ALL-TIME BOBCATS: Jeff Bolton
5/31/2019 3:00:00 PM | Football
Jeff Bolton moved from position to position during his Bobcat career, but the result was always excellence
MAY 31: Each day until Montana State's 2019 season opener the staff of Bobcats By The Numbers will offer a look at one of the players to make one of the school's all-time teams. On November 21, 1933, The Exponent announced 37 players selected by a panel of former players and coaches, divided into three teams that comprised Montana State's "mythical" all-time team. In 1969, the Billings Gazette's Norm Clarke conducted a poll to select the school's all-time team, and again in 2000 Bobcat Athletics and the Billings Gazette selected a third all-time team. The BBTN staff added players from the 21st century.
Jeff Bolton, OL, 2002-05
ALL-TIME TEAM: 21st Century Addition
HONORS: First Team All-Big Sky and Second Team All-America 2004, First Team All-Big Sky and First Team All-America 2005, 2005 Rimington Trophy as top Center in Division I-AA.
A CLOSER LOOK: There was a lot going on in the Bobcat football program in the fall of 2002. The team transitioned from a senior team captain quarterback in the midst of a three-game losing streak to a true freshman, lost to a Division II team at home, won four straight games to close the regular season, and beat the Grizzlies to win the Big Sky and advance to the Division I-AA Playoffs. But in the midst of all that, a quiet offensive lineman was moved from redshirt status to the varsity before the Idaho State game, and became an important part of Montana State's 2002 offensive line, and of two championship teams in the following three seasons. Jeff Bolton rotated among the guard positions that season, one season later sliding into the starting spot at right guard. He performed well on a Big Sky title team, and was in the starting lineup to stay. But where he would start was a developing situation. Injuries and defections forced Bolton to right tackle in 2004, and he earned First Team All-Big and Second Team All-America honors. It appeared that the offensive line would return intact in 2005, but a spring injury to third-year starter Zach Wolf (which would eventually end his career) forced in-season shuffling, and Bolton wound up at center. How smooth was the transition? Bolton earned First Team All-America honors, and was named the Rimington Trophy winner as the top center in Division I-AA football. For the third time, while the rest of the offensive cast changed around them, Bolton and Lulay helped lead the Bobcats to a Big Sky Championship, and a win over the Grizzlies. Bolton's brilliance landed him in the Bobcat Athletics Hall of Fame recently, and his gentle nature and soft humor endeared him to so many in Bobcat Nation. When the topic turns to Best Offensive Linemen in Bobcat History, Jeff Bolton's name will figure into the conversation prominently.
Jeff Bolton, OL, 2002-05
ALL-TIME TEAM: 21st Century Addition
HONORS: First Team All-Big Sky and Second Team All-America 2004, First Team All-Big Sky and First Team All-America 2005, 2005 Rimington Trophy as top Center in Division I-AA.
A CLOSER LOOK: There was a lot going on in the Bobcat football program in the fall of 2002. The team transitioned from a senior team captain quarterback in the midst of a three-game losing streak to a true freshman, lost to a Division II team at home, won four straight games to close the regular season, and beat the Grizzlies to win the Big Sky and advance to the Division I-AA Playoffs. But in the midst of all that, a quiet offensive lineman was moved from redshirt status to the varsity before the Idaho State game, and became an important part of Montana State's 2002 offensive line, and of two championship teams in the following three seasons. Jeff Bolton rotated among the guard positions that season, one season later sliding into the starting spot at right guard. He performed well on a Big Sky title team, and was in the starting lineup to stay. But where he would start was a developing situation. Injuries and defections forced Bolton to right tackle in 2004, and he earned First Team All-Big and Second Team All-America honors. It appeared that the offensive line would return intact in 2005, but a spring injury to third-year starter Zach Wolf (which would eventually end his career) forced in-season shuffling, and Bolton wound up at center. How smooth was the transition? Bolton earned First Team All-America honors, and was named the Rimington Trophy winner as the top center in Division I-AA football. For the third time, while the rest of the offensive cast changed around them, Bolton and Lulay helped lead the Bobcats to a Big Sky Championship, and a win over the Grizzlies. Bolton's brilliance landed him in the Bobcat Athletics Hall of Fame recently, and his gentle nature and soft humor endeared him to so many in Bobcat Nation. When the topic turns to Best Offensive Linemen in Bobcat History, Jeff Bolton's name will figure into the conversation prominently.
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