Hauck lands AFCS Region 5 coaching honor

After winning his eighth Big Sky Conference championship and becoming the league’s all-time winningest coach in 2023, Montana’s Bobby Hauck has been voted by his peers as the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) FCS Region 5 Coach of the Year, the organization announced Wednesday.

This is the third regional Coach of the Year honor for Hauck, with the previous two coming in 2006 and 2009. He is one of 11 coaches in the class of ‘23 to earn regional honors multiple times in their careers.

Hauck enters this weekend’s contest with a 127-35 record in 12 seasons at Montana. He was recently named Big Sky Coach of the Year for the fourth time, and Stats Perform has named him a finalist for the Eddie Robinson Award that goes to the media’s pick for FCS Coach of the Year.

The Robinson Award will be announced on Thursday.

Notably, UM’s quarterfinal clash with Furman will also be a clash of all-region coaches with Paladin head man Clay Hendrix also earning the award for FCS Region 2.

The Griz were picked to finish sixth by the coaches and third by the media in the 2023 Big Sky preseason polls but went on to earn wins over five ranked opponents, including UM’s 74th win over rival Montana State to claim the program’s 23rd conference championship.  

The AFCA will announce the 2023 National Coaches of the Year winners in FBS, FCS, Division II, Division III and NAIA on Tuesday, January 9th.