The official/UNofficial Bobcat-Redbirds National Championship Gameday Thread

[VimSince03]

More natty talk! Thank you Colter and Sammy!

Good episode. The only bone I have to pick is the fourth and 1 discussion. I think it’s important to note that the timing wasn’t thrown off by the snap or hold and the kick wasn’t low. It was just a great play by McMillan. He had a great get-off and blocked it with his shoulder. Had he blocked it with his hand, you could maybe say that the snap/hold played a role. The kicker being inexperienced had nothing to do with the block. The xp is a different story. The snap/hold played a big role.

I think someone really needs to scour through the ISU TD drive to make it 21-14. It was a mysterious chain of events.

Also, there is no better way to win a championship game than have it be a complete nail biter. I thought msu should have won comfortably but that just wasn’t in the cards.

Call me crazy but if they pick up that first down on their 3rd possession of the game from around the 50, I think we score again and make it a three possession game. Our hypothetical blowout hinged on us making it a 3 possession game and we never could get over the hump. Funny thing is we didn't get a procedural penalty on the 3rd and 1 but JT Reed literally snapped it early and the rest of the line was not expecting that along with Lamson. Led to a 5 yard loss...but hey no penalty!

[nanacat]

More natty talk! Thank you Colter and Sammy!

Thanks Colter and Sammy! Really good stuff. If I didn't know better I'd almost think you were more Cats fans than griz fans

[Colter_Nuanez]

The media has always been dominated by UM grads. They lean UM anywhere outside of Bozeman.

Put it to you this way: imagine if UM had just won the nashy and the coverage they would have gotten. It would still be all over the news and podcasts would be thick with interviews of players, coaches, former players on a daily basis.

Well the good news for you is we have natty talk and coverage planned for the next 8 weeks leading up to the Big Sky tournament in Boise. That’s how it was sold to sponsors.

We did as much as we could in the two weeks between Nashville and last week. Then i had to take the foot off the gas. My wife broke her arm and her foot just 4 days before our son’s 2nd birthday. So I had had to basically take last week off.

No excuses, play like a champ!

I have interviews with Taco Dowler and Adam Jones today.

The rest of the list includes all the MSU assistants, MSUs broadcast crew, Leon Costello, all of MSU’s graduating senior captains, some former Bobcats who we saw in Nashville, Mike Kramer (hopefully), plus I will have a feature on Sean Herrin, a feature on JT Reed.

Also, Brandon Sullivan will have a full length feature film on the game. And we are working on a print publication. Also, working with Taco and Adam on their camps so stay tuned for that too.

[RUACAT]

Colter,

Hopefully all is well with your wife. Family is a priority over anything Bobcat Nation expects.

Looking forward to the updates and hopefully the interview with the Big Human. And a full-length feature film from Sully? We are not worthy. Thanks for all you do.

[Joe Bobcat]

Dang! Wishing a speedy recovery for your wife. Happy birthday to your son too.
Your coverage of all things Big Sky Conference is appreciated.

[nanacat]

Oh man Colter, that's rough! Hoping your wife heals up real soon. Trying to chase a 2 year old around while being broken isn't easy at all! Of course your family takes priority! You've just spoiled all of us with your great coverage, haha!

Super excited to see and hear more! Loved your segment with Sammy. He's become a favorite of mine, even with being a former griz player, lol. I think he does a great job staying balanced.

[TomCat88]

More natty talk! Thank you Colter and Sammy!

Good episode. The only bone I have to pick is the fourth and 1 discussion. I think it’s important to note that the timing wasn’t thrown off by the snap or hold and the kick wasn’t low. It was just a great play by McMillan. He had a great get-off and blocked it with his shoulder. Had he blocked it with his hand, you could maybe say that the snap/hold played a role. The kicker being inexperienced had nothing to do with the block. The xp is a different story. The snap/hold played a big role.

I think someone really needs to scour through the ISU TD drive to make it 21-14. It was a mysterious chain of events.

Also, there is no better way to win a championship game than have it be a complete nail biter. I thought msu should have won comfortably but that just wasn’t in the cards.

Call me crazy but if they pick up that first down on their 3rd possession of the game from around the 50, I think we score again and make it a three possession game. Our hypothetical blowout hinged on us making it a 3 possession game and we never could get over the hump. Funny thing is we didn't get a procedural penalty on the 3rd and 1 but JT Reed literally snapped it early and the rest of the line was not expecting that along with Lamson. Led to a 5 yard loss...but hey no penalty!

Like Spack said, there was no one play that decided the game.

In a game like that there are numerous plays that could’ve flipped it.

His postgame interview is really good. He explains a lot about what happened on several key plays.

[iaafan]

It’s one of the greatest college football games of all time and the best FCS game ever.

Two evenly matched teams
Incredible individual efforts
More twists and turns than a soap opera
Great comeback
Wild final minute
Won on the final play on fourth down
First overtime game in FCS title game history

Did I leave anything out?!

[AFCAT]

It’s one of the greatest college football games of all time and the best FCS game ever.

Two evenly matched teams
Incredible individual efforts
More twists and turns than a soap opera
Great comeback
Wild final minute
Won on the final play on fourth down
First overtime game in FCS title game history

Did I leave anything out?!

Won on a walk-off extra point kick.

[nanacat]

It’s one of the greatest college football games of all time and the best FCS game ever.

Two evenly matched teams
Incredible individual efforts
More twists and turns than a soap opera
Great comeback
Wild final minute
Won on the final play on fourth down
First overtime game in FCS title game history

Did I leave anything out?!

Now I'm going to have to watch it again! Have already done so a couple times lol. Still enjoy watching all the highlight videos and clips that keep popping up on social media. What an incredible game! And it was extra fun to get to be there in person to watch it all go down!

[technoCat]

It’s one of the greatest college football games of all time and the best FCS game ever.

Two evenly matched teams
Incredible individual efforts
More twists and turns than a soap opera
Great comeback
Wild final minute
Won on the final play on fourth down
First overtime game in FCS title game history

Did I leave anything out?!

"The Hurdle" aka Sportcenter top play

[iaafan]

It’s one of the greatest college football games of all time and the best FCS game ever.

Two evenly matched teams
Incredible individual efforts
More twists and turns than a soap opera
Great comeback
Wild final minute
Won on the final play on fourth down
First overtime game in FCS title game history

Did I leave anything out?!

"The Hurdle" aka Sportcenter top play

https://www.espn.com/college-football/s ... games-2025

And Bill Connelly ranks it no. 5 game of the year. His words say no. 1 though.

[TomCat88]

It’s one of the greatest college football games of all time and the best FCS game ever.

Two evenly matched teams
Incredible individual efforts
More twists and turns than a soap opera
Great comeback
Wild final minute
Won on the final play on fourth down
First overtime game in FCS title game history

Did I leave anything out?!

"The Hurdle" aka Sportcenter top play

https://www.espn.com/college-football/s ... games-2025

And Bill Connelly ranks it no. 5 game of the year. His words say no. 1 though.

If anyone thinks that wasn’t the best game of the CFB season, they’re out of their ever loving minds.

[lutecat]

The media has always been dominated by UM grads. They lean UM anywhere outside of Bozeman.

Put it to you this way: imagine if UM had just won the nashy and the coverage they would have gotten. It would still be all over the news and podcasts would be thick with interviews of players, coaches, former players on a daily basis.

Well the good news for you is we have natty talk and coverage planned for the next 8 weeks leading up to the Big Sky tournament in Boise. That’s how it was sold to sponsors.

We did as much as we could in the two weeks between Nashville and last week. Then i had to take the foot off the gas. My wife broke her arm and her foot just 4 days before our son’s 2nd birthday. So I had had to basically take last week off.

No excuses, play like a champ!

I have interviews with Taco Dowler and Adam Jones today.

The rest of the list includes all the MSU assistants, MSUs broadcast crew, Leon Costello, all of MSU’s graduating senior captains, some former Bobcats who we saw in Nashville, Mike Kramer (hopefully), plus I will have a feature on Sean Herrin, a feature on JT Reed.

Also, Brandon Sullivan will have a full length feature film on the game. And we are working on a print publication. Also, working with Taco and Adam on their camps so stay tuned for that too.

Colter, haven't you learned in your time covering football that you have to have depth. Caden gets injured in the Brawl2.0 but next man up. You got to develop depth. Next woman up! You need a backup for when injury happens.....

[nanacat]

36 second drive to score before the half was EPIC!!! 3 plays, 75 yards, no timeouts. And maybe the best part was Vigen's reaction after Dane scored. The whole sequence just gave me chills all over again. What an incredible game!!

[BobcatBlood]

Wishing your wife the best, Colter!

I'd love to hear some analysis of how losing the Big Sky Conference Defensive MVP and All-American Caden Dowler impacted the defense in the 2nd half. Watching that TD by Lord, it's hard not to imagine that being different with Caden in. Not just because of his replacement who did a fantastic job, but because of his leadership. I think it's fair to say that our defense was getting worn down - 40 minutes on the field, ugh, but this is a story I haven't heard much about. We get Caden back. I'd argue that is right up there with getting Taco back.

[TomCat88]

Wishing your wife the best, Colter!

I'd love to hear some analysis of how losing the Big Sky Conference Defensive MVP and All-American Caden Dowler impacted the defense in the 2nd half. Watching that TD by Lord, it's hard not to imagine that being different with Caden in. Not just because of his replacement who did a fantastic job, but because of his leadership. I think it's fair to say that our defense was getting worn down - 40 minutes on the field, ugh, but this is a story I haven't heard much about. We get Caden back. I'd argue that is right up there with getting Taco back.

And, no, it’s not a coincidence. Dowler is the lead on setting the defensive formation/call. He’s got excellent athleticism (speed/strength) and instincts. He’s not perfect in coverage but hardly anyone is.

UM 2.0 averaged 5.2 ypp and ISU 5.6 with him out. MSU allowed ~4.7 on the season with him in the lineup.

ISU had 182 yards (4.8’ per play) in the first half 289 (6.6) in the second half.

[BobcatBlood]

Thanks, Tom! That's very validating of my thoughts!

And thank you for your outstanding work over decades!

[TomCat88]

Thanks, Tom! That's very validating of my thoughts!

And thank you for your outstanding work over decades!

No problem. And you’re right that it doesn’t get talked about enough.

Neither does the Twilight Zone drive by ISU that made it 21-14.

[TomCat88]

Another thing that hasn’t been mentioned much is how often the Bobcats have snatched victory from the jaws of defeat.

New Hampshire missed/got blocked on extra points at the end of regulation in Bozeman in 1976 and 2011.

2018 in Missoula.

Down 17-7 with about 3-4 minutes to go vs NAU in 2003(?).

There have been quite a few more. One at SAC that involved a defensive penalty (face masking).

MSU has lost some this way but I think it’s way ahead in this category.