Banged-up 'Cats face a 'sound' team in Furman
The Daily Inter Lake
No local TV.
At least as of Wednesday.
So Bobcats fans not attending Saturday's Furman at Montana State University NCAA Football Championship Subdivision playoff game will have to either listen to the play-by-play on local radio, 880-AM, or watch the action live via a computer at www.bigskytv.org.
The game will be videostreamed free over the Internet.
To view the game, individuals will have to register at the Web site. System requirements include:
- A high-speed Internet connection
- A processor speed of 500 Mhz (or AMD equivalent)
- At least 128 MB RAM
- Windows OS of 2000 or newer
- Screen resolution set to 1024x728 with 32 bit color
- Internet Explorer is required
- Windows Media software (Media 10)
- Check www.bigskytv.org for Internet Explorer and Media 10 downloads.
This marks MSU's third trip to the post-season in the last five years. And Sunday's announcement that No. 18-ranked MSU (7-4) secured a home at-large bid took some of the sting out of the Bobcats' 13-7 regular-season ending loss at Montana the day before.
"I'll never know by what machination this occurred, and I don't care," said MSU head football coach Mike Kramer of being one of just two Big Sky teams to make the playoffs.
"We've been presented a tremendous opportunity, and we are very motivated to reward the Selection Committee with a good showing. We faced a tremendous run of emotions on Saturday and Sunday, and I'm not sure the depths of agony over the loss equal the ecstasy of hosting a playoff game, but we're very excited about the tremendous opportunity we've been presented."
Not only did the Griz snap Montana State's six-game winning streak in the 106th meeting between the two schools, but they also denied the Bobcats a share of the conference title. Saturday's loss was Jack Rolovich's first as MSU's starting quarterback, falling to 4-1.
MSU owns a three-game losing streak and six-game winning streak during the 2006 season.
Saturday's kickoff with Furman, a member of the Southern Conference, is set for 11:30 a.m. For tickets, contact the Bobcat Ticket Office at (406) 994-CATS (2287).
This marks MSU's first home playoff game since 1984, when MSU rode a hot finish and two home playoff wins to a I-AA National Championship.
This will be the first meeting between the two schools.
"Furman is sound, solid, and serene," Kramer said.
"They don't panic, they don't show a lot of emotion, they just get the job done. It's hard to tell on video how hard a team plays, but my sense is that Furman plays extremely hard and is very well-coached. They really like to run the ball. Their fullback is 248 pounds and their running back, Cedric Gibson, has good speed to the outside. Defensively they are very physical in the front seven and at safety. Both clubs like to play great defense, and I expect it to be that kind of game."
Furman finished the season winning four of its final five games. The Paladins, ranked No. 7, lost at North Carolina on Sept. 16 (45-42), but came back a week later to beat Western Carolina (42-7).
Furman lost at No. 1 Appalachian State (40-7) on Oct. 28.
Montana State, after losing three September home games, has won its last three in Bobcat Stadium.
Kramer is 0-2 in post-season action at MSU, 2-3 all-time.
"I'm pretty concerned about our overall health," Kramer said.
"We're beat up at tailback, where Evin Groves won't go and where Aaron Mason is banged up. We will need to have some semblance of a running game to be successful Saturday. My biggest concerns offensively are, can we run the ball, can we protect long enough to take advantage of the passing game, and what we do after we catch the ball. We have not done a great job of gaining yards after the catch. We need a breakout along those lines.
"Defensively we need to be stout against the run and defend their option. Anything can happen once you're in the playoffs, and hosting a game for the first time in 22 years is exciting and energizing."