Tech, Western opt out of Frontier’s spring football schedule
Montana Tech and Montana Western announced Tuesday that they are joining Southern Oregon University in opting out of the Frontier Conference 2021 spring football season.
Both schools issued press releases, as did Frontier Conference commissioner Kent Paulson in Whitefish.
The Montana-Western Bulldogs and Montana Tech Orediggers sit 64 miles apart, in Dillon and Butte.
“The entire span of this pandemic has been extremely unpredictable and difficult in a myriad of ways,” Bulldogs’ coach Ryan Nourse said. “My heart breaks for all of the seniors who did not get a full season to compete one last time before they move onto the next journey in their life. The Current choice provides clarity and flexibility to our players.”
The fall 2020 football season was moved to the spring of 2021 in mid-August.
“Geography, weather and facilities are not on our side at Western,” Nourse said. “We have had a harsh winter here and to practice and play on a natural surface is not safe. Frozen synthetic turf is tough enough to play on, but not as challenging and potentially harmful as frozen dirt and grass.”
Montana Western will still conduct a regular spring practice schedule. All the team’s seniors will have the option to return next fall.
Tech athletic director Matt Stepan announced that the Orediggers would forgo the shortened Frontier spring schedule in order to “minimize the risks to the student athletes, the campus and the community.”
“After meeting with our seniors with respect to the conference moving to a four-game spring schedule, all those that are graduating this year have chosen to take the skills and knowledge they’ve gained from Montana Tech and move on to the next chapter of their lives,” Stepan added.
Montana Tech’s nine seniors were Jase Galt, Justin May, Quade McQueary, Connor Murdock, Tanner Osborne, Braxton Porter, Nate Sander, Paul Sundquist, and Alec Wooley-Steele.
“The leadership from these incredible and selfless student-athletes over the last year has been both inspiring and humbling,” head coach Kyle Samson said. “We wish these nine seniors the best of luck in the next phase of their lives and look forward to honoring them for all that they’ve done for this program and community.”
The Bulldogs and Orediggers were set to begin practice this week ahead of a four-game spring schedule. Montana-Western will wait until the end of its current semester to conduct the usual spring drills, and then get ready to play the 2021 fall schedule.
“It will be that much more special the next time that our student-athletes can walk the Digger Walk through a full tailgate and play in front of a packed Alumni Coliseum surrounded by their families, supporters, and fellow Montana Tech students,” Stepan said.
Added Samson, who was Flathead High’s coach from 2014-18 and was named Tech’s head coach in January of 2020: “We can’t wait to finally get back on the field and start practicing with our team for not only the first time in over a year but also for the first time as a coaching staff.”
The five schools remaining – Carroll College, Rocky Mountain College, MSU-Northern, College of Idaho and Eastern Oregon University -- still plan to play a 4-game spring schedule.
“We certainly know that these tough decisions by the three member institutions have been well thought out,” Paulson said. “The league is most appreciative that this decision has been made now so that the rest of the Frontier Conference member teams will be able to know what the modified schedule looks like. Teams can adjust travel plans and coaches and student-athletes will have a definitive direction as we move forward in preparation for the upcoming conference season.”