Ogden family ties

MISSOULA - The big man with the red beard threw his hand up in the windy, cold air, calling to attention the wild crowd of players huddled together at midfield. Except for the wind, which still flurried small gusts of snow across the football field, the uproar quieted as the group awaited what the big man in the middle had to say.

His giant red grin became of geyser of steam as Dan Ogden bellowed "What are we?!"

"Big Sky Champs!" replied the Montana State Bobcats.

"What are we?!"

"Big Sky Champs!"

Finally the day had come, even if it was an icy one with subzero temperatures and howling double-digit winds. Finally "Oggie" and the Bobcats could celebrate a victory over their great nemesis, the Montana Grizzlies. And in Missoula no less. And for a share of the Big Sky Conference Championship.

"It's an unbelievable feeling. It's a dream come true," Ogden, a MSU senior who has started the last 26-straight games, said after celebrating the 21-16 victory last Saturday. "I've been waiting four years for it. It's finally come. It's just unbelievable the way we're feeling right now. Big Sky champs all the way!"

Almost every person out of the 26,019 wearing Montana maroon had deserted the arctic arena of Washington-Grizzly Stadium while Ogden and the Bobcats hoisted the giant bronze Great Divide Trophy. With the congratulatory hand-off from Gov. Brian Schweitzer, the Bobcats retook the trophy for the first time since 2005 and the first time in Missoula since 2002.

In a scene reminiscent of 2002, MSU fans filed onto the snow-covered field.

Cold weather or not, the Montana State fans weren't going to miss this celebration, and neither was the Ogden family.

Ogden, a 2007 Flathead High graduate, embraced members of his family after leading the championship chant.

This Kalispell clan is no stranger to football.

The five Ogden boys - John, Brett, Dan, Ben and Todd - have played or are still playing football and other sports in Kalispell and beyond with the never-ending support of mother Lynne and father John.

The rambunctiousness associated with five brothers was definitely present at the Ogden house from what it sounds like, but seeing the group embrace after Saturday's game was a scene of a tight-knit family quick to support one another.

"As much as they fought and wrestled growing up, they're extremely supportive," Lynne said. "It's kind of like ‘I can beat on you but nobody else better.'"

Saturday was quite the accomplishment but also a sign of how far the Bobcats and Ogden have come.

Historically, the scores have tilted in the Grizzlies' favor. In the 110-year history, Montana has a 69-36-5 record. Since Ogden joined the 'Cats as a freshman in 2007, UM has won with lopsided scores of 41-20, 35-3 and 33-19. In fact, as a freshman, the former all-state Brave was injured badly in the annual Brawl of the Wild game.

But after that, the six-foot, 270-pound defensive lineman went to work and became one of the team's leaders, figuratively and literally.

In 2009, Ogden became one of the best interior lineman in the Football Championship Subdivision, tallying 44 tackles and 5.5 sacks. This season, Ogden has logged a repeat showing from last year, with 44 tackles and a team-high 5.5 sacks. On Tuesday, Ogden earned his second-straight first-team all-conference honor.

Saturday's achievement showed the culmination of a long, hard turnaround, one that head coach Rob Ash, who took over in 2007, acknowledged in the postgame press conference.

"There is a sense of relief because we have been building for this," Ash said. "We've done it right, I think. We've tried to do this the right way, bring in the right kind of players, having the right kind of standards, doing it with class and doing it with integrity. That's what we believe in and we believe in good, tough hard-nosed football. And it's nice to see that rewarded ... I'm excited for these guys first of all because of all their hard work, but I am excited for what we have tried to do as a program and this legitimizes all those efforts for four years."

A player like Ogden seems to embody that completely.

"I'm really proud of him and actually this year more than any I really wanted it to happen for the Bobcats because Dan has played them for four years in a row now and it's about time he gets one of these," said Ogden's older brother John. "He deserves it, he's a hard-working good player."

John has to play an awkward role of having a little brother playing in Bozeman while being a former Montana Grizzly. But there's no question where his loyalty lies when it comes down to it.

"I always stand out in the crowd because I always wear my maroon, but whenever Danny does something good everyone gives me that weird look like ‘what's this guys doing cheering? He obviously drank too much,'" John said.

Ogden wasn't the only familiar face smiling Saturday. Bryce Stacy, who graduated from Flathead in 2009, had two tackles as a defensive back redshirt freshman. Stacy has played in 10 games this season.

Libby's Joel Fuller, an '09 grad who lettered as a true freshman and has played in all 11 games this season, starting in four, made three tackles and played a significant amount of time at strong safety.

"It's hard to explain the feeling right now," Fuller said after the game. "I had a lot of Griz fans who are family members so the decision (where to go to college) was kind of hard in the first place but this makes me feel like I made the right decision."

Reporter Dillon Tabish can be reached at 758-4463 or by e-mail at dtabish@dailyinterlake.com