BOBCAT HISTORY LESSON: The 1929 Bobcat-Grizzly Game was Max Worthington's Moment to Shine
11/16/2018 3:53:00 PM | Football
One of the greatest Bobcats of all helped win the '29 game, and that happened again in 1968
A look at some of the men and moments that have defined Montana State's long and storied series against the Grizzlies...
BOBCAT HISTORY LESSON – vs. Montana
All-Time Series: UM 73-39-5 (not including one win the Grizzlies had to vacate for using ineligible players)
In Bozeman: UM 25-19-3
At Opponent: 30-17-1 (not including the vacated UM win)
Neutral Site: UM 18-3-1 in Butte
Streaks and Stuff
No one in Blue and Gold wants to revisit what former Bobcat coach Mike Kramer called "that thing" that extended from MSU's 1985 win through the 2001 game in Bozeman. But Kramer ended that thing on November 23, 2002, in a light but steady snow. In a nearly-empty Washington-Grizzly Stadium just after halftime, Travis Lulay found Junior Adams on a quick slant. That play, 35 Mix Empty Left, resulted in a touchdown that pushed Montana State's lead to 10-0, and even when UM's offense mustered to life briefly with a third quarter touchdown, it wasn't even close to a match for Montana State's brilliant defense. UM quarterback John Edwards kept throwing passes in the direction of brilliant cornerback Joey Thomas during the first half, and MSU's All-America kept breaking them up. When the Grizzlies tried to run the ball in the second half, they were mostly stuffed. Montana State's star-studded defense held the Grizzlies to 199 total yards on the afternoon, a complete evisceration. And at the end of the day, in a cold, snowy, dank stadium, as UM fans filed out, a couple thousand Bobcats celebrated heartily.
Here's a Good Story
When the Bobcats got together with their cross-state rivals in Butte in 1929, they did so with great anticipation. The previous year's game ended in a tie, but Montana State hadn't beaten the University since 1908. UM was 3-1-1 entering the game at Clark Park, having tied Washington 6-6, while Montana State's win over BYU the week before gave boosted the Bobcats' record to 2-2. The Cats scored on a fourth-down pass from A.O. DeFrate to Max Worthington on the opening drive. Worthington scored on an end-around just before halftime, and Ivar Twilde's second PAT gave Montana State a 14-6 lead. The Grizzlies' first quarter touchdown was scored by future Bobcat head coach Clyde Carpenter, the team's quarterback, who drove the University to a touchdown on the ensuing drive. The second half was played to a stalemate, but with just over two minutes left Montana faced 90 yards and a two-point deficit to extend its 21-year streak without a loss. Carpenter marched his team, using backs Tom Moore and Waldo Ekegren, to the Bobcat 20. Jimmy Morrow hit Moore on a pass on the last play of the game, but Moore was tackled at the Bobcat five as the gun sounded. After more than two decades, and for the first time in Butte, the Bobcats had beaten the Grizzlies.
Memory
"I'll never forget it. It's stuck in my mind for 50 years, and it'll stick in my mind for however many more years I'm on the earth." Dennis Erickson, Montana State's quarterback in 1968 when Paul Schafer's 234-yard day led the Bobcats to a fifth straight win over the Grizzlies
This is the 50th anniversary of Montana State's thrilling 29-24 win in Dornblaser Stadium on November 2, 1968, in a game best known for Paul Schafer's heroic effort. The sophomore from Great Falls plowed his way to 234 rushing yards on 58 carries, both of which remain series records a half-century later. The Cats were chasing their third straight Big Sky crown in 1968, and even with first-year head coach Tom Parac at the helm MSU was a heavy favorite. Even when the Cats trailed 24-9 in the second half, there was little concern. "I'd go in the huddle and there was no panic," senior quarterback Dennis Erickson, playing in his last Cat-Griz game, said. "We all felt like we were going to come back and win." Some Divide War history occurred in the third quarter when Doug Bain caught a touchdown pass to give UM a 17-9 lead. Montana State's first half touchdown had been a pass from Erickson to Ron Bain, Doug's brother, marking the first time a set of brothers had caught passes on opposing sides in the same game. Facing a huge deficit and giddiness throughout the stadium at ending MSU's streak, Erickson drove the Bobcats to the Grizzly five-yard line. It took four plays, but Schafer carried each time and finally punched it across the goal line for a score to cut the lead to 24-15. According to Pat Kearney's brilliant book The Divide War, Schafer played the second half with cotton in his mouth to stop the bleeding from cuts, a recently repaired separated shoulder, and what proved to be a blown out knee. With five minutes left, Erickson connected with Ron Bain again, and Montana State now trailed 24-22. The Cats got the stop they needed, then Erickson drove his team deep into Grizzly territory, and with 12 seconds remaining Schafer – who else – steamrolled into the end zone from one yard out. Montana State had scored 20 points in less than nine minutes to take the lead in the waning moments. But things weren't quite decided. After a roughing penalty against the Cats, UM possessed the ball near midfield with one second to play. Ron Baines broke up the middle and into the open field and was on his way to the end zone when – as Erickson recalls – defensive back Terry Brown got just enough of Baines to knock him down short of the Bobcat 10-yard line. The Bobcats had their sixth straight win against Montana, and their third straight Big Sky title. Multiple reports and recollections had his teammates literally carrying Schafer from the field. Erickson's 238 passing yards was a career best, and the most in the Cat-Griz series to that point. After throwing a career high 39 passes and absorbing numerous hits, "My arm was sore" after the game, Erickson recalls. The late Paul Schafer was never really the same back after that game, but his place in Cat-Griz series history is cemented. That will remain the gold standard by which all other individual performances in this ancient and cherished rivalry are measured.
BOBCAT HISTORY LESSON – vs. Montana
All-Time Series: UM 73-39-5 (not including one win the Grizzlies had to vacate for using ineligible players)
In Bozeman: UM 25-19-3
At Opponent: 30-17-1 (not including the vacated UM win)
Neutral Site: UM 18-3-1 in Butte
Streaks and Stuff
No one in Blue and Gold wants to revisit what former Bobcat coach Mike Kramer called "that thing" that extended from MSU's 1985 win through the 2001 game in Bozeman. But Kramer ended that thing on November 23, 2002, in a light but steady snow. In a nearly-empty Washington-Grizzly Stadium just after halftime, Travis Lulay found Junior Adams on a quick slant. That play, 35 Mix Empty Left, resulted in a touchdown that pushed Montana State's lead to 10-0, and even when UM's offense mustered to life briefly with a third quarter touchdown, it wasn't even close to a match for Montana State's brilliant defense. UM quarterback John Edwards kept throwing passes in the direction of brilliant cornerback Joey Thomas during the first half, and MSU's All-America kept breaking them up. When the Grizzlies tried to run the ball in the second half, they were mostly stuffed. Montana State's star-studded defense held the Grizzlies to 199 total yards on the afternoon, a complete evisceration. And at the end of the day, in a cold, snowy, dank stadium, as UM fans filed out, a couple thousand Bobcats celebrated heartily.
Here's a Good Story
When the Bobcats got together with their cross-state rivals in Butte in 1929, they did so with great anticipation. The previous year's game ended in a tie, but Montana State hadn't beaten the University since 1908. UM was 3-1-1 entering the game at Clark Park, having tied Washington 6-6, while Montana State's win over BYU the week before gave boosted the Bobcats' record to 2-2. The Cats scored on a fourth-down pass from A.O. DeFrate to Max Worthington on the opening drive. Worthington scored on an end-around just before halftime, and Ivar Twilde's second PAT gave Montana State a 14-6 lead. The Grizzlies' first quarter touchdown was scored by future Bobcat head coach Clyde Carpenter, the team's quarterback, who drove the University to a touchdown on the ensuing drive. The second half was played to a stalemate, but with just over two minutes left Montana faced 90 yards and a two-point deficit to extend its 21-year streak without a loss. Carpenter marched his team, using backs Tom Moore and Waldo Ekegren, to the Bobcat 20. Jimmy Morrow hit Moore on a pass on the last play of the game, but Moore was tackled at the Bobcat five as the gun sounded. After more than two decades, and for the first time in Butte, the Bobcats had beaten the Grizzlies.
Memory
"I'll never forget it. It's stuck in my mind for 50 years, and it'll stick in my mind for however many more years I'm on the earth." Dennis Erickson, Montana State's quarterback in 1968 when Paul Schafer's 234-yard day led the Bobcats to a fifth straight win over the Grizzlies
This is the 50th anniversary of Montana State's thrilling 29-24 win in Dornblaser Stadium on November 2, 1968, in a game best known for Paul Schafer's heroic effort. The sophomore from Great Falls plowed his way to 234 rushing yards on 58 carries, both of which remain series records a half-century later. The Cats were chasing their third straight Big Sky crown in 1968, and even with first-year head coach Tom Parac at the helm MSU was a heavy favorite. Even when the Cats trailed 24-9 in the second half, there was little concern. "I'd go in the huddle and there was no panic," senior quarterback Dennis Erickson, playing in his last Cat-Griz game, said. "We all felt like we were going to come back and win." Some Divide War history occurred in the third quarter when Doug Bain caught a touchdown pass to give UM a 17-9 lead. Montana State's first half touchdown had been a pass from Erickson to Ron Bain, Doug's brother, marking the first time a set of brothers had caught passes on opposing sides in the same game. Facing a huge deficit and giddiness throughout the stadium at ending MSU's streak, Erickson drove the Bobcats to the Grizzly five-yard line. It took four plays, but Schafer carried each time and finally punched it across the goal line for a score to cut the lead to 24-15. According to Pat Kearney's brilliant book The Divide War, Schafer played the second half with cotton in his mouth to stop the bleeding from cuts, a recently repaired separated shoulder, and what proved to be a blown out knee. With five minutes left, Erickson connected with Ron Bain again, and Montana State now trailed 24-22. The Cats got the stop they needed, then Erickson drove his team deep into Grizzly territory, and with 12 seconds remaining Schafer – who else – steamrolled into the end zone from one yard out. Montana State had scored 20 points in less than nine minutes to take the lead in the waning moments. But things weren't quite decided. After a roughing penalty against the Cats, UM possessed the ball near midfield with one second to play. Ron Baines broke up the middle and into the open field and was on his way to the end zone when – as Erickson recalls – defensive back Terry Brown got just enough of Baines to knock him down short of the Bobcat 10-yard line. The Bobcats had their sixth straight win against Montana, and their third straight Big Sky title. Multiple reports and recollections had his teammates literally carrying Schafer from the field. Erickson's 238 passing yards was a career best, and the most in the Cat-Griz series to that point. After throwing a career high 39 passes and absorbing numerous hits, "My arm was sore" after the game, Erickson recalls. The late Paul Schafer was never really the same back after that game, but his place in Cat-Griz series history is cemented. That will remain the gold standard by which all other individual performances in this ancient and cherished rivalry are measured.
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