BOBCATS BY THE NUMBERS: 70 Days Before Kickoff, We Look at the Man Who Won 70 Games at MSU
6/22/2019 2:00:00 PM | Football
This year's #70 brings solid bloodlines to the Bobcats
June 22: In addition to a quick look at players wearing the jersey number corresponding to the number of days remaining until Montana State's season opener at Texas Tech on August 31, Bobcats by the Numbers brings you another tidbit or two aligning with that number.
#70
Holden Sampson, OL: The bloodlines are there, for sure. Incoming freshman offensive lineman Holden Sampson is a cousin of Shaun Sampson, an All-Big Sky and All-America center for the Bobcats as a senior in 2012. He was part of MSU's back-to-back-to-back Big Sky championships that culminated during his final season, and was known for his toughness and intelligence. Sampson was one of those players that coaches always try without success to recruit over the top of, and if Holden Sampson is able to contribute at the level of his cousin it will be a tremendous source of pride for Bobcat football, and his family.
70 – Career wins at Montana State by Rob Ash.
Rob Ash may have arrived at Montana State under unusual circumstances – he was hired after Mike Kramer's sudden firing in May of 2007, and Ash joined about one month later – but he was able to calm the waters better than possibly anyone else could have. His initial season went better than anyone could have expected, a 6-5 campaign punctuated by wins at Weber State and Portland State, and in 2008 he improved his team's win total by a game. In fact, the record of Ash's team improved each season through 2012, when Montana State won its third straight Big Sky title. It was in November of that season that Ash received the ride of his life, carried from the field after his 48th win as MSU's head coach. That win broke the record of Sonny Holland, with whom Ash had built a strong professional and personal relationship during his time as Bobcat head coach. Ash won 22 more games at MSU, leading the Cats to the Playoffs that season and in 2014, but it never really got better than that moment when Ash rode into history on the shoulders of his player. Still, his legacy in Bobcat history is cemented. His 70 wins and four playoff appearances are the most in program history, and he will forever be remembered for the intelligence and dignity he brought to Bobcat Football.
Chronology: Gene Beekman (1956), Arjay Godston (1957), John Bietenduefel (1959-60), Purnal Whitehead (1966-68), Alan Bone (1969), Kelly Adams (1971), Gary Egerton (1972-73), Jeff Conley (1974), Jon Borchardt (1975-78), Jeff Bedey (1979-80), Mark Baker (1982), Steve Vestman (1983-4), Shawn Stump (1985-89), Travis Savage (1991), Tony Vico (1992), Tom Brinan (1994-95), Greg Kapitzke (1996-97), Jesse Miller (1999), Justin Garrett (2000-01), Chris Haynes (2003), Dominic Sonsini (2005-07), Anthony Patterson (2008), Killian Fitzpatrick (2010), John Weidenaar (2011), Joel Horn (2012-15), Alex Neale (2016-18), Holden Sampson (2019-)
Bonus Note for #70: If Purnal Whitehead never really knew where he was playing when he was a three-year starting lineman for the Bobcats in the late 1960s, you couldn't blame him. The Kalispell product started on the defensive line as a sophomore in 1966, then moved across the line of scrimmage to start at defensive tackle in 1967. As a senior in 1968 Whitehead was back on defense, starting at left tackle. Whitehead, whose son Kurt was a standout at Wyoming for Bobcat legend Joe Tiller, started for three straight Big Sky title teams at MSU… In an era when Montana State's football team steamrolled teams with a bruising ground game, Jon Borchardt was one of the program's primary steamrollers. He was a fast and physical player who dominated opponents physically early in his career, and often. He enjoyed a long NFL career after leaving Bozeman. But former MSU athletic trainer Chuck Karnop remembers Borchardt for something quite different. An aspiring medical professional before the NFL draft changed his career path, Karnop describes long, quiet conversations about the human body and its anatomical functions. Borchardt was a tremendous student, carrying a GPA better than 3.35 through his course of study in microbiology, but at the end of the day football was his calling card. He was a two-time First Team All-Big Sky selection, earning First Team All-America honors after his senior season.
#70
Holden Sampson, OL: The bloodlines are there, for sure. Incoming freshman offensive lineman Holden Sampson is a cousin of Shaun Sampson, an All-Big Sky and All-America center for the Bobcats as a senior in 2012. He was part of MSU's back-to-back-to-back Big Sky championships that culminated during his final season, and was known for his toughness and intelligence. Sampson was one of those players that coaches always try without success to recruit over the top of, and if Holden Sampson is able to contribute at the level of his cousin it will be a tremendous source of pride for Bobcat football, and his family.
70 – Career wins at Montana State by Rob Ash.
Rob Ash may have arrived at Montana State under unusual circumstances – he was hired after Mike Kramer's sudden firing in May of 2007, and Ash joined about one month later – but he was able to calm the waters better than possibly anyone else could have. His initial season went better than anyone could have expected, a 6-5 campaign punctuated by wins at Weber State and Portland State, and in 2008 he improved his team's win total by a game. In fact, the record of Ash's team improved each season through 2012, when Montana State won its third straight Big Sky title. It was in November of that season that Ash received the ride of his life, carried from the field after his 48th win as MSU's head coach. That win broke the record of Sonny Holland, with whom Ash had built a strong professional and personal relationship during his time as Bobcat head coach. Ash won 22 more games at MSU, leading the Cats to the Playoffs that season and in 2014, but it never really got better than that moment when Ash rode into history on the shoulders of his player. Still, his legacy in Bobcat history is cemented. His 70 wins and four playoff appearances are the most in program history, and he will forever be remembered for the intelligence and dignity he brought to Bobcat Football.
Chronology: Gene Beekman (1956), Arjay Godston (1957), John Bietenduefel (1959-60), Purnal Whitehead (1966-68), Alan Bone (1969), Kelly Adams (1971), Gary Egerton (1972-73), Jeff Conley (1974), Jon Borchardt (1975-78), Jeff Bedey (1979-80), Mark Baker (1982), Steve Vestman (1983-4), Shawn Stump (1985-89), Travis Savage (1991), Tony Vico (1992), Tom Brinan (1994-95), Greg Kapitzke (1996-97), Jesse Miller (1999), Justin Garrett (2000-01), Chris Haynes (2003), Dominic Sonsini (2005-07), Anthony Patterson (2008), Killian Fitzpatrick (2010), John Weidenaar (2011), Joel Horn (2012-15), Alex Neale (2016-18), Holden Sampson (2019-)
Bonus Note for #70: If Purnal Whitehead never really knew where he was playing when he was a three-year starting lineman for the Bobcats in the late 1960s, you couldn't blame him. The Kalispell product started on the defensive line as a sophomore in 1966, then moved across the line of scrimmage to start at defensive tackle in 1967. As a senior in 1968 Whitehead was back on defense, starting at left tackle. Whitehead, whose son Kurt was a standout at Wyoming for Bobcat legend Joe Tiller, started for three straight Big Sky title teams at MSU… In an era when Montana State's football team steamrolled teams with a bruising ground game, Jon Borchardt was one of the program's primary steamrollers. He was a fast and physical player who dominated opponents physically early in his career, and often. He enjoyed a long NFL career after leaving Bozeman. But former MSU athletic trainer Chuck Karnop remembers Borchardt for something quite different. An aspiring medical professional before the NFL draft changed his career path, Karnop describes long, quiet conversations about the human body and its anatomical functions. Borchardt was a tremendous student, carrying a GPA better than 3.35 through his course of study in microbiology, but at the end of the day football was his calling card. He was a two-time First Team All-Big Sky selection, earning First Team All-America honors after his senior season.
Players Mentioned
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