Business as usual for Griz

Montana begins preparations for title showdown with James Madison

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. - After about a half-dozen members of the grounds crew at the site of the Division I-AA national championship finished spray painting the logos, yard lines, hash marks and team nicknames at Finley Stadium on Wednesday morning, Montana and James Madison came out for a brief media session before closing ranks and spiriting off to area high schools for closed practices.

It was a sort of meet your neighbor function, with both teams speaking in generalities about each other and neither team wanting to provide bulletin board material.

Really, it was business as usual, a good sign for both the Griz and Dukes who will do their best to make this extraordinary week as ordinary as possible.

"The trip went well," UM coach Bobby Hauck said. "We've kind of re-established ourselves here, and we got our operation set up and we're ready to go. We had great meetings and film sessions this morning."

That's great news for Montana, considering the Griz haven't left Missoula since the end of October when they lost at Portland State, the last time they were on the short end of the scoreboard.

"You can't get caught up in all the hoopla and everything that's going on," linebacker Adam Hoge said. "Just stay focused on the task at hand and just think about the game and what everybody needs to do to come out of here with a win."

Not only are the Griz dealing with their first road game in seven weeks, they also have to contend with a short week to prepare. Montana's semifinal was Saturday, the title game is Friday.

To make up for the lost day, Sunday was basically eliminated from the schedule and the regular game week preparations were moved up a day and travel three days. Normally a team arrives the afternoon before a game. The Griz got here Tuesday, a full two days ahead of kickoff.

"This week we have to do our best to stay focused on the game," linebacker Shane MacIntyre said. "There's a lot going on, but we just have to stay in our routine and not get taken out of what we do each week."

That's one of those things that sounds easier-said-than-done, but for many on this Montana team, this is not their first rodeo. For receiver Jefferson Heidelberger, this is trip No. 2 on the Chattanooga Choo-Choo, having played as a true freshman on special teams in 2001.

"In terms of coming back here, it's a little different for me because last time I felt like I didn't have as big of a roll as I do now and I was kind of a bright-eyed little kid and I didn't know what was going on," Heidelberger said. "(2001) was kind of feeling like you were along for the ride and now it's more in control of your own destiny being a part of this team.

"It's a hard thing to do (get to the championship), and we've done it now twice. And some of these guys that have been here five years, this is their third trip back here and that's a big deal."

And while this national title experience is old hat to a few Montana players, who in turn can help guide the younger ones through the ordeal, this whole week is an unknown for the Dukes, who are here for the first time. But that shouldn't bother them. James Madison is already quite familiar with new things, like becoming the first school in NCAA history to win three playoff games on the road.

"It speaks volumes that they've gone on the road three times in the playoffs and won," Hauck said. "That tells you what kind of team they are."

They are the kind of team that beat Lehigh in the first round and Furman in the quarterfinals, both by a 14-13 score, and routed William & Mary 48-34 in the semis.

"We feel fortunate to be here because we realize we've done what no one else has done before," JMU coach Mickey Matthews said. "When we saw the bracket, I thought we had a chance to get here. But when you realize you had to do it on the road and no one in NCAA history has done it, you realize the odds were stacked against you."

Dukes quarterback Justin Rascati, a transfer from Louisville, knows that even though James Madison has been on the road all playoffs, it doesn't prepare you for championship week.

"It's almost like a bowl game like when I was at the University of Louisville," he said. "You can easily get caught up in the distractions if you pay attention to them. You just have stay focused and come out and work hard these two days in practice and prepare well."

Today will bring another press conference and open practices at the high schools. Then it's game time.

NOTES: Friday's game will be Montana's 64th in a row on TV. … Both Rascati and the Grizzlies' Craig Ochs are transfers from Division I-A. Ochs got his start at Colorado, and saw action in the 2001 Fiesta Bowl against Oregon. … The Dukes have the second-ranked run defense in I-AA. Northwestern State had the No. 1 run defense and the Griz picked up 268 yards on the ground in the first round. … James Madison has outscored opponents 92-3 in the first quarter this year.