 2018

WAGNER COLLEGE SEAHAWKS PREVIEW

SEPTEMBER 15TH - GAME IS IN BOZEMAN, MT - NON-CONFERENCE

After a six-year winning streak, Wagner College suffered a disappointing season in 2017, finishing 4-7 overall. But the future looks bright for the Seahawks. New additions to the team have returning head coach Jason Houghtaling hopeful for the 2018 season. "We couldn't be more excited to have attracted a group of top-caliber studentathletes who we look forward to blending with our returning players," he says. The Seahawks have cause for celebration despite their losing season. Greg Senat, 2017 senior

Seahawk offensive tackle, became the first Seahawk in 53 years to be selected in the NFL draft. Senat was chosen in the 6th round by the Baltimore Ravens. Changes to Seahawk staff also aim to improve on last year's season. This season, Houghtaling will be joined by the assistant coach Darrell Wilson, who will also be the Special Teams and Defensive Backs coordinator. Wilson has 16 years of experience at 3 universities. Houghtaling says, "Darrell Wilson is an extremely impressive and

accomplished coach who has worked at the highest level of college football, and has done so for many years." But these new recruits are not all that is looking up for Wagner College. Many of their top players are returning in the upcoming season. Star running back Ryan Fulse, who led the Seahawks with 12 touchdowns and rushed for a total of 1,387 yards, returns for his senior year. Fellow senior Quinten Hampton returns to the defensive line after a successful season featuring 7 sacks for a total of 37 yards.

Jason Houghtaling gears up for his fourth season as the Seahawks' head coach, and his eleventh year with the Wagner program. Before his 2014 promotion, Houghtaling spent seven seasons as the Seahawks' offensive coordinator. In his debut head coaching season, Houghtaling's Seahawks finished 7-4 overall and 5-1 in conference play. 2015 found them ranked last in the NEC, going 1-5 in conference and 1-10 overall. The Seahawks went 6-5 in 2016, but lost traction in 2017, finishing 4-7 overall and 2-4 in the NEC. 100

Bobcat Football Magazine

QUICK HITS Location: Staten Island, NY Nickname: Seahawks Founded: 1883. Wagner College was originally the Lutheran Proseminary of Rochester, NY. The school began in the second story of a private home with only six students. Wagner relocated to its 38-acre estate on Staten Island in 1918. Enrollment: The school has 2,200 students and an endowment of 74.7 million. Stadium: Hameline Field. The stadium originally opened in 1967 but was renovated in 1998 with a capacity of 3,300. The field was renamed in 2012 after long-time athletic director and football coach Walt Hamline. The surface is Field Turf.

Ryan Fulse, Running Back, 5'11", 195 lbs, Senior Ryan Fulse from Fort Meade, Florida, began his college career at Monroe College, where he racked up 958 rushing yards as a sophomore in 2016. After transferring to Wagner, Fulse was named the Seahawks' 2017 Offensive Player of the Year. He led both the Seahawks' offense and the Northeast Conference with 1,306 yards on 216 carries, averaging six yards per carry and 118.7 yards per game. He was also the Seahawks' highest scorer with 72 points from 12 touchdowns. Fulse earned First Team All-NEC honors in 2017.

Luke Massei, Quarterback, 6'1", 190 lbs, Senior After playing on Seahawks' JV team as a freshman in 2015, Luke Massei spent most of 2016 on the sidelines. As reserve quarterback, he saw action in just four games his sophomore season. In 2017, Massei returned as starting quarterback, playing in 10 of 11 games and achieving an efficiency rating of 112.5. He completed 132 of 226 passes with eight interceptions for 1,371 yards and seven touchdowns. In both 2016 and 2017, Massei was a member of the NEC Fall Academic Commissioner's Honor Roll.

D'Erren Wilson, Wide Receiver, 6'3", 200 lbs, Senior Before transferring to Wagner in 2016, wide receiver D'Erren Wilson spent two seasons at Central Florida, where he saw limited action and scored nine total touchdowns. In 2017, D'Erren led the Seahawks in reception despite missing two games. He caught 33 passes for 392 yards and two touchdowns, averaging 11.9 yards per catch. He also returned six punts for a total of 68 yards and two kickoffs for a combined 46 yards.

Quintin Hampton, Linebacker, 6'0", 235 lbs, Senior A linebacker from Moultrie, Georgia, Quintin Hampton tarted college at the University of Central Florida in 2015. As a true freshman, he played in all 11 games for UCF. His sophomore year, he ranked second on the team in tackles with 74, and also had five sacks. The 2017 season was Hampton's first with the Seahawks. He started all 11 games and led the team with 82 tackles and seven sacks. Hampton received Second Team All-NEC honors in 2017.

Cameron Gill, Linebacker, 6'3":, 230 lbs, Junior In 2016, Cameron Gill started two games and played in all 11 as a true freshman. He made 14 tackles and two sacks for the Seahawks as an outside linebacker and special teams player. In 2017, Gill played in all 11 games, and ranked second on the team in tackles with 53. The Douglasville, Georgia native led the Seahawks in 2017 with a total of 11 sacks. As a sophomore, Gill received the Wagner College Defensive Player of the Year Award.

Sterling Lowry, Defensive Back, 5'11", 180 lbs, Senior (Team captain) After missing his senior year of high school football because of a leg injury, Sterling Lowery spent his 2015 freshman year at Milford Academy, where he played in nine games and made 10 tackles. In 2016, the cornerback transferred to Wagner, where he played in 10 games and started seven, registering14 tackles and an interception. In 2017, he returned to the Seahawks as team captain. Lowery played in all 11 games in 2017, making 39 tackles and returning one interception for a touchdown.

The Seahawks enter the 2018 season with high hopes of beating last year’s losing record. Promising new recruits and several returning stars will give Weber College an edge in the competition. Several new members on the staff may also improve the team’s performance. These changes and additions will make the Seahawks an unpredictable threat. Star players Ryan Fulse and Quinten Hampton will return for their senior year, hungry for to redeem last year’s losing season. 2018

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PORTLAND STATE UNIVERSITY THE VIKINGS PREVIEW

QUICK HITS

SEPTEMBER 22ND - GAME IS IN PORTLAND, OR - BIG SKY CONFERENCE

A mortifying 2017 season ended with Portland State 0-11, last place in the Big Sky Conference. This is only the second winless season in Viking history. But the young team is due for growth. Fifty-six out of the 66 lettering players were either freshmen or sophomores. This season the Vikings aim to rebuild their team from the ashes. In the last three games they began to develop a robust passing game that Head Coach Bruce

Barnum was famous for while assistant-coaching at Idaho State and Cornell (PSU threw for 1,189 yards in last three games). The shift came when Davis Alexander, a true freshman, was put in as quarterback. Although the whole team stands accountable for the dismal season, the Viking defense was especially weak, holding the worst record in the conference coming into the 2018 season.

To address this, Barnum has brought on veteran coach Payam Saadt as the new defensive coordinator. "When I was (offensive coordinator) at Idaho State, he was the defensive coordinator at Cal Poly and he had the most difficult defense we went up against. He brings a unique system of putting pressure on the quarterback and stopping the run," says Barnum.

Bruce Barnum embarks on his ninth season at PSU and his fourth as head coach. With more than two decades of assistant coaching experience at the college level, and five as PSU's offensive coordinator, Barnum had a triumphant head coaching debut in 2015, leading the Vikings to a 9-3 finish overall, their best-ever record at the Division 1 level. Barnum received the 2015 FCS National Coach of the Year award. After that, 2016's 3-8 record was a disappointment, but nothing compared to the Vikings' winless slog through 2017 for a last-place finish in the Big Sky Conference. 102

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Location: Portland, Oregon Nickname: Vikings Founded: 1946. Portland State was founded for the education of GIs returning from World War II. PSU is now a public research institution encompassing 50 blocks in downtown Portland. Enrollment: The school has 22,229 students and an endowment of 58.4 million. Stadium: Providence Park. The site has been occupied by various sports fields since 1893, and the first stadium was built in 1926. After several renovations, the stadium now has a capacity of 22,000. The average attendance for a PSU home game was 4,136 in 2017.

Davis Alexander, Quarterback, 5'11", 195 lbs, Sophomore As a true freshman in 2017, Alexander Davis played quarterback in five games and started the last three games of the season for PSU. He led the team in passing yards with 1,233. Davis threw only one interception, while completing 90 of 157 passes for five touchdowns. In each of his three starts, Davis threw for more than 300 yards. He also ranked sixth on the team in rushing, carrying the ball 44 times for 120 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Davis hails from Gig Harbor, Washington, where he threw for 2,825 yards and 34 touchdowns as a high school senior in 2016.

Jason Talley, Running Back, 6'2", 230 lbs, Sophomore Jason Talley only started two games in 2017, but he played in all 11 and led the Vikings' offense in rushing with 388 yards on 97 carries. A true freshman, Talley ran in six touchdowns and had two receptions for a combined nine yards. Talley is Portland native, and his father played basketball for PSU. At Jesuit High School, Talley was a threetime All State selection. He rushed for 2,620 yards and 45 touchdowns as a senior in 2016.

Spencer Reed, Offensive Lineman, 6'3", 265 lbs, Junior The 2017 season will be Spencer Reed's first on the PSU roster. He started his career at San Diego State in 2015, before transferring to Moorpark College, where he was a team captain and started every game of the 2016 and 2017 seasons. Despite playing with a broken hand for most of 2017, Reed was named to the All-National Division Northern League second team offense. Coach Barnum says of the left-tackle from Thousand Oaks, California: "Spencer fills an immediate need of ours at offensive line. His aggressive style of play and his love of football is going to make a great addition to our offensive line."

Anthony Del Toro, Defensive Lineman, 6'2", 295 lbs, Junior As a true freshman, Anthony Del Toro was one of only three defensive players to start all 11 games of the 2016 season for the Vikings. Del Toro ranked third on the team in tackles with 33, and also had 2.5 sacks, two pass breakups and a forced fumble in 2016. The defensive lineman from Grants Pass, Oregon was named to the Hero Sports FCS All-Freshman Team. He missed two games in 2017 due to injury, but still played in nine and started seven. He ranked third in tackles among defensive lineman with 27, and also forced one fumble.

Sam Bodine, Linebacker, 6'2", 230 lbs, Senior After spending his freshman season on the scouting team while recovering from an ankle injury sustained during his senior year in high school, Sam Bodine made a big splash in his sophomore season in 2016, playing in all 11 games and starting six. The linebacker from Canby, Oregon ranked third on the Vikings in tackles, with 58 in 2016. In 2017, Bodine returned to his starting job, again playing all 11 games. He racked up 41 tackles and two pass breakups in 2017.

Kasun Jackett, Linebacker, 6'2", 225 lbs, Senior Before PSU, Kasun Jackett spent two seasons at Chaffey College, where he had 34 tackles, one sack and one fumble recovery as a sophomore in 2016. After transferring to PSU, Jackett started all 11 games of 2017 at middle linebacker. He led the team with 91 tackles on the season, and also logged one sack, two pass breakups and a fumble recovery. Jackett is from Eastvale, California, where he earned All-Conference honors as a senior at Norco High School in 2014.

Last year was bad for Portland State, their worst season since 1952. But with most of their best players returning to the team, and a new defensive coordinator to patch up the defensive line, the Vikings may pose a new threat in 2018. 2018

103

EASTERN WASHINGTON THE EAGLES PREVIEW

SEPTEMBER 29TH - GAME IS IN BOZEMAN, MT - BIG SKY CONFERENCE

Eastern Washington will enter 2018 with 32 players, the majority of whom are seniors returning to play for the Eagles. This includes 8 starters on defense and 9 starters on offense. Eastern closed the last season 7-4 overall and in a tie for third in the Big Sky Conference with a 6-2 record. It's the 11th-straight season the Eagles have finished 5-3 or better in the Big Sky. The Eagles also secured their record 11thstraight winning season and 20th in the last 22 years. The Eagles aren't making any major changes to their starting lineup,

viewing the upcoming season as a continuation of last year's success. "There are a lot of veterans, and that leads people to think we'll be better. Time will tell," admitted coach Aaron Best. "We've instilled in our team that we're a year older which should result in being bigger, stronger, faster and all those things, but we have to put in the work in the off-season and pre-season to be able to say those are the things we expect to be." But coach Best has a reason to stay steady. Last year 13 of his players played on the All-Conference team, and only 3 of them were seniors. This

season, however, the Eagles are a senior-heavy team. "This class is as big as our last two senior classes combined, so it is a different flavor this year," says Best. The Eagles will be training hard to replace the wave of seniors who will be leaving after the 2018 season. The Eagles have won 46 out of their total 56 Big Sky games, making them one of the winningest teams in the conference. Their greatest strength overall is their ability to play on the road, having lost their first away game in the conference only last year.

Aaron Best enters his second season as Head Coach for EWU, and his 21st year with the program overall. Coach Best joined the Eagles as a freshman in 1996, starting the final 22 games of his four-year playing career at center. He is the second EWU alumnus to wear the head coaching mantle in the past 50 years. Since his playing career, Best has filled various coaching and coordinating positions on the Eagles' staff, including offensive line coach for the past 9 years. In his 21 seasons at EWU, the Eagles have an overall record of 166-89. 104

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QUICK HITS Location: Cheney, WA Nickname: Eagles Founded: 1882. EWU is a public university with a largely-forested 300-acre campus just 17 miles from Spokane. The school was originally Benjamin P. Cheney Academy, named after the businessman who funded its foundation. Enrollment: The school has 13,453 students and an endowment of 18.5 million. Stadium: Stadium: Roos Field. The field was opened in 1967 but renovated in 2004 to accommodate 8,600 fans. In 2010 the university replaced the natural grass surface with its iconic red Sprin Turf.

Gage Gubrud, Quarterback, 6'2", 205 lbs, Redshirt Senior Gage Gubrud took over the starting quarterback job as a redshirt sophomore in 2016. That year, he broke 19 EWU records, seven Big Sky records, and three FCS records. The McMinnville, Oregon native threw for 5,160 yards and 48 touchdowns, averaging 368.6 yards per game. He set a school record for rushing yards by a quarterback with 606 on 134 carries. Gubrud was named the 2016 FCS Player of the Year. He saw more modest success in 2017, completing 261 of 422 passes for 3,342 yards and 26 touchdowns, and carrying the ball 82 times for 236 yards and five touchdowns. In 2017, Gubrud was named to the All-Big Sky Second Team offense, and nominated for FCS Player of the Year, though did not receive the award.

Antoine Custer Jr., Running Back, 5'9", 190 lbs, Junior As a true freshman in 2016, Antoine Custer Jr. started six games and played in all 13. He rushed for 416 yards and caught 27 passes for 187 yards and one touchdown, also returning 14 kickoffs for one touchdown and an average of 26.7 yards. In 2017, Custer led the Eagles with 789 rushing yards on 145 carries. He had 21 receptions for 276 yards and two touchdowns, and ranked second on the team in scoring, with 60 points. Custer also returned seven kickoffs for 125 yards total. The running back from Berkeley, California received Second Team All-Big Sky honors.

Nsimba Webster, Wide Receiver, 5'10", 180 lbs, Redshirt Senior After redshirting in 2014, Nsimba Webster finished the 2015 season with 772 all-purpose yards, playing in 10 games and starting one. As a redshirt junior, Webster missed six games because of a broken clavicle, but still finished the season with six catches for 64 yards and a pair of touchdowns, and 15 kickoff returns at an average of 25.3 yards. Webster returned for the 2017 season in good health, played in all 11 games, and finished second on the Eagles in receiving with 59 catches for 694 yards and five touchdowns. He also returned two kickoffs for a combined 55 yards. The wide receiver from Antioch, California was named to the ThirdTeam All-Big Sky offense.

Mitch Fettig, Defensive Back, 6'1", 200 lbs, Redshirt Senior A defensive lineman from Olympia, Washington, Mitch Fettig was recognized as EWUâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Freshman of the Year in 2015, after redshirting in 2014. In 2016, Fettig started all 14 games for the Eagles, ranking third on the team in tackles with 97. He also made four interceptions and five pass breakups, and earned an All-Big Sky Honorable Mention. In 2017, he returned as a starter at safety to lead the team with 92 tackles, in addition to three pass breakups. Fettig earned Third Team All-Big Sky honors and was named to the AllAcademic Team in 2017.

Kurt Calhoun, Linebacker, 6'2", 235 lbs, Redshirt Senior In 2015, Kurt Calhoun logged 18 tackles, two sacks and a pass breakup as a redshirt freshman, despite missing three games with a hamstring injury. As a sophomore, he missed six games due to hamstring problems. In the eight games he played in 2016, the the middle linebacker from Zillah, Washington made 30 tackles. In 2017, Calhoun played 10 of 11 games and ranked second on the Eagles in tackles with 73. He also had 1.5 sacks, three pass breakups and two forced fumbles. Calhoun has made the Big Sky Conference All-Academic Team for the past three years.

Keenan Williams, Defensive Lineman, 6'3", 255 lbs, Senior Starting nine of 11 games as a true freshman, Keenan Williams finished the 2015 season with 43 tackles, two sacks and two forced fumbles. Williams was named to the Big Sky Conference All-Academic team in both 2015 and 2016. Williams played 11 games in 2016, missing three due to an ankle injury. He finished his sophomore year with 18 tackles and one sack. Though listed as a backup at the start of the 2017 season, Williams played all 11 games, and ranked fourth on the Eagles in tackles with 55. He also had four sacks and broke up one pass.

The Eagles enter the 2018 season with a large number of returning seniors, keeping the core of their starting line intact. Among these veterans are 10 AllConference players. The team also has a strong record for away games. The Bobcats will have to fight hard to redeem last year's loss against the Eagles. 2018

105

UNIVERSITY OF IDAHO VANDALS PREVIEW

OCTOBER 13TH - GAME IS IN BOZEMAN, MT - BIG SKY CONFERENCE

The University of Idaho finished 4-8 overall in 2017, ranking 9th in the Sun Belt conference. The losing season was a disappointment after their success in 2016, when they ranked 2nd in Sun Belt and defeated Colorado State in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl. This season the team will be rebuilding after losing star running back Aaron Duckworth and starting Quarterback Matt Linehan. Head coach Paul Petrino seems especially focused on developing strong

quarterbacks. "Our number one goal is to get to the point that all three [quarterbacks] can win a game for us," said coach Petrino in a recent interview. Petrino brought on two new assistant coaches for the 2018 season: John Graham and Vernon Smith. Graham has 22 years of experience, most recently as defensive coordinator at Eastern Washington University. He will be coaching inside linebackers for the Vandals. Smith is coming from Northern Arizona, where he held

the position of defensive secondary coach. Top scorer Cade Coffey, kicker, will return as a sophomore. His record in the 2017 season marks him as a key offensive player. However, reports from spring scrimmages mark senior Kaden Elliss as a possible secret weapon. Last year he was a defensive lineman, but the Vandals have been trying him out at a variety of positions, including wide receiver and running back.

In 2016, Paul Petrino led the Vandals to their second winning season in nineteen years. The team finished 9-4 overall and won the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl. The momentum did not bleed over into 2017, when the Vandals went 4-8 overall and 3-5 in the Big Sky Conference. Coach Petrino was a two-time Kodak All-American quarterback at Carroll College, where his father Bob Petrino took the Fighting Saints to four conference titles as head coach. Paul spent 23 seasons as an assistant coach for various NCAA teams, and was on the Atlanta Falcons' coaching staff in 2007. The 2018 season will be Petrino's seventh as ISU head coach. 106

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QUICK HITS Location: Moscow, Idaho Nickname: Vandals Founded: 1889. The University of Idaho was the stateâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s flagship land grant research institution. The first graduating class in 1896 was comprised of only two men and two women. Enrollment: The school has 11,780 students and an endowment of 237.5 million. Stadium: Kibbie Dome. First opened in 1975, the multi-sport facility is home to basketball, tennis and track & field, as well as football. It has a maximum seating capacity of 16,000, and the playing field has a RealGrass Pro surface.

Cade Coffey, Kicker, 6'1", 191 lbs, Redshirt Sophomore In his 2017 debut as a redshirt freshman, Cade Coffey led the Vandals in scoring with 65 points, completing 12 of 17 field goal attempts and 29 of 30 extra point conversions. He was the fourth-ranked kicker in the Sun Belt and received All-Conference Second Team Special Teams honors. Coffey is from Rathdrum, Idaho where he played football and soccer at Lakeland High School and earned First Team All-State honors his junior and senior years. As a high-school senior in 2016, he made seven of eight field goal attempts, including one 57-yard field goal in a state playoff game. He also connected on 23 of 25 extra-point conversions.

David Ungerer, Wide Receiver, 5'9", 171 lbs, Senior As a true freshman in 2014, David Ungerer played in 10 of 11 games, catching eight passes for 96 yards and returning 10 punts for 65 yards. He was injured in the 2015 season opener and took a redshirt, returning to action in all 11 games in 2016. That season he caught six passes for 27 yards. In 2017, Ungerer started nine games and played in all 12. He ranked third on the Vandals in both receiving and scoring, with 39 catches for 432 yards and 6 touchdowns. The Pullman, Washington native also returned 12 punts for 78 yards total and two kickoffs for a combined 34 yards.

Noah Johnson, Offensive Lineman, 6'4", 300 lbs, Junior A sizable member of the Vandals' offensive line, Noah Johnson stepped into a starting position as a true freshman in 2016. He played in 10 of 11 games, starting every game he played. Johnson was named to the Sun Belt Conference's All-Newcomer Team in 2016. In 2017, Johnson started all 12 games, and received All-Sun Belt Second Team honors. He is from Fayetteville, Arkansas, where he was a 7A West Outstanding Offensive Lineman at Fayetteville High School and a two-time AllState selection.

Tony Lashley, Linebacker, 6'1", 235 lbs, Redshirt Senior In 2014, Tony Lashley started four times as a redshirt freshman and played in seven of the team's 11 games, racking up a total of 21 tackles on the season. His sophomore year was cut short due to injury after three games, in which he made a total of 10 tackles. 2016 was Lashley's breakout season. He played all 13 games and led the team with 107 tackles, adding one sack, two fumble recoveries and one blocked kick. The linebacker from Kansas City, Missouri received an All-Sun Belt Honorable Mention in 2016. Lashley led both the Vandals and the league in tackles in 2017 with 123 total, in addition to two sacks, one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery. He earned First Team All-Sun Belt honors, and the Vandals named him their 2017 Defensive MVP.

Kaden Elliss, Line Backer, 6'3", 240 lbs, Senior Since his impressive debut as a true freshman in 2015, Kaden Elliss has been a dominant force on the Vandals' defense. He played in 12 of 13 games and ranked second on the team with 83 tackles and one sack in 2015. Elliss finished 2016 with 65 tackles, three sacks and five interceptions, one of which he returned for a touchdown. As a junior, the linebacker from Salt Lake City, Utah continued to dominate on defense, starting all 12 games and ranking second on the team in total tackles with 80. He also had six interceptions, four pass breakups, two forced fumbles and one blocked kick. On top of that, Elliss saw action at tight end for the Vandals' offense, catching seven passes for 156 yards and two touchdowns. He was named to the 2017 AllSun Belt Second Team Defense.

Jalen Hoover, Defensive Back, 5'10", 185 lbs, Sophomore Jalen Hoover began his Idaho career with a bang, starting 10 games in 2017 and playing in all 12. Hoover ranked fifth on the team in tackles with 51 total, in addition to a pair of interceptions. The defensive back hails from Brandon, Mississippi, where he ran track and played football at Northwest Rankin High School. As a senior, he made 46 tackles, three interceptions, five pass breakups, two forced fumbles and one fumble recovery. He received First Team All State honors in 2016.

The Vandals are still recovering from the losing 2017 season. The team is being overhauled, with two new assistant coaches and several new recruits. The coaches have been exploring alternate positions for some of the top players, attempting to fully utilize the team's abilities. 2018

107

WEBER STATE UNIVERSITY

WILDCATS PREVIEW

OCTOBER 20TH - GAME IS IN OGDEN, UT - BIG SKY CONFERENCE

2017 was the best season in Weber State history. The Wildcats won the Big Sky Conference title, won a school-record 11 games, won two games in the FCS Playoffs and were ranked in the top five in the nation, the highest ranking in school history. Head coach Jay Hill will return in 2018 as the winningest coach in Wildcat History. Weber State also had eight players earn All-American honors, the most ever, and had 17 players earn Big Sky All-Conference

honors, including a league-best eight on the first team. Weber State finished in the top 10 in the country in interceptions, turnovers gained and red zone defense. The Wildcats led the Big Sky in total defense, scoring defense, rushing defense, interceptions, pass efficiency defense and red zone defense. In 2017, eight Wildcats earned All-American honors, the most in a season in WSU history. Taron Johnson and Andrew Vollert were consensus All-Americans with

Xequille Harry, Brady May, Iosua Opeta, Rashid Shaheed, LeGrand Toia and Trey Tuttle also earning All-America honors. Hill will be joined by assistant coach Joe Dale, who will also coach the safeties. The two have a long relationship dating back to 2006 when Hill recruited Dale to play for the University of Utah. "[Dale] knows our defense and the techniques that we use, and I think he'll do a phenomenal job in recruiting. He will be a great fit in our program," says Hill.

Jay Hill returns for his fifth season of service as both head coach and defensive coordinator for the Wildcats, having led WSU to three-straight winning seasons and back-to-back FCS Playoff appearances. His career record at WSU is 26-23 overall. In the last three seasons, Hill has posted a 24-13 record and an 18-6 mark in Big Sky play. Previously, Hill spent 13 years as an assistant coach at the University of Utah, where he earned Defensive MVP honors as a cornerback under the legendary Ron McBride. 108

Bobcat Football Magazine

QUICK HITS Location: Ogden, Utah Nickname: Wildcats Founded: 1889. The public university was founded by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints. WSU became an accredited college in 1962. Enrollment: The school has 24,048 students and an endowment of 110.6 million dollars. Stadium: Stewart Stadium. Formerly Wildcat Stadium, the outdoor, multi-purpose arena was renamed in 1998 for a notable school benefactor. As early as the 1950â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s, the stadium was used for track and field. It was expanded in 1966 and has a current seating capacity of 17,312. The field has a synthetic turf playing field.

Trey Tuttle, Kicker, 5'9", 190 lbs, Sophomore 2017 was an astonishing debut for true freshman kicker Trey Tuttle. The Arlington, Texas native played all 14 games, leading both the Wildcats and the Big Sky conference in scoring with 116 points, the fourth-most points in a single season in school history. He connected on 19 of 22 field goal attempts, tying a WSU single-season record, in addition to 53 of 54 extra-point conversions. Tuttle also rushed for 12 yards and a touchdown on a faked field goal in WSU's win over Idaho State. Nationally, Tuttle finished the season ranked second in total field goals, fourth in field goal percentage, and ninth in field goals per game. He received First Team All-Big Sky honors as well as First Team All-America from the AFCA.

Rashid Shaheed, Wide Receiver, 6'0", 170 lbs, Sophomore True freshman Rashid Shaheed played in all 14 games and was the Wildcats' third ranking receiver with 25 catches for 545 yards and three touchdowns. He placed sixth in scoring and fifth in rushing, carrying the ball 16 times for 134 yards and one touchdown. Shaheed also returned 25 kickoffs for 743 yards and two touchdowns, finishing fourth in the nation and setting a WSU single-season record with a return average of 29.7 yards. Shaheed was the only freshman to make the 2017 FCS ADA AllAmerica team, and the first Wildcat ever to do so. In addition to First Team All-America honors, the receiver from San Diego, California, also earned a spot on the All-Big Sky First Team.

Treshawn Garrett, Running Back, 5'11", 200 lbs, Senior In 2015, Treshawn Garrett started six games and played in all 11 as a true freshman, finishing second on the team in rushing with 123 carries for 562 yards and five touchdowns. He led the team as a sophomore with 531 yards and five touchdowns on 128 carries, and also had eight receptions for 57 yards. Garrett spearheaded the Wildcats' rushing game again in 2017, with 698 yards and six touchdowns on 129 carries, in addition to one kickoff return for 19 yards. The running back from Palmdale, California earned All-Big Sky Third Team recognition.

Legrand Toia, Linebacker, 6'2", 215 lbs, Redshirt Senior A linebacker from Riverton, Utah, Legrand Toia played in all 11 games as a redshirt freshman in 2015, finishing the season with 26 tackles and one sack. He started nine games and again played all 11 in 2016, finishing fourth on the team in tackles with 74, in addition to a forced fumble, three pass breakups and one sack. In 2017, Toia started 13 games for the Wildcats, leading the team in tackles with 79 and sacks with five. He was recognized with First Team All-Big Sky honors and named to the AllAmerica Second Team by the AFCA.

Jonah Williams, Defensive End, 6'5", 270 lbs, Junior As a true freshman in 2016, Jonah Williams started all 12 games for the Wildcats and logged 53 tackles, two sacks, and a blocked field goal. He was named to the Hero Sports FCS All-Freshman Team. In 2017, the Meridian, Idaho native finished second on the team and 10th in the Big Sky Conference in sacks, with 5.5. He played in all 14 games and started 12, recording 37 tackles on the season, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery. In the Wildcats' road win against Sacramento State, Williams blocked a punt and returned the ball 31 yards for a touchdown. He received Second-Team All-Big Sky honors and a slot on the All-Academic team.

Jordan Preator, Defensive Back, 6'0", 195 lbs, Senior Jordan Preator, from Plain City, Utah, spent his first three seasons at Brigham Young University, where he played a total of 21 games as a redshirted freshman and sophomore, registering 43 tackles, one sack, two forced fumbles and two interceptions. Preator sat out the 2016 season after transferring to WSU. In 2017, he played in all 13 games as a safety and ranked fourth on the team with 41 tackles. Preator also had one sack, and one interception which he returned 23 yards for a touchdown. He was named to the All-Big Sky Second Team Defense.

The Wildcats enter 2018 as defenders of the Big Sky championship. The team consistently produces all-conference and All-American players, so returning and new players will be hungry to prove themselves in the upcoming season. Star kicker Trey Tuttle is returning as a sophomore after leading the conference in scoring in 2017. Many key players graduated after last season, but the team has several strong players who came on as true freshmen and are just getting started. All of this points to an exciting clash at Weber State this October. 2018

109

IDAHO STATE UNIVERSITY

BENGALS PREVIEW OCTOBER 27

- GAME IS IN POCATELLO, ID - BIG SKY CONFERENCE

The Bengals went 4-7 overall and 2-6 in the Big Sky, to finish with a three-way tie for 9th place in 2017, an improvement on the last two seasons' 2-9 record. They haven't had a winning season since 2014 when they finished 8-4 and tied for 2nd place in the Big Sky Conference. Their overall record against the Bobcats is 28-42, including their loss in 2017.

Offensive coordinator Matt Troxel is transferring to Oregon State and will be replaced by Mike Ferriter, who will also coach quarterbacks. Another addition to the offensive coaching staff is Roman Sapolu, who will direct the offensive line. Three star players are leaving Idaho State bound for the NFL, seniors Skyler Phillips, Mario

Jenkins and JonRyheem Peoples. But the Bengals' leading scorer Ty Flanagan will return as a redshirt junior. Brothers Tanner and Mitch Gueller return as key components of the Bengal offense. Tanner threw for a total of 22 touchdowns last semester, eight of which were caught by Mitch.

2017 marked Rob Phenicie's head coaching debut, and his fourth season overall with ISU. A former University of Montana offensive coordinator, Phenicie spent two seasons as a wide receiversâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; coach and Assistant Head Coach for the Offense before taking the reins last year. His Bengals saw mixed results, finishing 4-7 overall and 2-6 in the Big Sky conference in 2017. Phenicie returns to the head coaching job in 2018, with ambitions to lead the Bengals to their first winning season since 2014. 110

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QUICK HITS Location: Pocatello, Idaho Nickname: Bengals Founded: 1901. The university began as Idaho State Academy, established on privately donated land. Enrollment: The school has 12,643 students and an endowment of 315.8 million. Stadium: Holt Arena. The indoor, multi-sport stadium open in 1970, and has a current seating capacity of of 12,000. It is the oldest enclosed stadium on a college campus in the U.S. The surface of the playing field is SoftTop Matrix.

Ty Flanagan, Running Back, 5'10", 190 lbs, Redshirt Junior Las Vegas, Nevada native Ty Flanagan played in 10 games for the Bengals as a redshirt freshman in 2016. He ran the ball 40 times for 121 yards, caught 10 passes for 89 yards, and returned a pair of kickoffs for 45 yards. In 2017, the running back returned to play in nine of 11 games, and led the Bengals in scoring with 66 points. Flanagan ranked second in rushing with 933 yards and six touchdowns on 185 carries. He also caught 18 passes for 120 yards. He earned an All-Big Sky Honorable Mention in 2017.

Tanner Gueller, Quarterback, 6'3", 235 lbs, Redshirt Senior As a redshirt freshman in 2015, Tanner Gueller appeared in 10 games, starting once, and completed 92 of 172 passes for 855 yards and five touchdowns. He also rushed for 27 yards on 28 carries. In 2016, Gueller played 10 games and threw for 2,351 yards and 20 touchdowns, completing 235 of 404 pass attempts, also carrying the ball 63 times for 155 yards. The quarterback form Rochester, Washington returned in 2017 to play in all 11 games. He connected on 188 of 325 passes for 2,754 yards and 22 touchdowns. Gueller also scrambled 87 times for 107 total rushing yards and one touchdown.

Mitch Gueller, Wide Receiver, 6'3", 220 lbs, Junior Mitch Gueller, elder brother to ISU quarterback Tanner Gueller, had not played football since his sophomore year in high school in 2011, when he signed on with the Bengals in 2016. Mitch was a 2012 first-round draft pick by the Philadelphia Phillies major league baseball team, where he played three seasons before being released. Tanner convinced Mitch to join him at ISU, where Mitch immediately made an impact, playing all 11 games as a true freshman in 2016 and catching 36 passes for 509 yards and three touchdowns. He was also named to the 2016 Big Sky AllAcademic team. In 2017, Mitch appeared in nine games and ranked second in receptions, with 36 catches for 871 yards and eight touchdowns. Tanner was named to the 2017 All-Big Sky First Team and the Big Sky All-Academic team

Adkin Aguirre, Defensive Back, 5'10", 180 lbs, Redshirt Junior A running back in high school, Adkin Aguirre arrived at ISU in 2015, taking a redshirt year to transition to the defensive backfield. In his 2016 debut, Aguirre saw action in all 11 games as a defensive back and on kick teams. He registered 20 tackles and one fumble recovery. From Brawley, CA, Aguirre returned to play in all 11 games again in 2017, ranking second on the Bengals' defense in tackles, with 80 total. He led the team with five interceptions and had two recovered fumbles and three pass breakups.

Joe Martin, Linebacker, 6'0", 210 lbs, Redshirt Senior After redshirting for his first season in 2014, Joe Martin appeared in eight games in 2016, recording 16 tackles, one pass breakup and one fumble recovery. In 2016, he appeared in 11 games and had 88 tackles, as well as three interceptions and two pass breakups. As a redshirt junior, he ranked third on the team in tackles with 69, despite playing in only seven games. He also logged one interception and broke up one pass. The linebacker from Spanaway, Washington received an All-Big Sky Conference Honorable Mention in 2017.

Kody Graves, Linebacker, 6'1", 225 lbs, Redshirt Junior A native of Nampa, Idaho, Kody Graves is one of three brothers to play football for ISU. His career with the Bengals began in 2015, when Kody saw limited action in all 11 games, both at linebacker and on special teams. He registered 13 tackles on the year and made the Big Sky All-Academic team. After losing the bid for a starting position in the 2016 spring camp to older players, Graves took a redshirt year. He returned in 2017 to play in all eleven games, ranking fourth on the team in tackles with 58, as well as one sack, and forced fumbles.

Idaho State has been on a losing streak since 2014 and there's no sign of it ending any time soon. With a 28-42 record against the Bobcats and the loss of three important players and an offensive coordinator, the chances of a Bengal win seem thin. 2018

111

CAL POLY MUSTANGS PREVIEW NOVEMBER 3

- GAME IS IN BOZEMAN, MT - BIG SKY CONFERENCE

2017 was the worst year in recent memory for Cal Poly. The Mustangs went 1-10 overall and 1-7 in the Big Sky, certainly since joining the Big Sky conference in 2012. Their only win was against Portland State, who went 0-11. It was the the worst year in Mustang football since 1960, when a tragic plane crash in Ohio killed 16 team members and forced the university to cancel the last 3 games of the season, leaving them with a 1-5 record. Against Northern Colorado last year, Cal Poly gave up four touchdowns

in the second and third quarters on the way to a 42-0 blowout loss at Nottingham Field in Greeley. The shutout marked the first time Cal Poly has been held scoreless since a 63-0 loss to Nevada in 1998â&#x20AC;&#x201D;a span of 217 games. The Mustangs averaged just 18 points per game in 2017. "I think for the first nine weeks our effort was tremendous, and I couldn't have been more proud of our players," Cal Poly head coach Tim Walsh said. But their fortunes changed in game two with the loss of

All-American fullback Joe Protheroe. This key player was benched by a knee injury for the remainder of the season, a fate which would also befall junior quarterback Khaleel Jenkins just three weeks later. "You have to be willing to start all over and do it again and probably not be very successful again, and maybe for one or two years," coach Walsh said. "Do you say, 'We had one bad year, we are flipping everything?' That's not a good business plan."

In his 27 years as an NCAA head coach, Tim Walsh has never had a season as bad as 2017. The Mustangs went 1-10 overall in 2017 and finished 12th in the Big Sky with a conference record of 1-7. Their only victory came against Portland State, who suffered a winless 2017. The season-ending shutout loss at Northern Colorado tipped Walsh's career winning percentage at Cal Poly below 50%. Walsh enters his 10th season at Cal Poly with a 51-52 overall record, looking to resuscitate his legacy as Cal Poly's 16th Head Coach. 112

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QUICK HITS Location: San Luis Obispo, CA Nickname: Mustangs Founded: 1903. The school was founded by Governor Henry T. Gage as a result of a campaign for the creation of a state college in the area lead by journalist Myron Angel. Enrollment: The school has 20,994 students and an endowment of 209.8 million. Stadium: Alex. G. Spanos Stadium. Opened in 1935 under the name Mustang Stadium, the multi-sport complex has a seating capacity of 11, 075. The Mustangs hosted an average of 8,566 at their home games in 2017. The playing field surface is natural grass.

Khaleel Jenkins, Quarterback, 6'2", 214 lbs, Senior Hailing from San Diego, California, Khaleel Jenkins spent first two seasons as a backup signal-caller. In 2016, he played in three games as a true freshman, making one start completing just three of 16 passes for a total of 59 yards, but rushing for an additional 97 yards and one touchdown on 18 carries. As a sophomore in 2016, Jenkins saw limited action in four games, attempted one pass for an incompletion and rushed once for a two-yard gain. In 2017, he played in seven games and threw for 597 yards and eight touchdowns, completing 28 of 66 pass attempts. He was also the Mustangs' second-ranking rusher, carrying the ball 96 times for 377 yards and four touchdowns. Jenkins will compete for the job of starting quarterback in 2018.

Joe Protheroe, Fullback, 6'0", 230 lbs, Redshirt Senior Joe Protheroe played in all 12 games as a true freshman in 2014, rushing for 184 yards and two touchdowns on 29 carries. In 2015, Protheroe played in nine games and ran the ball 169 times for 779 yards and six touchdowns, without taking a single loss of yards on a carry, earning himself a slot on the 2015 All-Big Sky First-Team offense. In 2016, Protheroe became the 20th player in Cal Poly history to rush for over 1,000 yards in a single season. He carried the ball 252 times and led the Mustangs with 1,334 total rushing yards and 13 touchdowns, in addition to seven receptions for 139 yards and two touchdowns. Protheroe was named Cal Poly MVP, First-Team All-Big Sky, and First-Team All America by STATS FCS and Hero Sports. After suffering an injury early in 2017, Protheroe used a redshirt in order to be eligible for the 2018 season.

J.J. Koski, Wide Receiver, 6'2", 200 lbs, Redshirt Junior After taking a redshirt season in 2015, J.J. Koski started all 12 games in his 2016 debut at wide receiver for the Mustangs. He made 18 catches for 323 yards and three touchdowns in 2016. In 2017, he played in all 11 games and led the Mustangs in receiving yards with 454 total. He scored three touchdowns and returned 10 punts for 14 yards total. Koski is from Danville, California, where he started for three years on varsity for San Ramon Valley High School, with a career total of 161 receptions for 2,589 yards and 30 touchdowns. He was team captain and MVP in 2014.

Jayson Lee, Linebacker, 6'0", 205 lbs, Junior Jayson Lee, from Oakhurst, California played running back in high school but transitioned to linebacker at Cal Poly. In 2016, he started five games and saw action in nine, as the only true freshman to play for the Mustangs that season. He registered 22 tackles on the year. Lee returned to play in all 11 games in 2017, ranking third on the team in tackles with 60 total. He also had one fumble recovery and one pass breakup. With their top two defensive players graduating in 2017, Lee will be the top returning linebacker, and a veteran starter for the Wildcats.

Kitu Humphrey, Defensive Back, 5'10", 185 lbs, Junior In 2014, Kitu Humphrey earned First-Team AllMoore League honors and registered 94 tackles as a senior at Long Beach Poly High School. He signed with Cal Poly in 2015 and used a redshirt during that season. In his 2016 debut, Humphrey started 11 games and played in all 12. He finished the year with 46 tackles, one interception, and one kickoff return for 19 yards. As a sophomore, Humphrey ranked sixth on the Mustangs in tackles with 48 total. He tied for the most interceptions on the team with two, returned for a combined 12 yards. He also had one sack and recovered one fumble recovery, which he returned for three yards.

Mark Reza, Defensive Back, 6'0", 187 lbs, Redshirt Junior The brother of Matt Reza, a former defensive back for Cal Poly, Mark Reza is a graduate of Edison High School in his home town of Huntington Beach, California. He was named First-Team All-Sunset League for his services as a cornerback in his 2014 high-school senior year. Reza began his college career at Orange Coast Community College in 2016. He redshirted his first season in 2015. In 2016, Reza made 34 tackles and five interceptions, one of which he returned for a touchdown. After transferring to Cal Poly, Reza played in all 11 games for the Mustangs' defense. He ranked seventh on the team in tackles with 41 total, in addition to two interceptions and six pass breakups.

The Mustangs will be rearing to redeem themselves after 2017's flop of a season. Although last year marked a definite low point for veteran head coach Tim Walsh, he remains firm with his tactics. Montana State didn't play Cal Poly last year, but the game in November could be an easy Bobcat win if the Mustangs can't improve on their 2017 performance. 2018

113

NORTHERN COLORADO THE BEARS PREVIEW

QUICK HITS

NOVEMBER 10TH - GAME IS IN BOZEMAN, MT - BIG SKY CONFERENCE

The UNC Bears finished 2017 with a 3-7 record, their first losing season since 2014. Despite this disappointing statistic, the Bears were able to close out the season with a 42-0 trouncing of Cal Poly. Returning head coach Earnest Collins Jr. will be bringing back defensive coordinator Marty English, a former UNC linebacker who began his nearly 30-year career as a graduate assistant for the Bears. "I have played and coached for Marty and now it will

be fun to flip those roles. The last time we coached together, we had a pretty salty defense. I am looking forward to having his mind in the fold on our defense and getting our team better," says coach Collins. The Bears' top scorer, kicker Collin Root, will be returning as a junior in 2018. Root went 11-14 in field goals as the only goal kicker on the team in 2017. Joining him will be seniors Jacob Knipp, quarterback, and Alex Wesley, wide receiver, who led the team in passing and

receiving, respectively. "We made some changes over the offseason and you could see it all coming together," says Collins. Thirty new recruits will join the Bears and, he hopes, bring a revitalizing element into the 2018 season. "We focused on adding size and speed to our roster this year. We saw the way the game is moving and know you need that size in the trenches and speed out in space."

Head coach Earnest Collins Jr. enters his eighth season, holding an overall record of 23-53 with the Bears. Collins, who played for UNC himself from 1991 to 1994 and earned All-Conference recognition, holds the school record for career punt-return yards with a whopping 978 total. In 2015, Coach Collins led the Bears to their first winning season in 12 years. The team went 6-5 in 2016, but endured a disappointing 2017, finishing the season 3-7 overall and 2-6 in conference play. 114

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Location: Greeley, Colorado Nickname: Bears Founded: 1890. The school began as Colorado State Normal School to train teachers for the stateâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s public schools. Enrollment: The school has 12,260 students and an endowment of 81.49 million. Stadium: Nottingham Field. Opened in 1995, the multi-sport stadium seats 8,500 and has the only natural grass field surface in the Big Sky Conference. UNC has won two Division II National Football Titles at Nottingham Field.

Trae Riek, Running Back, 5'11", 200 lbs, Redshirt Junior After a redshirted 2014 season, Riek played in eight games his 2015 debut season, and set a school record for single-season rushing for a freshman with 736 yards and three touchdowns on 147 carries. He was the Bears' go-to running back in 2016, though only playing in seven games. He carried the ball 126 times for 736 yards and three touchdowns, and also caught 10 passes for 195 yards. In 2017, the Palm Desert, California native played nine of 10 games and led the Bears in rushing, with 523 yards and six touchdowns on 131 carries. He also caught 14 passes for 110 yards.

Alex Wesley, Wide Receiver, 6'0", 170 lbs, Redshirt Senior In 2014, Alex Wesley, a dual-sport athlete from Murphy, Texas, redshirted in football but ran track and field for the Bears, qualifying for the NCAA West Regionals in the 400-meter dash. He became a starting receiver in 2015, catching 17 passes for 282 yards and two touchdowns, and continued to compete in track, finishing second in the 400-meter at the Big Sky Indoor Championships. Wesley played in all 10 games in 2017 and led the Bears in receiving with 55 catches for 1,010 yards and six touchdowns, tying Trae Riek for second highestscoring player on the team. He received Second Team All-Big Sky honors.

Conor Regan, Quarterback 6'3", 205 lbs, Redshirt Junior A native of Santa Maria, California, Conor Regan spent his first season after graduating from Righetti High School high school as a redshirt at Ventura College. In 2016, he served as backup quarterback and saw action in seven games, finishing his redshirt freshman season with 11 complete passes out 19 attempts, for 128 total yards and a pair of touchdowns. Regan transferred to UNC in time to play nine of 10 games for the Bears. After senior quarterback Jacob Knipp suffered a career-ending shoulder injury in the Bears' home loss to North Dakota on October 7, Regan took over the starting role for the remaining five games of the season. He connected on 91 of 182 pass attempts for 1,305 yards and 10 touchdowns, while throwing just six interceptions. He also scrambled 22 times for a net of 67 yards and one touchdown.

Keifer Morris, Defensive End, 6'4", 250 lbs, Redshirt Senior Following a redshirt in 2014, Keifer Morris earned himself a slot at defensive end in 2015. He finished the year with 50 tackles, 4.5 sacks and one pass breakup, and led the team in tackles for loss with 38 yards total. In his redshirt sophomore season, Morris played in 10 of 11 games, and finished 2016 with 42 tackles, broke up two passes, and forced one fumble. He saw action in all 10 games for UNC in 2017, leading the Bears with nine sacks for a total of 42 yards loss. His season total of 63 tackles was the fifth-highest on the team, and he also forced two fumbles and broke up one pass. From Parker, Colorado, Morris received Third Team All-Big Sky honors in 2017.

Marshaun Cameron, Cornerback, 5'10", 185 lbs, Redshirt Junior Marshaun Cameron, hailing from Los Angeles, California, arrived at UNC in 2015, spending his first season as a redshirt after earning All-Conference and All-State recognition as a senior at Cathedral High School. The cornerback made a successful debut in 2016, finishing his redshirt freshman season with 76 tackles, one forced fumble, two fumble recoveries and two pass breakups. He also returned a kickoff for 62 yards. In 2017, Cameron played in all 10 games, recording the sixth most tackles on the team with 61 total, as well as 11 pass breakups and two interceptions, one of which he returned 21 yards for a touchdown against Southern Utah. Additionally, Cameron returned one punt and five kickoffs for a combined 97 yards. His redshirt sophomore performance earned him an All-Big Sky Honorable Mention in 2017.

Henry Stelzner, Linebacker, 6'1", 210 lbs, Senior After lettering in baseball and football at Montgomery High School in Santa Rosa, California, Henry Stelzner signed on at Santa Rosa Junior College in 2015, where he saw limited action as a true freshman. In 2016, he led the team with 68 tackles, two sacks and one interception return for a touchdown. Stelzner was named CCCAA Defensive Player of the Year in addition to First Team All-Conference honors. Transferring to UNC for his junior season, Stelzner played in all 10 games and finished third with the Bears in total tackles, notching 83 on the season. Stelzner also had one sack and one fumble recovery. He received a 2017 All-Big Sky Honorable Mention.

The Bears lost to the Bobcats in 2017, but the margin was thin, with a final score of 27-24. Many of the team's best players are returning in 2018, and coach Collins is focused on boosting the team with size and speed. Everything points to an exciting rematch in Bozeman this November. 2018

115

U OF MONTANA THE GRIZZLIES PREVIEW

NOVEMBER 17TH - GAME IS IN MISSOULA, MT - BIG SKY CONFERENCE

The Bobcats clobbered the Griz at last year's showdown, which finished with a final score of 31-23. However, the Griz had a winning 7-4 season overall, going 5-3 in the Big Sky Conference and 2-1 in non-conference games. "It's disappointing," now-former head coach Bob Stitt said of the loss to MSU. "You have to give them credit because they played very well," he admitted. Bobby Hauck returns to the head coaching position in 2018, having signed a contract with the Griz through 2020. His first run was in 2003-09, holding the record as

one of the winningest coaches in Griz history. Barry Sacks, the new defensive line coach, is also making a return to the University of Montana, his alma mater. Other changes to staff include C.J. Cox, cornerback coach, and Timm Rosenbach as offensive coordinator, a position he held for one year in 2012.

ball thrown to you, you have to make a play," said Hauck.

The Griz leaned heavily on their game in 2017, and we can expect more of the same with the return of star quarterback Gresch Jenson, a sophomore. "I think that's a strength of this team is the receiving corps. When you got the

Of the 26 new signees who will join the Griz in 2018, 13 hail from Montana. "We have a lot of Montana kids, a lot of size, and big frame guys. It was a good haul for us and would lend you to say the future is bright for Grizzly football," says Hauck.

Lead scorer, junior kicker Brandon Purdy, and senior running back Jeremy Calhoun will also return to the offensive team. Purdy went 15-17 for field-goals, and Calhoun tied for most touchdowns for the Griz in 2017.

(3-5 Big Sky Conference, 6-5 overall in 2016)

Bobby Hauck returns to Missoula for his 30th coaching season. During his first stint as UM head coach, Hauck led the Grizzlies to seven straight Big Sky championships and an overall record of 80-17 from 2003 to 2009. Including his five-year tenure at UNLV from 2010 to 2014, Hauck is the winningest coach in Big Sky Conference history in total victories, winning percentage, and championships. Hauck's UM offenses dominated the running game, outscoring their opponents by a total of 1,284 points in his 97 games as head coach. 116

Bobcat Football Magazine

QUICK HITS Location: Missoula, Montana Nickname: Grizzlies Founded: 1895. The University of Montana, located at the base of Mount Sentinel in Missoula, was founded only six years after the state was admitted to the Union. Enrollment: The school has 11,865 students and an endowment of 176.9 million. Stadium: Washington-Grizzly Stadium. Since the stadium opened in 1986, the Griz have had an overall home record of 194-29. The stadiumâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s seating capacity is 25,217. In 2017, the Griz hosted an average of 25,377 fans at their home games. The playing surface is Field Turf.

Jeremy Calhoun, Running Back, 6'0", 213 lbs, Senior As a true freshman, Jeremy Calhoun launched an impressive 2015 campaign for the Griz. He finished the year ranked second on the team in rushing with 291 yards on 100 carries, setting a school record for single-season rushing yardage by a true freshman. The running back from Long Beach, California is the brother of UM receiver Justin Calhoun, a redshirt junior. Jeremy played in all 10 games as a sophomore, again finishing second on the team in rushing with 555 yards and nine touchdowns on 77 carries. He had 10 receptions for 75 yards and one touchdown. As a junior, he played in all 11 games and led the Griz with 684 rushing yards and seven touchdowns on 158 carries, in addition to 13 receptions for 84 yards. Jeremy earned an All-Big Sky Honorable Mention in 2017.

Gresch Jensen, Quarterback, 6'2", 218 lbs, Redshirt Sophomore The son of two UM alumni, Gresch Jensen from Auburn, Washington made a remarkable debut as a redshirted freshman in 2017. When senior quarterback Reese Phillips suffered a careerending broken fibula in the third game of season against Savannah State, Jensen stepped into the role of starting signal-caller. He played in 10 of 11 games, completing 177 of 294 pass attempts for 2,531 total yards and 20 touchdowns. Though he threw 10 interceptions, Jensen finished the year with an efficiency rating of 148.2, nearly identical to Phillips' 148.7 rating in the first three games of 2017. Additionally, Jensen was the Grizzlies' third leading rusher, carrying the ball 53 times for a net 203 yards and six touchdowns.

Brandon Purdy, Kicker, 5'10", 182 lbs, Redshirt Junior A Kalispell, Montana native, Brandon Purdy was a two-year letter-winner in football at Glacier High School, and a four-year letter-winner in soccer. Purdy served as backup kicker for the Griz in 2016 as a redshirted freshman. He played in five games, scoring on 12 of 13 extra point attempts and making two of three field goal attempts, with a season long from 38 yards. He returned as a starter in 2017 to play in all 11 games. Purdy was the Grizzlies' leading scorer, hitting 44 of 47 extra point attempts and 15 of 17 field goal attempts, with a season long of 47 yards. His 88.2% field goal accuracy led the Big Sky, and his 89 points ranked third in the conference. Purdy was named to the 2017 All-Big Sky Third-Team Offense.

Josh Buss, Linebacker, 6'2", 220 lbs, Redshirt Senior Following a 2014 redshirt, Josh Buss saw snaps in 12 games and posted 18 tackles on the 2015 season. The following year the outside linebacker from Boise, Idaho led the Griz with 81 tackles as a redshirt sophomore in 2016. That year he was the Steve Carlson Defensive MVP for UM, and was named to the HERO SPORTS FCS Sophomore Defensive All-America First Team as well as the All-Big Sky Third Team Defense. Buss returned to play 11 of 12 games in 2017, ranking second on the team and fifth in the conference with 94 total tackles. He posted 5.5 sacks and two interceptions, earning All-Big Sky Second Team recognition.

Josh Sandry, Safety, 6'1", 203 lbs, Redshirt Junior The grandson of former UM quarterback Bruce Olson, Bigfork, Montana native Josh Sandry joined the Griz in 2015, taking a redshirt after two straight years as MVP and team captain of the Bigfork High School Vikings. Sandry played in 11 games in 2016, registering 30 tackles, 1.5 sacks, one pass breakup, and one fumble recovery. As a redshirt sophomore, Sandry played all 11 games at safety in 2017, racking up the fifthmost tackles on the team with 49 total. He also forced a fumble, blocked a kick, and made three interceptions, returned for 114 combined yards and one touchdown.

Chris Favoroso, Defensive End, 6'3", 245 lbs, Redshirt Junior A redshirt freshman in 2015, Chris Favoroso began his college career at Appalachian State University, but transferred to Arizona Western College for his 2016 debut at defensive end. Favoroso led AWC with 65 tackles and 10.5 sacks on the year, helping the Matadors to the Junior College National Championship game and earning All-WSFL First Team recognition. Hailing from Port St Lucie, Florida, Favoroso transferred to UM to play in all 11 games in 2017. He ranked seventh on the Griz in tackles, notching 44 on the season, in addition to six sacks, one pass breakup and one forced fumble.

The Bobcats will face off with the Griz in Missoula this November as holders of the coveted Great Divide trophy, defending a two-year winning streak. Key players on Griz offense will return in 2018, signaling a continuation of their dominant passing game, and major changes in staff and team will make the Griz a fresh threat. 2018

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NORTHERN ARIZONA THE LUMBERJACKS PREVIEW The Lumberjacks went 7-5 overall last season, 6-2 in conference games and 1-3 in non-conference games. They made it to the first round of the FCS playoffs but were shut down 41-10 by the University of San Diego.

Star Quarterback Case Cookus will return for his junior year. In 2017 Cookus threw for a total of 3,413 yards and 22 touchdowns. He made his way to first position quarterback on the Big Sky All-Star team for his

second time, alongside three fellow Lumberjacks The Lumberjacks play a fairly balanced game. Out of their 42 touchdowns in 2017, 18 were from rushing and 24 from passing plays. Running backs Cory Young, a senior, and junior Joe Logan will return to the Lumberjacks offense in 2018, together accounting for 14 of the teams rushing touchdowns. Bruce Read has been brought on new special teams

coach for the Lumberjacks. His resume is impressive, filling the position for three NFL teams, University of Nebraska, and most recently the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League. "Bruce brings over three decades of experience coaching special teams at both the collegiate and professional levels and we are excited to see what he does to make us more dynamic in that phase of the game,” says head coach Jerome Souers.

THE TEAM & COACH (6-2 Big Sky Conference, 7-5 overall in 2017)

2018 will mark Jerome Souers’ 21st year of service as the Lumberjacks’ head coach. Souers has the most conference wins of any coach in the Big Sky, with a career record of 119-108 overall and in conference play. Souers became the Lumberjacks Head Coach in 1998 and received the Big Sky Conference Coach of the Year award in 1999. In 2017, Coach Souers led the Lumberjacks to the FCS playoffs for the fifth time in his career, and the sixth in school history.

WHO TO WATCH – THE OFFENSE

Cory Young, Running Back, 5’10”, 217 lbs, Redshirt Senior After a decorated career as MVP and team captain for Norco High School, Cory Young signed on at Boise State and spent the 2014 season as a redshirt. Young appeared mostly on special teams throughout 2015 and 2016. In total, the running back from Corona, California carried the ball 27 times for Boise State, accumulating 138 yards. Following an off-season transfer, Young emerged as the Lumberjacks’ leading rusher in 2017. He played in all 12 games, carrying the ball 141 times for a net 784 yards and eight touchdowns. Additionally, Young had 22 receptions for 177 yards and one touchdown. He was NAU’s second highest scorer and received Third Team All-Big Sky recognition. Case Cookus, Quarterback, 6’4”, 205 lbs, Junior Case Cookus had a sensational collegiate debut as a true freshman in 2015. The quarterback from Thousand Oaks, California was 118

named FCS STATS National Freshman of the Year, in addition to making the All-Big Sky First Team Offense. His sophomore year came to premature conclusion when he sustained a season-ending injury after just four games. In 2017, Cookus returned to start all 12 games for the Lumberjacks, completing 275 of 474 passes for 3,413 yards and 22 touchdowns. His performance earned him First Team All-Big Sky honors for the second time in his career.

WHO TO WATCH – THE DEFENSE

Kam’ron Johnson, Safety, 6’1”, 225 lbs, Senior Since arriving at NAU as a true freshman in 2015, Kam’ron Johnson has competed in all 34 games for the Lumberjacks. The Scottsdale, Arizona native recorded 16 tackles and three pass breakups in 2015 and 22 tackles and two pass breakups in 2016. Johnson led the team with four interceptions in 2017, one of which he returned for a touchdown. He ranked second overall in tackles with 81 and had four pass breakups. Johnson was

named to the 2017 All-Big Sky Second Team defense. Taylor Powell, Linebacker, 6’1”, 240 lbs, Junior After a decorated career as a three-sport athlete at Salpointe High School, Taylor Powell played in all 11 games for NAU as a true freshman in 2016. The linebacker from Tuscan, Arizona saw action on both defense and special teams, notching 30 tackles and a fumble recovery on the season and earning an All-Big Sky Special Teams Honorable Mention. In 2017, Powell played in all 12 games and ranked forth on the Lumberjacks with 61 tackles. He also had a sack, an interception and a bass breakup. As a sophomore, Powell received a second consecutive All-Big Sky Honorable mention.

THE OUTLOOK

The Lumberjacks have a wellrounded offense between passing and rushing and have brought on Bruce Read in hopes of developing their special teams. But the team will have to improve their defense to build on their 2017 season.

Bobcat Football Magazine

QUICK HITS Location: Flagstaff, Arizona Nickname: Lumberjacks Founded: 1899. The university began with 23 students and two faculty members. Their only resources were two copies of Webster’s International Dictionary. The first graduating class consisted of four women, who received teaching credentials in the Arizona Territory in 1901. Enrollment: The school has 31,000 students and an endowment of 180 million. Stadium: Walkup Skydome. The indoor complex has a seating capacity of 11,230 fans. It is used for football, basketball, and track & field. The playing surface is interchangeable and FieldTurf is installed for football games.

SACRAMENTO STATE THE HORNETS PREVIEW 2017 was a winning season for Sacramento State, which went 6-2 in conference and 7-4 overall. The Hornets played far better at home, going 5-1, then on the road with a 2-3 record. The top scorer for the hornets last season was kicker Devon Medeiros who lead the team with 94 points. Medeiros will return in 2018 as a senior alongside star quarterback Kevin Thomson and receiver Andre Lindsey, also seniors. Thomson passed for a total of

1,828 yards and 17 touchdowns and rushed for an additional 9 touchdowns. Lindsey completed 756 yards and 7 touchdowns. Many leading players on the Hornet’s defense will be returning as seniors in 2018, including defensive backs Mister Harriel, Dre Terrell, and Immanuel Anderson, who lead the team in solo tackles. The team lost star defensive lineman Ben Sorensen,

who made 10 sacks for a total of 60 yards in 2017. Jody Sears led the team through the winningest season since the Hornets joined the Big Sky Conference. Joining the Hornets this year will be cornerbacks coach JB Hall, who held the position for three seasons at the University of Montana. "The direction of this program is trending upward, and I want to be a part of it,” says Hall.

THE TEAM & COACH (6-2 Big Sky Conference, 7-4 Overall in 2017)

Jody Sears embarks on his fifth season at the helm of SSU football. Sears became the Hornets’ head coach in 2014 after two disappointing seasons at Weber State. He has an overall career record of 18-27 and a conference record of 13-19 with SSU. 2017 was Coach Sears’ biggest success. His Hornets finished 6-2 in Big Sky play, tying for third place in the conference with Eastern Washington and Northern Arizona. Sears shared the 2017 Big Sky Conference Coach of the Year award with Southern Utah’s Demario Warren.

WHO TO WATCH – THE OFFENSE

Kevin Thomson, Quarterback, 5’10”, 185 lbs, Redshirt Senior Thomson spent a year as reserve quarterback for the University of Nevada in 2015 before transferring to Sacramento. After taking a vacation from football in 2016, he launched an impressive campaign for the Hornets in 2017. The QB from Auburn, Washington started eight games, completing 97 of 175 passes for 1,828 yards and 17 touchdowns. His 171.8 efficiency rating set a singleseason school record. Thomson also scrambled 79 times for 494 yards and nine touchdowns. Bryant Perkinson, Running Back, 5’10”, 200 lbs, Sophomore Originally recruited as a wide receiver, true freshman Bryant Perkinson transitioned to running back during 2017 spring training. Though he did not see action in the first three games of the season, the Hawthorne,

California native went on to play in all eight remaining games and led the Hornets offense in rushing. Perkinson accumulated 591 net yards on 85 carries, averaging seven yards per carry and 73.9 yards per game. In addition to four rushing touchdowns, Perkinson landed six receptions for 50 combined yards and one touchdown.

WHO TO WATCH – THE DEFENSE

Mister Harriel, Safety, 6’1”, 200 lbs, Senior Harriel’s career with the Hornets began in 2015, when he played in five games as a running back. In 2016, he switched to the defensive backfield and saw limited action, recording 10 tackles on the season. In 2017, Harriel led the Hornets with 87 tackles, also recording two pass breakups, three interceptions and a pair of sacks. Harriel was named to the 2017 All-Big Sky First Team defense.

Austin Clark, Safety, 5’11”, 195 lbs, Redshirt Senior As a true freshman in 2016, Austin Clark played in all 12 games for the Hornets, notching 37 tackles and an interception. In 2015, he played in all 11 games and ranked fourth in total tackles with 51. Clark also had two pass breakups, a fumble recovery, and an interception during his sophomore season. The defensive back from Cottonwood, California took a redshirt in 2016, returning in 2017 to start 10 of 11 games for the Hornets. He ranked second on the team with 73 tackles in addition to five pass breakups and an interception.

QUICK HITS

THE OUTLOOK

Enrollment: SSU enrolls 30,500 students annually, with an endowment of $45 million.

The Hornets had their best season in the Big Sky last year and are hoping to continue their success with minor changes to the team and staff. With most of their key players coming back for their senior year, SSU will be working to develop younger players to step up and fill their roles.

2018

Location: Sacramento, CA Nickname: Hornets Founded: 1947. Originally a state college, SSU was created meet the demand for higher education after World War II. The school’s green and gold colors reflect the natural tones of the surrounding Sacramento landscape.

Stadium: Hornet Stadium. Constructed in 1969, the multisport complex has a seating capacity of 21,195. The original grass surface was replaced with FieldTurf in 2010.

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SOUTHERN UTAH THE THUNDERBIRDS PREVIEW The Thunderbirds went 9-3 overall in 2017, with 7-1 in conference and 2-2 in non-conference games. The team won a Big Sky Conference title for the second time in three years. Jay Green, running back, will return as a junior after leading the team in scoring with 84 points. In second place with 83 points is kicker Manny Berz, who will return as a sophomore. Fellow sophomore Landen Measom will also return, after an impressive rookie season featuring 4 touchdowns and a total of 608 completed yards receiving.

Demario Warren will return for his third season as head coach for the Thunderbirds. He recently signed a contract which will keep him with the team through the 2022 season. His overall record is 15-8, leading the team to the second round of the FCS playoffs for the first time in school history. The Thunderbirds have had a very stable coaching staff, with no changes since 2016. Warren says, “… for these guys to be here for the third straight year is really a blessing and we're grateful for them coming back and being able to coach one more year.”

Many of the Thunderbirds’ key defensive players graduated after last year’s successful season, leaving the team with a weak spot that will need to be filled by younger players. “We haven't had to coach all the fundamentals all the time in the past like we do now, so we've got to get back to the details and have our guys locked in. And we've got to build depth, because we don't really know who's going to step up when the lights come on, so we've got to have a lot of guys ready to go,” says Warren.

THE TEAM & COACH (7-1 Big Sky Conference, 9-3 overall in 2017)

Demario Warren enters his tenth season at SUU, and his third as season head coach. In 2017, Coach Warren guided the Thunderbirds to their second Big Sky Conference Championship, and their third appearance in the FCS Playoffs. It was the winningest season at the Division 1 level in SUU history. Coach Warren shared the Big Sky Conference Coach of the Year award with Sacramento State’s Jody Sears.

WHO TO WATCH – THE OFFENSE

Jay Green Jr. Running Back, 5’10”, 190 lbs, Junior In 2016, Jay Green achieved Junior College First Team All-American recognition for his freshman season at Modesto Junior College. After transferring to SUU, the running back from Modesto, California became the Thunderbirds’ highest scorer in 2017. Green played in all 12 games, carrying the ball 137 times for 655 net yards and 14 touchdowns. He also had 18 receptions for 160 yards total, in addition to three kickoff returns for a combined 38 yards. Green earned an All-Big Sky Honorable Mention for his sophomore season. Landen Measom, Wide Receiver, 5’10”, 180 lbs, Sophomore As a true freshman, Landen Measom played in all 12 games and led the Thunderbirds in receiving with 53 catches for 608 yards and four touchdowns. His 96-yard touchdown catch against Stephen F. Austin set an SUU school record. Measom also 120

led the team with 17 punt returns for a total of 126 yards, in addition to returning three kickoffs for a combined 65 yards. The South Jordan, Utah native received an All-Big Sky Honorable Mention and was named a HERO Sports Freshman All-American.

WHO TO WATCH – THE DEFENSE

Chinedu Ahanonu, Linebacker, 5’11”, 245 lbs, Senior In 2013, true freshman Chinedu Ahanonu saw limited action on the field, but still managed to record 30 tackles and two pass breakups on the season. The linebacker from West Jordan, Utah emerged as a dominant defensive force in 2014, starting all 12 games and leading the Thunderbirds with 152 tackles, two interceptions, three forced fumbles and a sack. Ahanonu postponed his junior season of eligibility in order to complete his Mission for the LDS Church, returning for the 2017 season. Ahanonu played in seven games in 2017, notching 70 tackles and

a sack and earning Second Team All-Big Sky honors. Alex Sims, Safety, 6’1”, 200 lbs, Junior Hailing from Las Vegas, Nevada, Alex Sims appeared in 10 games in 2016 as a true freshman, recording four tackles. In 2017, he competed for action on the veteran SUU defense that sent seven players to All-Big Sky teams. Sims earned time in all 12 games for the Thunderbirds, ranking sixth on the team in total tackles with 47. He also notched an interception, three pass breakups. After losing several top defenders, the Thunderbirds will look to Sims as a leader in the 2018 defensive backfield.

THE OUTLOOK

The Thunderbirds are looking to continue their winning streak in the 2018 season, with no changes to coaching staff and the return of several key offensive players. The team’s greatest challenge will be rebuilding their defensive line.

Bobcat Football Magazine

QUICK HITS Location: Cedar City, Utah Nickname: Thunderbirds Founded: 1898. Under the name Branch Normal School, SUU began with four instructors and a handful of students. It officially became a university in 1991 and now boasts over 300 teaching faculty members. Enrollment: The school has 9,300 students and an endowment of 25.4 million. Stadium: Eccles Coliseum. The multi-sport complex opened in 1967. It has a seating capacity of 8,500 and an artificial turf field surface.

UC DAVIS THE AGGIES PREVIEW The Aggies had a losing season last year, going 5-6 overall, with 3-5 in the Big Sky conference and 2-1 in non-conference games—still an improvement on last year’s 3-8 overall season. The team is seeking to continue this upward trend with the return of many star players and the addition of new recruits.

The strongest attribute of UC Davis’ offense is their passing game. Last year quarterback Jake Maier threw for an advance of 3669 yards, including 26 touchdowns. “I am very pleased with Jake Maier and his drive to be an elite player,” said Offensive coordinator Tim Plough. “I’m excited to keep pushing him to reach his full potential.” Maier will return for his junior year in 2018 as team

captain alongside wide receiver Keelan Doss, and linebacker Nas Anesi. Doss returns for his senior year after finishing no.1 in receiving yards (1,499), receiving yards per game (136.3) and receptions per game (10.5) in both the FCS and FBS in 2017. He was also named the Big Sky Conference’s Offensive Player of the Year, AllAmerican, and finalist for the Walter Payton Award.

THE TEAM & COACH (3-5 Big Sky, 5-6 overall in 2017)

Former UC Davis fullback, Dan Hawkins returns for his second season as Aggies Head Coach. Previously, Hawkins has been Head Coach for Willamette University, Boise State and the University of Colorado. After leaving Colorado in 2011, Hawkins worked as a college football analyst for ESPN. Over the course of 16 seasons of head coaching, Hawkins has led seven teams to conference titles and amassed an overall record of 117-67.

WHO TO WATCH – THE OFFENSE

Jake Maier, Quarterback, 6’0”, 200 lbs, Redshirt Junior Following a redshirted 2015 season at Sacred Heart University, Jake Maier transferred to Long Beach City College, where he completed 268 or 422 passes for 3,689 yards and 38 touchdowns. Maier transferred to UC Davis in time to start all 11 games in 2017, completing 306 of 446 pass attempts for 3,669 yards and 26 touchdowns, setting two single-season school records and tying a third. The La Habra, California native was named Big Sky Conference Newcomer of the Year and earned a spot on the All-Big Sky Third Team Offense. Keelan Doss, Wide Receiver, 6’3”, 206 lbs, Redshirt Senior As a true freshman in 2014, Keelan Doss played in 10 games for the Aggies, finishing second on the team with 22 catches for 325 yards and two touchdowns. Doss redshirted in 2015, returning to play in all 11 games in 2016. He amassed 911 yards and

10 touchdowns on 66 receptions, earning slots on the HERO Sports Sophomore All-America Team and the All-Big Sky Second Team. Doss started all 11 games in 2017, notching 115 catches for 1,499 yards and seven touchdowns. The receiver from Alameda, California broke four singleseason school records and was named the Big Sky Conference Offensive Player of the Year 2017.

WHO TO WATCH – THE DEFENSE

Isiah Olave, Defensive Back, 5’10”, 190 lbs, Senior Isiah Olave played in three games in 2015 before sustaining a seasonending injury and qualifying for a medical hardship waiver. As a sophomore in 2016, Olave started all 11 games and posted 35 tackles on the season, in addition to six pass breakups and an interception, returned for a touchdown. The San Ysidro, California native returned to play in all 11 games in 2017, finishing fifth on the team with 47 tackles. He also had a sack, an interception and seven pass breakups.

Vincent White, Defensive Back, 6’0”, 187 lbs, Senior Hailing from Lynwood, California, Vincent White joined the Aggies in 2015, playing in seven games and recording 23 tackles as a true freshman. In 2016, he saw action in all 11 games, starting five, and finished the year with 16 tackles and two pass breakups. White saw action in all 11 games in 2017 and accumulated 49 tackles. He led the Aggies in pass breakups with 12, and also snagged two interceptions, which he returned for a combined 61 yards. White also returned five kickoffs for 81 total yards. His efforts earned him an All-Big Sky Honorable Mention.

THE OUTLOOK

The Aggies had a losing season last year, but only by one game, an improvement on 2016’s 3-8 record. Head coach Dan Hawkins has expressed his excitement for his new recruits. With these promising new additions and the return of several important players, the Aggies have potential to make 2018 a winning season. 2018

QUICK HITS Location: Davis, California Nickname: Aggies Founded: 1908. A land-grant university, originally established as a satellite campus of the University of California, UC Davis became an autonomous entity in 1959. It began as a farm school but has since become a public research institution equipped with doctoral programs and medical facilities. Enrollment: The school has 35,186 students and an endowment of 1.1 billion. Stadium: Aggie Stadium. Opened in 2007, the multi-sport facility seats 10,743 fans, but UC Davis plans to expand its capacity to 30,000 seats. The filed surface is Sportexe Synthetic Turf.

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Index of Advertisers Alara Jewelry 81 Alpine Dental 129 Bank of Bozeman 71 Berkshire Hathaway Bozeman 80 Black Smoke Diesel Repair 128 Black Timber Furniture 128 Bobcat Club MSU 19 Bobcat Sports Properties 133 Bozeman Camera 92 & 93 Bozeman Chamber of C. BC & 41 Bozeman Ford 13 Bozeman Hot Springs 8 Brad Daws State Farm 67 Bridger Brewing Co. 12 Bridger Garage Door 129 Bridger Steel IFC Buffalo Bump Pizza 128 BZN International Film Festival 31 C&H Engineering 129 Central Plumbing & Excavation 45 Club Pilates 83 Content Creative Lab 32 Country Inn & Suites 41 Creekside Apartments 7 Dark Horse Outfitters 31 Dark Horse Customs 29 Dee-O-Gee 37 Denny Menholt Honda 15 Donnie Olson Real Estate 25 East Main Medical Clinic 82 El Mercadito 14

Engel & Volkers Real Estate 18 Erotique 130 Fairway Independent Mortgage 17 Famous Dave’s 127 Felix A. Marquez Photography/FMFP IBC Felix A. Marquez Photography 125 First Interstate Bank 127 Futura Kitchen Cabinetry 75 Gallatin Event Rental 6 Gallatin Real Estate 4 Gem Gallery 49 Haufbrau 67 HELSE Lagree Fitness Studio 75 Houser Engineering 124 It’s Greek To Me 130 Kagy Corner Store 128 Kenyon Noble 89 Lewis & Clark Motel 132 LINE-X IT 131 LogoRhythms — Inspired Writing 134 Martel Construction 13 Matzinger Electric 14 Marie Gary Insurance 130 McLeod Insurance & Associates 89 Midwest Welding & Machine 88 Molly Brown 67 Montana Silversmiths 65 Montana Spirits & Wine 35 Montana Tile & Stone 132 My Place Hotel 126 Napa Auto Parts 131

OBA! Brazilian Cafe Old Main Gallery & Framing Outback Steakhouse Parenting Teen Girls 24/7 Pickle Barrel Quarterback Club Ressler Motors [re]Think Dentistry Ridge Athletic Clubs Rikki’s Furniture Gallery Riverside Country Club Salted Caramel Cafe SAM (Shines Autos Meticulously) State Farm Insurance Stockman Bank Summit Dental Summit Motorsports T&E Rental Terrell’s Office Solutions Thai Basil Restaurant The Scoop Bar Tom’s Alignment Center Town & Country Treasure State Hostel Universal Athletic Urban Kitchen Vietnam Veterans of Montana Western Plumbing Your Home Team (Windemere RE)

65 49 16 131 131 33 135 1 57 53 53 136 129 2 25 126 71 61 127 3 67 132 5 132 61 136 88 130 16

Contributors ELIX A. MARQUEZ has had a passion for photography since childhood. Over the past 25 years he has F focused his camera on such prominent figures as Mother Teresa, U.S. Presidents and Senators, and music greats Andrea Bocelli, Aretha Franklin, Michael Jackson, and Quincy Jones, among others. His love of sports has led to commissions to photograph numerous Olympic games. His images of golf and tennis legends have sold worldwide and have appeared in S.I.; as well as in National Geographic magazine. He is pleased to have introduced and published The Bobcat Football Magazine—Review and Preview. YNTHIA LOGAN has been a freelance writer and editor for over two decades. Her feature articles have C appeared in Cowboys and Indians, The Montecito Journal, Home, Big Sky Journal, Distinctly Montana, Outside Bozeman and Atlantis Rising, among other publications. As founder and principal of LogoRhythms, she assists individuals and corporations to further their branding.

JESSICA BERGMAN is originally from Erie, Colorado; now a senior at MSU, she is pursuing English and religious studies. Jessica worked as a journalist for a local newspaper in Miles City, Montana, which was her first experience with journalism. Meeting and interviewing people from all walks of life is what she enjoys most about the field.

JACQUELINE R. BERNING, PHD, RD, CSSD Chairs the Health Science Department at the University of Colorado and is a Sports Dietitian for the Colorado Springs Athletic Department. She is also a member of the U.S. Lacrosse Sports Science and Safety Committee based at the University of Colorado.

A Bozeman resident for over 30 years, PAUL BURNS was formerly an award-winning writer and columnist for the Bozeman Daily Chronicle. He currently works as a freelancer, covering events and topics in southwest Montana for out-of-town publications.

MATT MCLEOD is a 2010 graduate of the University of Montana School of Journalism, where he won the Melvin and Myrtle Lord award and scholarship, as well as the Dorothy Rochon Powers award and scholarship, as the program’s top third-year journalist, before attending Arizona State University in the history master’s program. He worked as a sportswriter and editor for the Los Angeles Newspaper Group in Southern California. CHAD NEWELL grew up in Billings, where he graduated high school in 2012. As a walk-on at running back at MSU, he pursued a Mechanical Engineering degree. During his time at MSU he made the AllConference team five times, and the All-Conference academic team four times. He earned a scholarship and captained the Bobcats for both the 2015 and 2016 seasons. Newell graduated with a B.S.M.E. in fall 2016 and is currently working as an engineer for Barnard Construction Company in Bozeman. CORAM PARKER is a second-generation Bobcat, studying philosophy and English literature at MSU. His favorite thing in life is story-telling, and his chief ambition is to tell a good one. After graduating, Coram intends to pursue freelance writing opportunities while finishing his debut comic fantasy novel.

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