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Frank Gogola Article

mthoopsfan said:
It happened after Hauck departed, and now he's brought UM back towards the top. In the last handful of years, I think 5, UM has the 4th average highest post-season poll of any FCS teams. Cats not as good as Griz in past 2 seasons so far. We'll see if Cats can win the national championship and better the Griz in past 2 years. I like how some Cats and some Griz cheery pick. Their calculation involves throwing out the best Griz years and just looking at the others. And definitely throw out the most recent full season.
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You are critical of cherry picking data, when choosing the last 2 years (which is in fact incomplete because this year is still in progress) is also cherry picking.

Why not just consider all years in his second tenure? I agree that he inherited a bad team from Stitt and you can throw out 2018, but I'd argue that the 2019 team was probably the second best team he's had since he returned. Why have we been so erratic since then? Why only ONE semifinal appearance when the bobcats have only missed it ONCE in the last 4-5 years?
 
Thing is, if the Cats don't reach the semifinal in 2025, then they will have reached the semi final in four of six years, just like ther Griz, right?
I'm not sure Franks' giving us his best work.
I also disagree with this his suggestion that MSU and UM are equally prepared to pay for a move to the Mountain West. Base revenue, -- non ticket revenue -- committed to athletics favors MSU.
 
The back and forth of what is real for the Griz and how they are and the let's just think everything is Aweosme cracks me up. I'm sry every year we have not been a top six seed to me is a failure, and I could say top five but I get things happen but we should be a top six team every year, and the fact bobcats have been 4 of the last five semifinals just shows that more .

I love the article and it is just facts. I am all about hauck, love what he brings to the table and how he is, and he got our program back from the lowest points and he was probably the best person to do that but it's time for more and I hope he can be the guy to do that, but maybe he was just right to get us back to being relevant.

things have changed in football and it's time to roll with it also, not sure what that brings but we need to get on board

You are blind if you don't think the cats are ahead of us and yes we made the ship last year but barring a crazy game against South Dakota cats are in frisco this year and rolling

I hate the cats as much as anyone and bleed maroon but I hope they win it all honestly, I want the pressure to build for our program cause that can lead to changes and maybe look in the mirror
 
Bobby is the Griz head coach for the next two years. Any coach know he’s going to be critiqued harshly if a fan base is engaged. There are some fair criticisms of him and some unfair in my opinion. This article is far criticism. But if he only has two years left I hope he’s successful.
 
UncleRico said:
Bobby is the Griz head coach for the next two years. Any coach know he’s going to be critiqued harshly if a fan base is engaged. There are some fair criticisms of him and some unfair in my opinion. This article is far criticism. But if he only has two years left I hope he’s successful.
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Three years. He won't make it unless there are significant improvements.
 
HikeGlacier said:
The old saying goes: Don't pick fights with people who buy their ink by the barrel. This article will negatively impact recruiting.
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Yeah that is a an old saying. I dont think the missoulan can afford a barrel. Maybe if the get rid of a few more editors some writers. Then ask for a loan again.
 
Bobby needs to reassess what has happened and why. F*** this loyalty to friends and malrecruiting. This year is just a bump in the road, hopefully, and 2025 it is NC. If not...
 
HikeGlacier said:
The Commissioner of Higher Ed fired O'Day and Pflu. All Engstrom did was carry out the directive and eventually took the fall.

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That's not true. This is my understanding. Engstrom panicked. He had been contacted by Williams, whom I believe knew a family of a woman who had claimed some sexual stuff. Engstrom consulted Christian and Stearns. A plan was discussed that didn't involve firing. Williams continued to pressure Engstrom. Engstrom was being fed unverified and incorrect info about some players, all or mostly black athletes, being involved in sexual stuff, and he further panicked and fired the two. In retrospect, I wish Pflu and O'Day had sued Engstrom and the University, and maybe Williams. I think they would have gotten a lot of money. I can understand why they didn't sue. Who needs the hassle, and it's usually better to get on with one's life.
 
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brewskis said:
You are critical of cherry picking data, when choosing the last 2 years (which is in fact incomplete because this year is still in progress) is also cherry picking.

Why not just consider all years in his second tenure? I agree that he inherited a bad team from Stitt and you can throw out 2018, but I'd argue that the 2019 team was probably the second best team he's had since he returned. Why have we been so erratic since then? Why only ONE semifinal appearance when the bobcats have only missed it ONCE in the last 4-5 years?
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No, I am rarely bringing up cherry-picking. You have it backwards. The last 2 years are clearly the most relevant years. Yes, one could pick any amount of years. We could pick 20 years. Yes, this year is still in progress. As I have said several times, if the Cats don't win in Frisco, then the Griz 2 years are slightly better. If the Cats win in Frisco, then Cat two years are better. The more recent years are the most relevant for Hauck 2. I wouldn't say Griz are erratic. Seasons go up and down. We didn't get a good QB established as starter this year, as well as other things. Last year was a great season. Yes, Cats have built up their program. Why were the Cat so "erratic" last season? Griz are still rebuilding the program. UM is 1-2 in semifinals in last 2 season. After next season, there will be more data for both teams.
 
oldngrizzly said:
Another Missoulian Article by Frank:
The Montana football team fell far short of expectations in 2024.
The end result of the Grizzlies' inconsistency was a 9-5 record and an unceremonious second-round playoff exit. They had come into the year ranked No. 3 in the FCS Top 25 poll following a national runner-up finish.
Over the final several weeks of the season, multiple players brought up the need to put together a complete game. It was something they thought could return them to the championship caliber they were at last year.
It was also something that eluded them week after week. They never put together that all-around performance against a scholarship opponent.
By the midpoint, the Griz had become an improving offensive juggernaut that seemingly forgot how to play defense. After the bye, they became a maturing defensive unit that seemingly lost its memory of how to play offense.
The offense performed one final disappearing act against South Dakota State in the second round, being held to 10 points until garbage time. In the regular-season finale, the Griz managed just 11 points in a loss to Montana State. Two weeks earlier, they put up only 14 in a loss to UC Davis.
The defense came to play all three of those days and kept the team in the game in the early going. That side of the ball then broke while trying to carry a vanishing offense on its shoulders.
The offense had also disappeared for a good portion of the first-round win over Tennessee State. Junior Bergen and the special teams came to the rescue to prevent another embarrassing home loss. The Griz finished 6-2 in Wa-Griz after going into the season at 30-2 over their previous 32 home games.
The offense had hit its crescendo in Weeks 4-6. The Griz won a shootout over Western Carolina, 46-35. They won another high-scoring affair at Eastern Washington, 52-49, the next week. It was the most points ever given up in a win in program history.
Then it was a 55-48 overtime loss to Weber State the week after that. It was the most points Montana ever allowed inside Wa-Griz and tied for the second-most points scored in a loss in school history.
The offense had carried the load in that stretch while the defense sputtered with tackling woes and miscues from veterans while a spattering of new starters were being worked in.
The loss to Weber State, which finished with a 4-8 record, was a backbreaker for the Griz in terms of playoff seeding, which could've prolonged their season maybe one more week. That loss was the impetus for switching from man coverage in the secondary to playing more zone coverage, which improved the defense, although they went back to man at times and got burned.
Both offensive and defensive successes and struggles were on display in Week 2. The Griz put together what wound up being arguably their most complete half all season when they took a 24-7 lead at North Dakota, which finished the year with a 5-7 record.
They then were outscored 20-0 in maybe their worst half of the year. Whether it was Logan Fife or Keali'i Ah Yat at quarterback, neither could get the ball moving with a trio of three-and-outs until the final drive as they totaled 34 yards. The only way the defense got off the field was by allowing points.
The Griz had gone through another early season shocker in 2023 at Northern Arizona as they were still rotating quarterbacks. They then picked and stuck with Clifton McDowell and went on a 10-game winning streak.
They didn't make that choice this year, instead rotating Fife and Ah Yat for the vast majority of the season. The moves were based on what Hauck called "feel" for when to play a specific guy from series to series, leaving the quarterbacks looking over their shoulder to see who would take the field. Perhaps that's why it felt like a leader never emerged on the offense.
Injuries to Ah Yat led to Fife getting more playing time and being named the Big Sky offensive player of the week after his first start. Fife threw for 1,890 yards, 14 touchdowns and two interceptions. Ah Yat finished with 1,121 yards, seven touchdowns and six interceptions.
Fife didn't play against SDSU as Ah Yat got the whole game, a decision that surprised both coach Jimmy Rogers and Jackrabbits players after the game. He then entered the transfer portal the day after the season ended.
The calamity of the quarterback carousel isn't the only thing that appeared to derail the offense. Play calling is a factor in putting them in the proper position. The variability in that aspect left the Griz without an offensive identity.
They went from taking and hitting deep shots in their early shootouts into becoming allergic to that, often settling for short passes. That was highlighted in a puzzling game against MSU, throwing mainly horizontal passes. They took more downfield shots against SDSU, but it couldn't salvage their season.
Montana wide receiver Junior Bergen (5) returns a punt against Tennessee State punter Mark Shenouda (39) during first round of the NCAA FCS Division I Playoffs between Montana and Tennessee State at Washington-Grizzly Stadium in Missoula on Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024. Bergen tied the NCAA record and broke the FCS record for punt return touchdowns.
Keelan White, Junior Bergen and Aaron Fontes — which opposing coaches had called the best receiver room in the Big Sky and possibly the FCS — had worse seasons in 2024 than 2023. That trio totaled 2,206 yards and 14 touchdowns on 161 catches last year. That dropped to 1,577 yards and eight scores on 146 catches this year. Xavier Harris and Sawyer Racanelli saw their stats increase, but the Griz struggled to get their best players the ball, especially in space.
The same could be said of the run game. The Griz went from a team that ran the ball at will to one that struggled. They totaled 1,096 yards on the ground over a three-game stretch (365.3 per game) in Weeks 3-5. They then totaled 1,318 rushing yards over their next nine games (146.4) to close the season. Montana Grizzlies running back Eli Gillman (10) runs the ball down the field before scoring a touchdown during a college football game between the Montana Grizzlies and the Weber State Wildcats on Saturday, Oct. 5 in Washington Grizzly Stadium.
Eli Gillman has played in 31 games at UM but didn't have a 20-carry game until his 30th outing. His 1,104 rush yards are the most by a Griz since Jordan Canada had 1,195 in 2014 and his 15 TD runs are the most since Marcus Knight had 23 in 2019. Those stats came despite his carries falling from 194 in 2023 (12.9 per game) to 167 in 2024 (11.9 per game)
He spent the first half of the season among the top three players in all of college football at around 10 yards per carry. That dropped off, although he did still have big performances to help the Griz earn wins over Portland State and Tennessee State. SDSU bottled him up for the second year in a row as he had 17 carries for 30 yards in those two games.
The ability to run the ball or get time in the pocket to deliver the ball starts at the line of scrimmage. The play of the offensive line in primetime matchups showed the disparity between the Griz and other elite teams, and it's seemingly a larger gap than anticipated. Winning in the trenches should be a primary focus moving forward — even more than who's playing quarterback.
Those performances echoed on the defensive line as Montana struggled against top-tier O-lines. Hayden Harris did have 17 tackles for loss, 9.5 sacks and three forced fumbles, all of which are the most since Patrick O'Connell had 21.5 TFLs, 14 sacks and four forced fumbles in 2021.
A lack of pressure up front forced the secondary to stay in coverage longer. Trevin Gradney did finish with 10 pass breakups, which are the most since Justin Ford and Omar Hicks Onu each had 11 in 2021.
Montana cornerback Trevin Gradney (37) intercepts a deflected pass during the college football game between Montana and Western Carolina at Washington-Grizzly Stadium in Missoula on Saturday, Sept. 21, 2024.
Montana never did flip a game with a defensive score. It was the first season since 2014 the Griz failed to score a defensive touchdown.
Montana did have to replace a lot of sixth-year seniors from last year's team. Gone were stalwarts like nose tackle Alex Gubner, linebacker Braxton Hill, safeties TraJon Cotton and Nash Fouch, cornerback Corbin Walker and center AJ Forbes. It was seemingly too much experience to replenish at once.
They then lost key pieces to the transfer portal. McDowell helped turn McNeese State from a 1-10 team into a 6-6 team. Quarterback Sam Vidlak became an All-Southland second-teamer at Stephen F. Austin.
Defensive end Kale Edwards went to FBS New Mexico State, taking away UM's top pass rusher on the D-line from 2023. Linebacker Vince Genatone left for FBS Nebraska, depleting an already thin group when he could've started.
The Griz tried to plug some holes with transfers. They found success stories with newcomers like center Cade Klimczak and punter/kicker Ty Morrison.
But Montana maybe didn't hit on as many plug-and-play transfers as it hoped and at the high level that it had wanted, especially on the defensive side, where it can take time to get in the flow with UM's unorthodox 3-3-5 defense.
"I hope we're remembered (as) just a bunch of hard-fought kids, love the game, love to compete, love each other," Gradney said. "I think we did a good job exemplifying that."
White added: "Tough-ass football team that no matter who we play, where we play, we're going to fight all the way to the end."

As much as they tried, the Griz could never get in sync and put it all together. That lack of being able to play a complete game left them looking like an incomplete team. Montana was full of potential but was ultimately flawed.
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No shit. Bobby needs to get it together in 2025, or leave. And I'm a Bobby fan. Hurts to say that. 🥲
 
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