It’s been about 24 hours since the National Title game wrapped up. It was a tough way to end one of the most entertaining and fun seasons ever. Simply put, SDSU is just that good. There was a mix of opinion on twitter of how far Montana is from getting to the level of play that we saw from SDSU and I’m somewhere in the middle when it comes to those opinions. On one hand, if the Griz do find the endzone on their first possession and don’t fumble on their opening 2nd half possession, maybe we have a whole different narrative. On the other hand, the Grizzlies being stuffed at the goal, getting two turnovers early and only turning that into 3 points, and then going for negative rushing yards in the 2nd half really speaks to how damned good SDSU was/is. It’s tough to take much from the game, it felt the passing game had some good opportunities while there was still the threat of needing to keep Cliff / Eli / Nick / X from running. Once the Griz got into the need of having to pass, those passing lanes disappeared and Montana was stuck. I think by in large the Grizzly defense did all you could really ask them to. They held that incredibly dangerous offense to 363 total yards, almost 100 less than their average, and to just 23 points which is about 15 less than their average.
What I do like is that this feels like we’re on a good path here and it feels that Montana football has momentum on their side in the years ahead. No I don’t know what the portal will do to our roster this week, nor do I know anything about what the coaching staff looks like moving ahead. However, it feels like this team, these coaches, the athletic department, the university, the city, and the fans have once again found that reenergized passion that has rekindled the spirit of before. QB Club, the revamped NIL, and local support is off the charts. The support this program has built up feels like it’s only continuing to grow. It really feels like that Montana magic has returned. Time will tell, but right now I’m so damn proud to be a fan and supporter of this program and this school.
More than anything I just want to share a heartfelt thank you to so many people. 2023 was special for countless reasons and thanks is owed all over.
To the team – Thank you all. The Pride and Tradition of the Montana Grizzlies was carried wonderfully by all of you. This team was expected to finish in the middle of the Big Sky. Our individual players did not receive a lot of preseason accolades. The Griz were billed as undersized, inexperienced, and especially after the NAU loss – overrated. This didn’t phase the players one bit. They got better each week and seemingly shut out the BS chatter and showed it on the field. Montana’s first outright conference title since 2011 / 2009, ass kicking of the cats, and some of the most memorable playoff games of all time. We’ve got a real special group of seniors graduating that really seemed to bind this team together. There’s a blend of long time / local kids and out of state transfers that came together with common goals – and they had one of the most successful seasons we’ve ever seen. That’s on this team and their commitment to each other. Congratulations men.
To the coaching staff – Also, thank you, this is probably the best coaching accomplishments I’ve seen from my perspective. 2022 fell way short of what was expected. The staff reorganized, brought in a few new faces, and then was tasked with rapidly trying reload with their new roster. The development and improvement of many Griz players through this season is unlike anything I’ve seen before and the staff is thank for that. We appeared to see changes in both the defense and offense that made both groups far more effective and dangerous. It resulted in not only the outcomes on the field but the awards and recognition our players and Bobby Hauck got from the conference and the entire FCS as well. I, like many fans, after NAU had my confidence in this group shaken badly. However much like the team this coaching staff didn’t let the fan chatter bother them and rapidly got the team on a path that lead them all the way to the national title game. Our S&T as well as our training staff really seems to have hit it out of the park this year, team injuries as a whole seemed to be far more minimal than before. Recruiting is flying along with some top-notch recruits. Everything has gone really well it seems and the group effort of the entire football staff is to thank.
To the administrators – As a fan you’ve all helped to make this my most memorable season and for that I’m also very thankful. Yes I bitched about stadium access early, but attention was paid to fixing that and it got better. The “product” of attending a Grizzly football game was PHENOMINAL. There’s moments from some of these games that I’ll never forget. After the Ferris win watching fireworks fighting tears as the PA system played a song that was one of my mom’s favorites (she passed in ’21). The playoff events and settings were on point and the post NDSU celebration was so great. The snow from Delaware. The production and planning for the Brawl. The fun we had in the various night games. Successfully planning and executing 3 weeks in a row of playoff games – a night game, then a Friday night game, then a Saturday afternoon game. The videos after the wins and leading up to the natty were all amazing, Austin Valley hit it out of the park. The communication and care that Kent, Greg, Chuck, Riley, McKell, Colton, Jared, Sue, Dan, Tommy, Ryan, Nic, Tia, Zach, and so many others put into this season did not go unnoticed. I think often we all focus on the players and the coaches and thank them for what they put into a season, but then we miss the work that so many in the department do and I know I’m missing many in my thanks here, going a little off the top of my head here.
To the media coverage – Thank you all for your work this year. It’s well known that sometimes access and press conferences can be challenging. As the momentum built for this team and we all as fans sought out more content you delivered. There was some great interviews, articles, videos, and stories on players/games/the season and I think a lot of our local media really rose to try to meet the fan demand for more content. While a lot did great stuff I really think Colter/Skyline, Shaun Rainey/ABC, Kyle Hansen/KPAX, & Samuel Akem really kicked ass with what they put together for us this year.
To the fans – I feel like through this season, be it at the games, on the message board, on social media, or through the Griz Fan Pod that we’ve all become a closer family this year. Seeing the celebrations at the natty showed how connected we all became through the season. All of the fun things this season, the shirts, the receipts, the goofy pregame rituals, tailgating, and so on really added to the fun. I got to know so many more fans this year than I ever had I think. I also got to further share my super fandom with my good buddies Mike, Luke, and James with the GFP that went off the charts with interactions and downloads this year which made things all the more memorable. Griz Nation is the best!
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It’s wild, we’re something like 2 ½ - 3 weeks from winter conditioning for the 2024 team and just like that we’ll be off on the next season. Thanks again to all who put so much into this memorable season, and as always – GO GRIZ!
What I do like is that this feels like we’re on a good path here and it feels that Montana football has momentum on their side in the years ahead. No I don’t know what the portal will do to our roster this week, nor do I know anything about what the coaching staff looks like moving ahead. However, it feels like this team, these coaches, the athletic department, the university, the city, and the fans have once again found that reenergized passion that has rekindled the spirit of before. QB Club, the revamped NIL, and local support is off the charts. The support this program has built up feels like it’s only continuing to grow. It really feels like that Montana magic has returned. Time will tell, but right now I’m so damn proud to be a fan and supporter of this program and this school.
More than anything I just want to share a heartfelt thank you to so many people. 2023 was special for countless reasons and thanks is owed all over.
To the team – Thank you all. The Pride and Tradition of the Montana Grizzlies was carried wonderfully by all of you. This team was expected to finish in the middle of the Big Sky. Our individual players did not receive a lot of preseason accolades. The Griz were billed as undersized, inexperienced, and especially after the NAU loss – overrated. This didn’t phase the players one bit. They got better each week and seemingly shut out the BS chatter and showed it on the field. Montana’s first outright conference title since 2011 / 2009, ass kicking of the cats, and some of the most memorable playoff games of all time. We’ve got a real special group of seniors graduating that really seemed to bind this team together. There’s a blend of long time / local kids and out of state transfers that came together with common goals – and they had one of the most successful seasons we’ve ever seen. That’s on this team and their commitment to each other. Congratulations men.
To the coaching staff – Also, thank you, this is probably the best coaching accomplishments I’ve seen from my perspective. 2022 fell way short of what was expected. The staff reorganized, brought in a few new faces, and then was tasked with rapidly trying reload with their new roster. The development and improvement of many Griz players through this season is unlike anything I’ve seen before and the staff is thank for that. We appeared to see changes in both the defense and offense that made both groups far more effective and dangerous. It resulted in not only the outcomes on the field but the awards and recognition our players and Bobby Hauck got from the conference and the entire FCS as well. I, like many fans, after NAU had my confidence in this group shaken badly. However much like the team this coaching staff didn’t let the fan chatter bother them and rapidly got the team on a path that lead them all the way to the national title game. Our S&T as well as our training staff really seems to have hit it out of the park this year, team injuries as a whole seemed to be far more minimal than before. Recruiting is flying along with some top-notch recruits. Everything has gone really well it seems and the group effort of the entire football staff is to thank.
To the administrators – As a fan you’ve all helped to make this my most memorable season and for that I’m also very thankful. Yes I bitched about stadium access early, but attention was paid to fixing that and it got better. The “product” of attending a Grizzly football game was PHENOMINAL. There’s moments from some of these games that I’ll never forget. After the Ferris win watching fireworks fighting tears as the PA system played a song that was one of my mom’s favorites (she passed in ’21). The playoff events and settings were on point and the post NDSU celebration was so great. The snow from Delaware. The production and planning for the Brawl. The fun we had in the various night games. Successfully planning and executing 3 weeks in a row of playoff games – a night game, then a Friday night game, then a Saturday afternoon game. The videos after the wins and leading up to the natty were all amazing, Austin Valley hit it out of the park. The communication and care that Kent, Greg, Chuck, Riley, McKell, Colton, Jared, Sue, Dan, Tommy, Ryan, Nic, Tia, Zach, and so many others put into this season did not go unnoticed. I think often we all focus on the players and the coaches and thank them for what they put into a season, but then we miss the work that so many in the department do and I know I’m missing many in my thanks here, going a little off the top of my head here.
To the media coverage – Thank you all for your work this year. It’s well known that sometimes access and press conferences can be challenging. As the momentum built for this team and we all as fans sought out more content you delivered. There was some great interviews, articles, videos, and stories on players/games/the season and I think a lot of our local media really rose to try to meet the fan demand for more content. While a lot did great stuff I really think Colter/Skyline, Shaun Rainey/ABC, Kyle Hansen/KPAX, & Samuel Akem really kicked ass with what they put together for us this year.
To the fans – I feel like through this season, be it at the games, on the message board, on social media, or through the Griz Fan Pod that we’ve all become a closer family this year. Seeing the celebrations at the natty showed how connected we all became through the season. All of the fun things this season, the shirts, the receipts, the goofy pregame rituals, tailgating, and so on really added to the fun. I got to know so many more fans this year than I ever had I think. I also got to further share my super fandom with my good buddies Mike, Luke, and James with the GFP that went off the charts with interactions and downloads this year which made things all the more memorable. Griz Nation is the best!
-------------
It’s wild, we’re something like 2 ½ - 3 weeks from winter conditioning for the 2024 team and just like that we’ll be off on the next season. Thanks again to all who put so much into this memorable season, and as always – GO GRIZ!
