Who are our peers though?
The two Dakota States and MSU who have won every national title for the last decade? Or the other 125 teams in the subdivision?
No one is asking for this staff to build teams that meet the goal of beating the Cats and bringing home a conference championship every year. That is not a realistic standard given the state of affairs and the randomness inherent in college football. But what you can ask for, with the resources at the staff’s disposal in comparison to the rest of the competition on our schedule, is to achieve those goals more often than once a decade.
Those teams who would kill for what we have, would kill for what we have *because* they’re not us. A high standard is a privilege we get.
The question is simple: is not winning a national championship for 24 years acceptable and up to standard for the Montana Grizzlies?
Let me remind you that NONE of the Dakotas were Division I the last time Montana won a national title. NDSU has only been D1 since 2004. South Dakota State, South Dakota and North Dakota have only been D1 since 2008. Montana had played in six FCS national championship games in the span of 12 years when the Missouri Valley Football Conference as even formed as a league in 2008.
Since then, the Missouri Valley has won TWELVE national titles. A league that has been around for less than two decades made up of the old DII North Central Conference has won almost twice as many D I-AA/FCS national titles than the ENTIRE Big Sky Conference, which has been playing in I-AA since its advent in 1978.
Montana, Montana State, the Dakotas are all playing FBS football in the FCS. There are 60-ish Group of 5 schools. Less than 10 could "drop down" and win the Big Sky or the MVFC. Because of the support, passion and quality of football from the MonDak crew.
It's basically written in stone who the Top 4 in the FCS are going to be for the foreseeable future. The only schools that will threaten NSDSU, SDSU, MSU and UM are North Dakota, South Dakota and UC Davis (who's probably out to the MW sooner than later). And maybe Tarleton State. Other than that, it's the MonDak bowl forever more until it all fractures.
Since 2011:
NDSU has 198 wins, 12 conference titles, 10 national titles and has played in the semifinals every season but this season.
SDSU has 146 wins, four conference titles and has played in seven semifinals and three championship games since 2017, winning two national titles.
Montana State 140 wins, six conference titles, has played in the semifinals five of the last six years, has been to three title games and now has a national title.
Montana has 127 wins, has been to two semis, one title game, has one league title.
Food for thought.