It's Cat-Griz week
Game blemished, but there's still a lot on the line
It's Cat-Griz time and not only do the teams match up well on the field, but off the field.
Coach Bobby Hauck's University of Montana football team is marred in off-the-field problems that have surpassed those of Montana State University under coach Mike Kramer. The Bobcats had six players or former players arrested. The Griz now have had seven players arrested. Both teams have a former player charged with murder.
While the luster has been taken off of having fun during college football, the on-the-field rivalry continues with the 107th meeting of the Brawl of the Wild on Saturday. Kickoff is set for 12:37 p.m.
"Good timing or not, the game is going to be played on Saturday," Hauck said. "We need to focus in as a football team and get ready to play. Distractions are what they are. They test your mental toughness to see if you can get by things and focus on what's at hand. It's our rivalry game and people are going to be passionate, and we need to be."
This year's matchup pits the top two defenses in the Big Sky Conference. The Grizzlies allow just 13.5 points per game, which is the second-best in the country. The Bobcats allow 19.8 ppg.
But the teams' records are nothing alike.
The nation's third-ranked Griz are trying for an undefeated regular season. It's happened only three times in UM history - the last one coming in 1996. The others were in 1969 and 1970 under coach Jack Swarthout, who Hauck just tied with 51 victories at UM - 34 behind Don Read.
"It's a special opportunity to have a chance to have a perfect regular season," Hauck said. "It would be sweet to be able to accomplish that in our rivalry game."
The Griz have already wrapped up the conference championship and automatic playoff berth.
The Bobcats are 6-4 on the season, including a 4-3 mark in the Big Sky. A victory would match last year's regular season total and give the team seven straight Big Sky winning seasons in a row. But Eastern Washington (7-3) has the only chance at getting an at-large bid into the playoffs from the conference.
Those numbers and facts shouldn't mean anything.
"In rivalry games, it doesn't matter what the records are - it's a clich/, but it's true," Hauck said. "If both of these teams were 0-10 right now, there'd still be a huge crowd and the teams would be going at each other tooth and nail."
MSU's first-year coach Rob Ash has been hearing about this game since the day he took the job.
"I've been getting advice since June 11 about this game," Ash said. "I've been getting some suggestions for places for speeches, motivational comments to make to the team and advice on what to call on first down and second down. I've literally been getting that all year. It just shows the passion that people have for this game and I think it's exciting and I'm eager to be a part of it."
The 'Cats topped out at No. 11 in the national polls before handing Northern Colorado its first Big Sky Conference victory ever.
The Griz have won 22 of their last 23 games and 15 conference games in a row. Yet there is still something this senior class hasn't done.
"We haven't had the opportunity to win in Bozeman yet, any of us 22 seniors," UM linebacker Muckie Foreman said. "We talked about it and have taken it upon ourselves to go in there and play a great game. We really want to get a win there."
The Griz have won 18 of the last 21 meetings with the 'Cats and lead the overall series 66-35-5. In Bozeman, the Griz are 20-18-3. Last year, the Griz won in Missoula just 13-7.
"It doesn't get any better than this," UM receiver Rob Schulte of Great Falls said. "I grew up a Griz fan, but the funny thing is I've got aunts and uncles who are 'Cat fans. So it would be nice to have that bragging right for the whole year. It always comes up no matter what, sitting around the dinner table or something."