Surfing beyond regret
by Tim San Pedro, MontanaGrizzlies.com |
Most surfers and body boarders dread the moment they find themselves at the mercy of an ocean wave. The moment when a wave looks down upon them, laughs, then pins them to the sea floor below. But it takes a special kind of person to throw themselves to the mercy of the sea on purpose. To let the crashing waves punish them and then come up laughing right back at mother nature’s rolling pin as if to say “you don’t scare me.”
This is what Alan Saenz, a senior defensive tackle for the Montana Grizzlies, used to do for amusement as a boy growing up in Newport Beach, Calif. He calls it getting “sucked over the falls.” Most would call it an act of craziness.
“I’d just relax and let the waves take me,” he said while sitting along the west steps of Washington-Grizzly Stadium.
But as UM football coach Bobby Hauck said of playing in the “trenches” (the offensive and defensive line), “The trenches are more than physical. Its a hand-to-hand combat every play. It takes a special kind of player and person to go in there and play the position that Alan plays.”
It might even be safe to say that Saenz has been preparing for the trenches all his life — taking on what others fear.
For example, take playing the Division I-A Oregon Ducks in Eugene, Ore., on Sept. 10.
“When I heard we were playing Oregon I welcomed it. It was notched on my calendar before the season even started,” Saenz said of the non-conference road match. “Our whole team played hard and we learned a lot from that experience. There are a lot of guys on this team that can play at that level. It was nice to have that opportunity.”
Saenz says he doesn’t ever want to look back on his life and think he should’ve, would’ve or could’ve.
“I don’t ever want to live in regret,” he said shaking his head. “I don’t want to be 50 years old and think I could have done this or I could have done that.”
Decisions such as deciding not walking on at a Division I-A football program, moving so far away from home to play for the Griz and majoring in business marketing-management were never regretted.
“I was recruited by Pac-10 schools to walk on to their programs, but I didn’t have a college fund. Instead, I’d probably be going to Orange Coast College, a community college which almost all my cousins went to. Everybody went straight out of high school to there, but I knew I didn’t want to do that. I knew I had potential to do something else. When I got this opportunity I had to think hard about it. It was a major decision in my life, but I know it was the right one.”
The difficult part of the decision was to leave his family and the ocean in order to pursue an education at a land-locked school thousands of miles away.
“I was the furthest one away from home and it took a lot of thought whether I wanted to do it or whether I could do it,” Saenz said. “I haven’t ever been away from my family that long. It took allot of thinking, but when I visited the campus, the staff blew me away and I knew about the winning tradition here.”
The fact that Saenz is the youngest boy in his family didn’t make the decision any easier.
“I’m still the baby boy in the family,” he said. “My mom still kisses me in public and I can’t do anything about it, but I don’t mind it.”
He said his mother is very proud of the decisions Saenz has made in his life, including coming to Montana.
“Everyone always tells me how proud my mother is of me. She tells me sometimes, but she doesn’t want to be overly enthusiastic,” he said.
Saenz didn’t really know what to expect coming to the Big Sky country. He was quickly initiated into Montana style football when he went to Bozeman as a freshman redshirt: “I was on the sideline. I remember we scored a touchdown and I was standing next to another redshirt freshman. I put my hands in the air and yelled touchdown and I was clapping.”
This was nothing out of the ordinary until “I turned around and this old lady, she must have been 70 or 80 and she looks at me, points at me and then gives me the bird,” Saenz said laughing at the memory of Montana’s intense rivalry.
Welcome to Montana, Saenz. “I remember thinking that I love this place,” he said.
He also loves the game of football because its “been such a huge part of my life. I love playing the game. I’m very realistic in seeing that it might be coming to an end and I’d rather welcome it instead of thinking that I should have done this and I should have done that.
“I’m ready to move on to the next step without football if I have to,” he said.
And Hauck will do everything he can to help him get there.
“Any time any of my guys need some help I try to do anything I can,” Hauck said. “Its easy for me to do that because I know what they’ve had to do to survive here between work ethic, time management, toughness and discipline, all the things they’ve had to do. And Saenz is just a popular guy on the team. His teammates like him. He’s a guy that's got a smile on his face all the time.”
But Saenz says that if a football career comes looking for him after college he would take the opportunity. “I never want to live in regret.”
Yet Saenz almost regretted the moment that the ocean scolded him for laughing at its power.
“I got caught by this one wave and all the air got taken out of me because it took me and pounded me against the bottom of the ocean because it was really shallow,” he said. “It sucked me back out and I didn’t know exactly where up was. I know that I was close. I remember almost coming to the point where I needed to yell for help, but I popped out of the water somehow. It was a miracle. I was done for the day.”
[Back to the Grizzly Times] |
Grizzly Spotlight: Shannon Johnson
by Joel Carlson, UM Sports Information |
Senior Shannon Johnson, from Apple Valley, Minn., is in her final season with the young Grizzly cross country team. Below, she discusses everything from her leadership role on the team to her summer training schedule to her favorite memories as a student-athlete at the University of Montana.
GT: As one of just two seniors on a UM women’s cross country team largely made up of underclassmen, how do you view your role?
SJ: I think that I try to set an example for the girls. Because I was injured this summer I didn’t get in my usual run training, so I spent most of the summer cross-training. Now I’m just trying to stay positive and know that my training will come around and my performances will come around as the rest of the season goes on.
I’m trying to set the example of staying positive and to keep training hard even though they might be facing some setbacks as the season progresses.
GT: What was it like to race at the University of Minnesota’s Roy Griak Invitational on Sept. 24, when the race is so close to your Apple Valley, Minn., home?
SJ: It was really special for me because I raced in that race all four years of high school. Then to come back as a Division I college athlete was really fun and really exciting. We got to go back two years ago as well.
GT: What are your strengths as an athlete?
SJ: I know how to train hard, I know how to train smart – finally, I guess you could say. I think that I’m definitely a competitor, and I love the sport. I love running. I think that is definitely a strength, because if you don’t have a passion for our sport or the desire to do it or to compete, you’re not going to do well.
GT: What has your typical summer been like preparing for the fall cross country schedule?
SJ: During the summertime we usually spend time building a base and just getting long easy runs in and lots of mileage under our belts so that our bodies are able to handle the higher volume and hard training that we do once we get out here.
Running is a really tough sport because it’s hard to be meticulous enough to peak yourself at the right moment, at the right point in the season. You don’t want to train too much so that you have your best races of the year right when you get out here and at the same time if you don’t train enough you’re going to be slacking behind.
There’s definitely a red line and you want to get as close to it without going over as you can.
GT: What are your short-term plans?
SJ: I’m done with cross country this fall, but I still have two years (of eligibility) left in track. I’ll be in Minneapolis next fall student-teaching, and then I’ll be back here in the spring to start my graduate degree and finish up my two seasons of track. I’m planning on getting my master’s in exercise science so I can teach and coach at the same time.
GT: After your collegiate career is over, how do you see fitness and exercise fitting into your lifestyle?
SJ: I have a bet with my high school coach who’s run 50 marathons that before I die I’ll run more than she has, so I’m going to try and do that. I just have a passion for running and exercising, hiking, cross country skiing, cycling, all of that.
I definitely want to pursue a career in cycling. With all the injuries I’ve had, I’ve discovered cross training and cycling, and I’ve found a talent in that and kind of want to see where I can go in that after college running is done.
GT: How would you evaluate the performance of this year’s top three runners: sophomore Allie Brosh and freshmen Kim Tritz and Chelsea Burfeind?
SJ: Allie Brosh trains so hard, and she is so mentally tough and strong during races. And then she trains to back it up. She’s definitely filled our top spot this year. She’s running awesome.
Kim and Chelsea have come in as freshmen and just stepped up to the plate. They both put in great summers of training, and they are both running very well. It’s really fun to see freshmen come in and exceed what their potential is thought to be.
GT: How has Tom Raunig been as a coach for you?
SJ: Coach Raunig has been an awesome coach. I’ve had setbacks and he’s always been there to support me through those setbacks in my career. And he’s amazing at training us. The programs that he sets up for us, if you follow them correctly and you listen to your body and you keep in contact with him, he’ll train you to be at your best.
GT: Years from now, how will you remember your University of Montana experience?
SJ: I love being a Griz. I’m really proud to say that I am a Grizzly athlete. I think that our athletic program is awesome, and I think that my teammates over the years have become my best friends and they will be for the rest of my life. I’ve learned a lot about myself as an athlete, and I’ve learned a lot about myself as a person through running here, so I’ll only look back at UM positively.
GT: What is your best memory from your Montana cross country career?
SJ: That’s a tough one. I think some of the most exciting memories are that freshman year, when you first come in and you have no expectations and you have no idea what’s going to happen, and the seniors on the team just take you under their wings and everything’s always exciting and new.
Now, as a senior looking back, it’s fun because I’m taking that role of having the team over for spaghetti dinners and doing fun stuff like that. So I think just being part of the team is the best memory that I’ll have.
[Back to the Grizzly Times]
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The long and winding road
by Joel Carlson, UM Sports Information |
The recruiting road has taken all of Montana’s head and assistant coaches across the state of Montana, the West and around the country. Over the years they have compiled a litany of stories. Some are funny, some are representative of the realities of the recruiting game. Some have happy endings – where the coach gets the prospect – some have an ending about the kid who got away. Here are some of their favorite stories from over the years.
Annette Rocheleau |
Annette Rocheleau, assistant women’s basketball coach
"One time I left some friends at a homecoming football game to go down to Manhattan and watch a kid play. I showed up a little early, so I stopped to get a Coke, and I locked my keys in the car. Two hours later I got my keys out, got in my car and drove home because I’d missed the game.
“Another time I did a home visit in Richey, Montana. I was dressed in my nice clothes, and it was kind of muddy. I called the family, and they told me they’d meet me at the gate. So they met me, unlatched the gate and it took us 20 minutes to get to their house driving through the cows on this muddy, dirt road.
“On the way out the door I told them, ‘Hey, don’t bother, I can make it out on my own, no problem.’ But I couldn’t get the gate shut, and the cows all ended up getting out and I couldn’t get them back in. So I had to drive all the way back up to the house and bring the family back down and then I helped them herd the cows back in. I was a mess by the time we got done.
"One other story. About 15 years ago I was making a visit. I had a friend drop me off at this family’s house, and I told her to come back in an hour to pick me up. I knocked and the dad opened the door and he looked at me. My visit was over as soon as he opened the door and saw it was me and not Robin (Selvig).
“I walked in and they were totally rude. I burned about a half an hour and then went out and sat on the curb for another half hour until my friend came and picked me up.
“When the dad opened the door and I saw the look on his face, I should have just turned around and waved my friend down.”
Neil Sedgwick |
Neil Sedgwick, head women’s soccer coach
“Last fall we left on a Thursday with the team to go play at Sac State on Friday. Saturday we traveled up to Portland State to play them on Sunday. The team returned to Missoula on Sunday night, but I stayed in Portland that night and flew to Hawaii Monday morning.
“I visited with a recruit on Monday afternoon, then Tuesday morning I flew back to Portland, arriving Tuesday night. I stayed in Portland that night.
“Wednesday morning I flew from Portland to Missoula, arriving just after noon, then trained with the team Wednesday afternoon before we got on a bus with the team to drive to Spokane. Thursday morning we flew over to Portland for the Big Sky Conference tournament.”
Dave Best |
Dave Best, assistant head volleyball coach
“I would have to say my best recruiting story was flying down to West Plains, Missouri, in the late fall of 2004. We had had such good luck with Claudia (Houle, from Barton County Community College) that I thought this (NJCAA national tournament) was an event I should attend and that we should be recruiting the teams that were playing.
“I flew into Springfield, Missouri, which is the Bass Pro Shop capital of the world. Then you have to take an hour’s car drive down to West Plains, which is a small town that resembles Hazard County from the movie (Dukes of Hazard).
“When I got there I checked into the Ramada Inn late at night and they said ‘There was a problem with your room, Mr. Best, but we took care of it by upgrading you to one of our celebrity rooms.’
“And I thought, OK, I don’t know what this is because I don’t think they get many celebrities coming through West Plains, Missouri.
“I go to my room, and it’s dark, and I turn on the light and the room that they had set me up with was called the Serengeti. I opened the door and everything is in leopard print and there are masks on the walls and elephants everywhere, and tigers everywhere, and I thought if the rest of the weekend goes like this, we’re going to be in trouble, but I made it through.”
Wayne Tinkle |
Wayne Tinkle, assistant men’s basketball coach
“There was a kid from the Northwest, and we thought he was going to be a really good get for us. We were battling some other schools that at that time appeared like they were at a little higher level. I had a real good connection with the kid, the coach and the parents, though, and I felt like we were in a pretty good situation.
“We had him in here on a visit, early, which sometimes you’re fearful of because sometimes it’s whoever left the last impression (that you feel sometimes has the best chance).
“One weekend while the kid was on a visit to one of the bigger schools, his coach wanted to know what kind of situation we were in and how I felt it was going, in my gut, that sort of thing.
“Coaches can be kind of paranoid about discussing (the status of a recruit).
“We knew he was on campus at this other school at that very moment, and about 15 minutes after that conversation I got a call from the kid while he was on his visit there. He just wanted to know how things were here, if we were still excited about him. He said he wasn’t enjoying himself as much as he did here.
“It was just kind of funny. Right after we had that conversation with the coach, the kid calls while he’s on the other school’s campus. I knew we were in pretty good shape then and we ended up getting him.
“It’s just kind of funny how recruiting works sometimes.”
Tom Raunig |
Tom Raunig, head cross country and track and field coach
“I remember going to visit twin brother recruits in Kremlin, Montana, up in the north-central part of the state. It was at Christmas time, and we ran into a huge blizzard.
“I had a rental car, and I was running late. I turned off the highway and was going through the town to visit this remote farm north of there. But they had never plowed the road in town, and I was going about 60 and couldn’t stop. I ended up sliding through the entire length of Kremlin, Montana.
“It was pure ice. It wasn’t fun, and I didn’t get either of the twins either.
“It was also interesting recruiting Richie Pemberton. He lived in the country outside of Manhattan, Montana. They had such a variety of animals at their house. They had an iguana and a pot-bellied pig and chickens, so it was quite an experience going to his house and meeting all of the pets.”
Mike Hudson |
Mike Hudson, associate head football coach
“One time when I was at Texas State, I was recruiting a quarterback from the city of West, Texas, which is just north of Waco, and the family had me over for dinner. I didn’t know what I was getting into, but we grilled steaks. The kid grilled a steak and I grilled a steak, and then the family taste-tested them to see whose steak was better. And I lost.
“I think the fact that we had fun together was a big reason he came (to Texas State). He liked the school, but the fact that I wasn’t just an adult to him, that I was somebody he could relate to, that I was willing to do that, I think played a role in his decision.”
Shannon Schweyen |
Shannon Schweyen, assistant women’s basketball coach
“When Rob (Selvig) went to visit Brooklynn Lorenzen, he flew to Portland but couldn’t rent a car because his driver’s license had expired and he didn’t know it. He ended up having to take a limousine down to Corvallis, where she lived, because there weren’t any taxis that could take him that far.
“On the way down he had to call Brooklynn’s coach who met him at the 7-Eleven to give him a ride up to Brooklynn’s house, because, of course, he’d lost his directions.
“Last year when Brooklynn got married, we were talking to the coach at the wedding and he says ‘The rumor going around Corvallis for a year was that I picked Steve Martin up at the 7-11.’
“Of course Rob thought they meant it had been George Clooney that had pulled up in the limo.
“Then he had to go down to California for another visit and had to take a city bus from San Francisco up to where this girl lived because he still couldn’t rent a car.
“One time I was making a string of visits from Olympia to San Francisco and I had one nice outfit along. I ended up leaving one of my dress shoes at the hotel the night before, but I didn’t realize it until I was going in to change. I didn’t have time to get any new ones, so I had to go to the first visit with one shoe on.
“Then every time I would call that recruit, her brother would answer and call out ‘The coach with one shoe is on the phone.’”
Angela Morrison |
Angela Morrison, assistant women's soccer coach
“One example of a recruiting story is I was up at 4:30 in the morning to get on a Greyhound bus from Missoula to Spokane, where I flew to Seattle. I recruited there for three days, then flew back to Spokane, where Neil (Sedgwick) picked me up so we could drive to Moscow, Idaho, for ODP (Olympic Development Program) camp.
“After that was over on Sunday afternoon, we drove back to Missoula, getting back here about eight at night. And then we had a week-long camp starting bright and early Monday morning that we had to prepare for.
“When I coached at the University of North Dakota, we were in the first year of the program so we had a lot of recruiting to do to get a full roster. In an effort to save money, we would drive down to the Twin Cities after our own afternoon practice to watch a high school game from about seven to nine, or thereabouts.
“Then, instead of spending money on a hotel and driving back the next day, we would just head back that night, getting back in about 3 or 4 in the morning.”
Brad Huse |
Brad Huse, assistant men's basketball coach
“In recruiting you have to be able to be able to handle various situations. An example from my Jamestown (N.D.) days would be back-to-back home visits we made to two different recruits. Night one we were at the home of a very spiritual, very religious family. We spent a lot of time praying prior to the meal, then again after the meal, and we just had a great conversation.
“The next night we were in a different town with a different recruit and I’m met at the door by a parent with a beer in his hand. He gives it to me and says ‘This is for you coach, thanks for coming out.’
“You’ve got to be able to adapt to all kinds of situations, and I actually got both kids.”
Kraig Paulson |
Kraig Paulson, assistant football coach (defensive coordinator)
“I remember one time me and Don (Read) were out in eastern Montana, probably south and west of Baker. We were following this kid home after his basketball game. He lived about 35 miles outside of town – out of anywhere – and it’s just a dirt road, but it’s a complete whiteout with snow.
“It’s dark and this kid gets going and we’re supposed to follow him to his house. He’s going like 70 miles an hour and we’re in this car behind him and we lose complete track of the kid. So we’re out in the middle of nowhere and it’s snowing. Don wasn’t too comfortable and neither was I. It was freezing out.
“And the kid doesn’t stop and come back for us. But he’s just acting like any 18-year-old kid, it’s his normal routine. It’s just the way of life over there. The foot is always to the floor, it doesn’t matter if it’s pavement or gravel or snow.
“So here we are creeping along, lost. Thank god it wasn’t snowing any harder. This was before cell phones, and we were so far out there we didn’t know exactly what we were going to do.
“This kid probably pulled in and the parents were expecting us to be following right behind. We end up pulling in a solid 45 minutes later, but we finally got there and everything was all right.
“But what a classic deal that was.
“When we were done, the kid asks us if we want him to take us back to the road, and we say ‘No, I think we can make it on our own.’
“He was just going to leave us in the dust again.”
Bobby Hauck |
Bobby Hauck, head football coach
“I’ve got two, both are from when I was at Colorado. One was when we were recruiting Brady McDonnell, out of Wall, South Dakota. The family had a farm 12 miles outside of town, and I was in town to watch him play basketball. So instead of driving out to the farm, we decided to just find a place to meet in town to get together.
“The only places that are open after seven o’clock in Wall, South Dakota, are the two local bars. So we got into one of the bars and we’re sitting in the back and we’re having a burger and a Coke. The boys were playing pool, and we were sitting around this old table in the back of the bar talking and there’s like 12 other people in the bar.
“Pretty soon these guys get into a fight, and it turns into six on six. It’s a barroom brawl and it’s just a free-for-all. It looks like an old west movie.
“This guy fell on me, this guy got knocked into me and bled all over my slacks. I’m in a coat and tie in this bar in this small town and he’s bleeding on me. Eventually the police came and broke it up, but his mom was so embarrassed, she couldn’t believe it had happened.
“I told it was all right, that I’m from Big Timber, Montana, so this was like a trip home for me.”
“That was good. We got that guy, and he went on to play for the Patriots in the NFL for four years.
“When I was recruiting Coach (Ty) Gregorak, I had gone out to see him in Spokane. The weather was bad and his family lives on a hill outside of town.
“After the visit, I was driving down the road and it was solid ice and there was a big corner. I went right off the road into the snow and the car landed at an angle, almost straight up and down off the road. I was actually hanging there, suspended by the seatbelt. I unbuckled the seatbelt and had to climb and hang and drop out of the car to get down.
“Then I had to stand on the bumper and reach down in the trunk to get my suitcases.
“Ty and his family had warned me about the road being icy, but I was in a hurry and I didn’t pay attention.
“I had to call them and tell them what had happened and tell them I needed a ride to the airport because I had to go visit a kid in Seattle.
“So I got to the airport late, ran in and got on the flight. When I got to Seattle, I called Avis and told them where their car was and the condition it was in. You should have heard the guy listening when I talked to him on the phone. He was like ‘Our car’s where?’ I said ‘It’s straight up and down in a snowbank and they’re going to need a wrecker to get it out. And the keys are in the ignition.”
Robin Selvig |
Robin Selvig, head women's basketball coach
“There was a girl in Livingston, Sherri Brooks. I had a 7 p.m. home visit scheduled and I was coming from some other place. I was in a hurry and I was hungry, so I stopped and pounded down a couple of Big Macs. I got up there just after that and they had this huge dinner waiting for the home visit. And they said ‘Are you hungry?' so I said ‘Oh, yeah,” I'd just stuffed a couple of burgers, but I had to eat the whole meal. It was a big pork dinner with potatoes. I said ‘Looks good,' so I pounded that down too. I was hurting.”
[Back to the Grizzly Times]
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Griz fans rated best in the nation
by Chuck Burton, I-AA.org |
Here's the final segment of the list of "Top Fans from I-AA". Out of respect for fans of Southern, who probably weren't caring much about football as Katrina was devastating many of their friends and family, I delayed the release of this piece until there was some separation between the tragedy.
After coming up with this list, it has to be said that there are fans of great schools that just couldn't quite make it into the upper echelon. There were also some real heartbreakers who seemed to belong but just seemed to have that something just missing. To Furman, Tennessee St., North Dakota St., Northwestern St., Yale, Southern Illinois, William & Mary, Eastern Washington, Western Illinois, and NC A&T fans, I can only say… better luck next time. Or get a better mascot. Or something.
I can't wait any longer. Here are the Top 5!
Conference: Mid-Eastern Athletic
City: Tallahassee, Fla.
Mascot: The ugliest mascot ever. Ever. No, I mean ever. The Florida A&M team name is the "Rattlers." That's a bad start. Then, they make a snake - I mean, a snake-looking thing - mascot to roam the sidelines. That's worse. But where they really hit the trifecta of horrible ideas is when they decide to give the mascot… cheerleader clothes. What they end up with is a mascot that I'm afraid to show my son. When I have to say to my son, after viewing this furry, clothed, and legged snake mascot, "Imagine it is a snake," what's the point?
Rival: Last year, senior FAMU offensive lineman put it better than I ever could: "I'm ready to play them so bad I can taste it… I wake up with cold sweats at night because I want to play B-CC." In the "Florida Classic", the Rattlers' season becomes a success or failure as they play the Bethune-Cookman College Wildcats. Played in front of more than 70,000 fans, in terms of attendance it could be considered the biggest in all of I-AA.
Resembles: Al Gore fans, c. 2000.
Typical Fan: The votes are in, and George W. Bush is president - but fans of Al Gore cannot accept that their guy lost. So it goes with fans of the Rattlers. Before each game, the trash-talking starts. Expectations of 49-17 blowouts and sheer domination of the opponent are predicted. But when the gun sounds and the stadium scoreboard shows "Nicholls St. 42, FAMU 25", serious "Strike Force" denial sets in - it was the turnovers, the officials, the pregame meal. FAMU fans are fighters to the last. They bleed green and orange, hate B-CC with Israeli/Palestinian intensity, come out in droves for the "Florida Classic", and support their team with real ferocity. But when they lose - after the initial shock has passed - to them it's just inconceivable that FAMU isn’t the biggest, baddest, greatest team ever. For FAMU fans, it's very fortunate that there's always next Saturday.
| No. 4 - Appalachian State |
Conference: Southern
City: Boone, N.C.
Mascot: By far, Yosef the Mountaineer is my favorite mascot. Why? First of all, his mere existence makes the NCAA's postseason ban on Indian mascots look silly, as theoretically the NCAA should be shocked - shocked - at the Mountaineers' lack of sensitivity to people from Appalachia (even though Yosef represents Appalachian State Univeristy, located in, er, Appalachia). Second, someone at the ASU website felt the need to write an entire bio for him - who he is, where he came from, and where he's going. A ghost-written fake bio - Yosef and Clay Aiken have something in common. From this bio: "'Yosef' is a reserved man of few words. His tall stature and sturdy build are essential to the intimidating presence a mascot should possess." Such great fiction being written about you surely indicates that you've arrived.
Rival: The Mountaineers don't have one rivalry for the ages; they have three. Georgia Southern is always a huge game, generally with SoCon titles on the line - not to mention a healthy amount of "championship envy". Furman is an even bigger game, punctuated by crazy finishes and seething Paladin hatred. But beating Western Carolina for the "Old Mountain Jug" is the biggest rivalry of all - best of all for Mountaineer fans, App St. holds a 49-18-1 overall series lead in this rivalry. (With a record like that, isn't that kind of like saying that the Harlem Globetrotters have a "rivalry" with the Washington Generals?)
Resembles: Nebraska fans, c. 1990
Typical Fan: Appalachian St. has had some fine football teams in its past. In 1990, Nebraska had had some fine football teams in their past - but were just unable to win that elusive national championship. Cornhusker fans then, like Mountaineer fans now, felt they had all the solutions for Tom Osborne and his coaching staff - how to motivate them, and their own versions of the wing-T that will get them the championship. Similarly, the App St. message boards seem to be littered with coaching advice from caring fans. Many appear to have delusions that they will be the next "Shooter" - the loveable semi-literate alchoholic degenerate that was hired by Gene Hackman in Hoosiers. Advice aside, App St. fans love their Mountaineers to a fault, whose team and exploits have woven themselves in the fabric of Boone, NC and the surrounding areas. App St. fans' reams of advice for their coaches, not to mention their loyal history of cheering on their team (and tearing down goalposts), speak volumes for how loyal passionate these fans are.
Conference: Southwestern Athletic
City: Baton Rouge, LA
Mascot: It's not as bad as Grambling's aging Tiger, or Jackson State's aging tiger, but Southern's Jaguar isn't going to make anyone forget "the Human Jukebox", Southern's legendary band, anytime soon. The theory holds that in the SWAC, the mascots are told to "keep low, and don't get in the way of the bands" - though, it has to be said, the Jaguar looks better than most.
Rival: Strangely, there is a debate. Do Southern fans hate Jackson St., Florida A&M, or Grambling State the most? They play Grambling in the "Bayou Classic" every year in arguably the biggest rivalry in I-AA, where they hold a 27-25 advantage in the all-time series. Shouldn't that be the most intense rivalry? Against fellow SWAC-mate Jackson St. they also hold a narrow 26-23 edge in the series. Maybe that one? But Florida A&M out of the MEAC, relatively speaking, has owned them - they hold a 33-24-1 advantage over the Jags. It must eat at Jag fans - and strangely enough, that's the victory that would mean the most to them.
Resembles: Fans of Arsenal (English soccer), c. 2003
Typical Fan: Arsenal fans, aside from being raving lunatics that follow their team like a weird cult, also do something else: they have an incredible sense of humor when it comes to cutting down opponents (or sometimes, what they perceive to not be "true" fans). Southern fans are just like this. Quoting a Southern Fan: "SWAC Stands For Southern Whoops Arse Constantly" ("Arse" here, I am assuming, means a fan of Arsenal). They spin the best smack in I-AA, against hated Grambling, against hated Jackson St., against hated Florida A&M. They also bring it to the tailgates and the games, especially the "Classics", with legions of fans, to both home and away games. Southern fans are definitely in the I-AA fan hall of fame.
Conference: Atlantic 10
City: Newark, DE
Mascot: "YouDee", the unique mascot of Delaware, actually is a pretty neat-looking bird and a great mascot. But this unfortunate picture I happened to find while googling brings up lots of uncomfortable questions. For example, who the heck is this baby mascot, Baby Blue? And who's the father? (It couldn't be Foghorn Leghorn look-alike Mr. Chicken, could it?) And finally, what's with the guy on the pickup truck with the "R" painted on his chest? Is he without his "DELAWAE"?
Rival: Outside of the Atlantic 10, when the Blue Hens' pesky little brother to the north, Lehigh, come to Tubby Raymond stadium, it's a great event with real animosity between the two schools. But even beating Lehigh comes second to Blue Hen domination over Villanova in one of the stranger rivalries in I-AA. You couldn't pick two more different schools in small, upper-crusty Villanova with a moderate fan base and large, middle-class Delaware with fans that sell out their 22,000 seat stadium on a regular basis. It's the differences between the schools that feed and nurture this rivalry into one of the best in I-AA.
Resembles: New York Yankee fans, c. 2002
Typical Fan: Brash. Arrogant. Successful. It describes the Yankee fan and Delaware fan perfectly. Blue Hen fans are completely convinced of their superiority over the rest of I-AA - and with good reason. They've been co-champions of the Atlantic 10 conference, arguably the strongest conference in I-AA, the last 2 years. They've won 8 out of the last 9 against hated Lehigh, and the last two against hated Villanova. And in 2003, they captured their first-ever I-AA national championship. As a result, Delaware fans are brimming with self confidence in their overflowing tailgates. Newark in the worst of times was always packed with knowledgeable students and fans tailgating for hours before and after the games. But now that they've tasted the pinnacle of their success in the past 2 years, they have really become insufferable. Yet Delaware fans, like Yankee fans, can afford to be insufferable - may they enjoy it.
Conference: Big Sky
City: Missoula, MT
Mascot: "Monte" the Grizzly is the beloved mascot of the Grizzlies. In this picture, Monte is riding his motorcycle to pump up the crowd (as if Montana's crowds actually needed pumping up). He may look pretty cool here, but let's be honest. He looks about as ferocious as my two year old son's stuffed bear. Matter of fact, in a fight between them, my money would be on my son's bear.
Rival: The Grizzlies have their share of rivalry games in the Big Sky, but the "Brawl of the Wild" versus Montana St. simply shuts down the entire state. It's hard to imagine crazed Grizzly fans pumped up a few more notches when they can sell more than 23,000 seats against Adams St., but somehow the adrenaline and drinking actually gets taken to another level when they play the Bobcats. A must-see.
Resembles: The KISS Army, c. 1979
Typical Fan: The KISS Army are the semi-maniacal fans of the rock group KISS that formed in the late '70s and still exist today in some circles. They paint their faces, travel anywhere the band plays, and are out-of-control. Montana fans, meet your soulmates! When Montana qualifies for the I-AA national championship, thousands of painted-fans descend on Chattanooga to celebrate and party. The tailgate starts on Thursday night and doesn't stop until well after the 4th quarter gun has sounded. You'd have to be a raving lunatic to be a fan of the opposing team, surrounded by their number. Basically, they are the gold standard that all fans of I-AA programs should strive for. Start studying those game films!
Also check out the rest of I-AA.org's Top 20 rankings: Nos. 6-10 | Nos. 11-15 | Nos. 16-20
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| A letter from Athletic Director Jim O'Day |
Montana A.D. Jim O'Day |
What a great time of year October should be for Grizzly fans. The month kicks off with the annual Homecoming celebration on Oct. 1, highlighted by the Big Sky Conference-opening football game against Weber State. By the time the month ends, the football team will be deep into conference play and will have played four home games in 29 days.
And that’s only the start. The young women’s soccer team should be positioning itself for a high seed in the league tournament, the volleyball team should be using the momentum of a great start to the season in September to grab their first league tournament spot since 2000 and the cross country teams will have just competed at the Big Sky Conference championships.
And on Oct. 14, the men’s and women’s basketball teams, both coming off NCAA tournament appearances, open practice.
What a month!
And that does not include the women’s golf team and men’s and women’s tennis teams, all three of which have a busy fall schedule as well during their non-championship season.
Please make an effort to support all of our Grizzly teams during this busy month. Check MontanaGrizzlies.com every day to find out who’s playing where.
On a different note, UM Athletics has received significant correspondence from fans regarding the tape-delayed telecasts of our non-conference football games. First, though, I assure you that all conference games will be shown live by KPAX and the Montana Television Network, starting with the Homecoming contest against Weber State. The only remaining game to be televised on a tape-delayed basis will be the non-league outing versus Cal Poly on Oct. 22.
While we would all love to see every one of the Griz football games on television, at times we have no options. This year, for example, only one television station (KPAX) expressed an interest in televising Grizzly football games. Economics most likely played a role in this decision by other potential bidders.
In 2001, the Griz were fortunate enough to be on television each week – and that streak lasted through last season, a string of 64 consecutive games. During those times, a mix of media outlets picked up the games. That streak ended this season when the Griz hosted Fort Lewis over the Labor Day weekend.
The decision not to televise the Fort Lewis game was made months ago for many reasons, most notably in an effort to fill the stadium as we honored the 10-year reunion of the 1995 national championship team. The idea worked as we had hoped because we had a record season-opening crowd.
Next, we had the UM-Oregon game. With the Pac-10 Conference’s contract with ABC/ESPN, we were not able to televise the game live back to Montana. Instead, KPAX agreed to help us out and picked up the game on a tape-delay basis for a fee of $5,000, resulting in a $3,000 loss for the station.
Two weeks ago, KPAX again agreed to put the UM-South Dakota State game on at no charge to UM Athletics on a tape-delayed basis at 10:35 p.m. As you might expect, that is a tough sell to potential advertisers, and, again, the local station lost money. But in the spirit of supporting Grizzly Athletics, they absorbed the loss. The game, however, did go up live on satellite to viewers across the country. It should also be noted that KPAX only has so many hours during a day in which it can pre-empt its national television coverage, and those hours are taken by our conference games.
As you can understand, major advertisers pay millions of dollars for the national exposure they get on the major networks, and they are not particularly excited about paying these costs when pockets of regional games are being televised (and their products not being advertised) in place of the prime-time games across the country featuring the Michigans, Floridas and USCs of the collegiate sports world.
It should also be noted that at the Division I-AA level, no one gets rich on any of these games. Our television revenue for last year’s non-conference schedule, for instance, totaled $8,500 for four games ($4,000 for Maine, and $1,500 each for Hofstra, Sam Houston State and Northern Colorado – where affiliated stations in those areas split the costs with local producers).
I hope you can see more clearly how fortunate we are to have as many games televised as we do, which is unusual for Division I-AA teams. Because of our past deficit, we are not able to “buy” games, and that is the investment some schools are making. Unfortunately, we are not in a financial position to be able to pull this off each week.
I hope to see you at many of our October games.
Jim O'Day - Athletic Director
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| UM Athletic Department and GSA announcements |
Tickets on sale for annual "Driving the Griz" car raffle
Attention Griz fans, tickets are on sale for the third annual “Driving the Griz@ car raffle, sponsored by the Grizzly Scholarship Association. This 1998 Ford Mustang Cobra SVT will be raffled at halftime of the Griz-Sac State basketball game on Monday, February 27, 2006. Tickets are available at the GSA tailgate, GSA offices and Blue Ribbon Auto Body. All proceeds from the raffle benefit the Grizzly Athletic Scholarship Association. This is 1 of 542 Mustang Cobra SVT’s made in 1998 and was painted and detailed in Griz spirit by Blue Ribbon Auto Body. For more information, contact the Grizzly Scholarship Association at 243-6481.
Thanks again to Blue Ribbon Auto Body for their support of the G.S.A.
12th man jerseys on sale, funds to support Grizzly
Athletes
The Bookstore at The University of Montana, the Grizzly Scholarship
Association and UM Athletics have teamed up to create the 12th Man Program.
White Nike replica jerseys with the No. 12 are being sold with proceeds
going to the GSA for purchase of lettermen's jackets for all Griz letterwinners.
Be part of the team and get in the game buy picking up your 12th man jersey
only at The Bookstore or online (link below) at the Griz Shop.
ORDER
ONLINE AT THE GRIZ SHOP
Former Griz standouts to spearhead "GrizKidz"
Six former University of Montana football players joined forces recently to create GrizKidz, a nonprofit program that will attempt to provide opportunities for financially disadvantaged children in Missoula to attend Grizzly home football games. The goal of the program is for Griz football ticket holders to donate tickets that would otherwise go unused for distribution to such children. Founding members of GrizKidz are former UM football standouts Matt Clark, Thad Huse, Mike McGowan, Mike Rankin, Tim Polich and Bryan Tripp.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION
Griz Nation wristbands on sale
Purchase the Griz Nation wristband and help support Grizzly Athletics.
ORDER
ONLINE AT
THE GRIZ SHOP
GSA apparel available
Grizzly Scholarship Association apparel is available at the GSA
offices in the Adams Event Center. There is an open invitation to all Griz
fans to check out the selection and help support the Montana
Grizzly Scholarship Association.
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