We are Montana! Another season of Griz football has come to pass, no Big Sky title, no big playoff run. So to many of you that will mean it was a disappointing season, the end of the season is no doubt disappointing, but keep in mind all of the memories you will keep from this season. This senior class went through so much in their time playing football for Montana, and it is tough to see them go. Thank you all for your dedication to your school and your teammates, us fans really appreciate it.
So what will we take with us from the season? Most of you are only really going to talk about how we demolished the Cats, and that was great, especially for me being at my first Griz-Cat game in Missoula (been to 2 in Bozo). But this season had so much more than that, so here we go. The first game of the year in Wyoming we had the pass from Ryan Burke to Josh Janssen, who made on of the best grabs of the season on that play. Then against overmatched Central Washington, Travon Van had 6 touches of the ball and had 4 TDs and 173 total yards, and who can forget the Nguyen punt return fumble that bounces right to Tucker Schye who runs it around 50 yards for a score. Then we played South Dakota, and then made a trip to the FargoDome, where the boys put up a hell of a fight and earned the respect of the Bison (we are not afraid to play them). Again in North Dakota, the Griz escape vs UND with Shay Smithwick-Han finding Jamal Jones on a clutch long pass to set up the game winner. I will remember the cheap shots on JJ the most from that game, and it was nice to see our lineman and fullback mix it up with UND after one of these cheap shots. Then there was the shootout vs Eastern with JJ picking up a career high 447 passing yards, the blown call in the end zone on a sure TD catch by Sean Haynes, and we can wrap up by just saying we blew out the Cats, on a year when they thought they would score 50 on us they get 7.
The seniors and Coach Delaney deserve a special thank you for being part of the team and staying the course through the darkest time in Griz football. I can't say much more that just say Jordan Johnson, thank you for not leaving when most kids in your situation would have, and come back and lead their team. Jordan Canada had a fine career and finished it off with yet another 1000 yard season. Travon Van brought an excitement to the game that we have not seen since Chase Reynolds, thinking he could take it to the house anytime he touches it, and playing receiver the last half of the season is something not alot of running backs would be willing or could do. It was really nice to see Mitch Saylor healthy and making plays this season, not alot of wide outs can go play tight end. It will be strange not to see Matt Hermanson back there at safety after 4 seasons as a starter I believe, his 3 picks vs MSU were the icing on the cake on his career. The greatest joy I took this season was watching Zack Wagenmann get after the opposing qb's and getting the all-time UM sack record, even though he was held on 90 percent of the time. Sean Haynes finally got some meaningful playing time and had some great catches this season. Rhem and Takai were a powerful force in the middle of the dline all season, Tonga had a big interception vs MSU as well. To the rest of the seniors that I did not mention thank you as well.
It was another great year for Griz football, and I am already looking forward to next season! We Are Montana, Go Griz!!!
So what will we take with us from the season? Most of you are only really going to talk about how we demolished the Cats, and that was great, especially for me being at my first Griz-Cat game in Missoula (been to 2 in Bozo). But this season had so much more than that, so here we go. The first game of the year in Wyoming we had the pass from Ryan Burke to Josh Janssen, who made on of the best grabs of the season on that play. Then against overmatched Central Washington, Travon Van had 6 touches of the ball and had 4 TDs and 173 total yards, and who can forget the Nguyen punt return fumble that bounces right to Tucker Schye who runs it around 50 yards for a score. Then we played South Dakota, and then made a trip to the FargoDome, where the boys put up a hell of a fight and earned the respect of the Bison (we are not afraid to play them). Again in North Dakota, the Griz escape vs UND with Shay Smithwick-Han finding Jamal Jones on a clutch long pass to set up the game winner. I will remember the cheap shots on JJ the most from that game, and it was nice to see our lineman and fullback mix it up with UND after one of these cheap shots. Then there was the shootout vs Eastern with JJ picking up a career high 447 passing yards, the blown call in the end zone on a sure TD catch by Sean Haynes, and we can wrap up by just saying we blew out the Cats, on a year when they thought they would score 50 on us they get 7.
The seniors and Coach Delaney deserve a special thank you for being part of the team and staying the course through the darkest time in Griz football. I can't say much more that just say Jordan Johnson, thank you for not leaving when most kids in your situation would have, and come back and lead their team. Jordan Canada had a fine career and finished it off with yet another 1000 yard season. Travon Van brought an excitement to the game that we have not seen since Chase Reynolds, thinking he could take it to the house anytime he touches it, and playing receiver the last half of the season is something not alot of running backs would be willing or could do. It was really nice to see Mitch Saylor healthy and making plays this season, not alot of wide outs can go play tight end. It will be strange not to see Matt Hermanson back there at safety after 4 seasons as a starter I believe, his 3 picks vs MSU were the icing on the cake on his career. The greatest joy I took this season was watching Zack Wagenmann get after the opposing qb's and getting the all-time UM sack record, even though he was held on 90 percent of the time. Sean Haynes finally got some meaningful playing time and had some great catches this season. Rhem and Takai were a powerful force in the middle of the dline all season, Tonga had a big interception vs MSU as well. To the rest of the seniors that I did not mention thank you as well.
It was another great year for Griz football, and I am already looking forward to next season! We Are Montana, Go Griz!!!
