BOBCATS 125: Travis Cormaney
5/6/2022 12:35:00 PM | Football
A battering ram fullback, no one personified Cliff Hysell's commitment to running the football than Travis Cormaney
Leading to the 2022 season, the 125th anniversary of Montana State's first football season, we will look at 125 of the greatest Bobcats. You can find details here and a directory here.
Travis Cormaney, FB, 1994-97
PREVIOUS ALL-TIME TEAM: None
HONORS: 1st Team All-Big Sky fullback in 1997 and 2nd Team in 1996
A CLOSER LOOK: Cliff Hysell's football teams at Montana State became known for a few specific things. First, they displayed toughness and physicality at all times. They generally played smart football. And the entire proposition for a Hysell, a standout lineman at Montana State in the 1960s, football remained a line of scrimmage game. These concepts converged in the fullback position during Hysell's tenure, and the best of them was Travis Cormaney. A First Team All-Big Sky choice as a senior in 1997, Cormaney possessed the athleticism to be an effective ball-carrier and the physicality to be a battering ram blocker. He backed up TT Ryan - also a prototypical Hysell era fullback - in 1994 then owned the position for the next three seasons. The main beneficiary of Cormaney's blocking was tailback Matt Engelking, who rushed for 1,176 yards in 1995 and 1,256 a season later. Cormaney held MSU's run game together in 1997, when the running-back-by-committee was plagued by injuries. Cormaney carried only 22 times in his career at MSU (for 117 yards), but his value to MSU's offensive cornerstone was unquestioned. As the team's starting fullback, Cormeny paved the way for 18 100-yard rushing games.
FROM FORMER BOBCAT ASSISTANT COACH GREG SALO: "He was a good athlete (for a Bobcat fullback), but he was a good, strong kid. He was perfect for that position."
FROM BOBCAT SAFETY AND TEAM CAPTAIN SCOTT MATTHEWS: "Travis Cormaney, or 'Cornbread' as the running backs called him. He was as tough as nails and a great competitor. A guy you want with you on the field, in war, or in a back alley."
FROM VOICE OF THE CATS DEAN ALEXANDER: "He performed like an offensive lineman - no glory, just blocked at an amazing level."
FROM CLIFF HYSELL IN MSU'S 1997 FOOTBALL MEDIA GUIDE: "Travis Cormaney has really become a special player for us. His versatility is really important... The best thing about Travis is his unselfishness. He's dedicated to the team."
A QUICK WORD... about TT Ryan, who preceded Travis Cormaney, and the fullback position at MSU in general.
When Ryan transferred to Montana State from Cal State Fullerton when that school discontinued its football program, the Bobcat offense really became whole. Like Fred Moore and Clint Morton, the running backs he blocked for, and Chad Mayer and Brock Spencer, the quarterbacks he protected, Ryan was part and parcel of MSU's offensive revival in 1993. Ryan and Mark Fisher, a converted quarterback, were valuable and versatile players, and completed the template for Hysell's offensive philosophy during his time at MSU.
Travis Cormaney, FB, 1994-97
PREVIOUS ALL-TIME TEAM: None
HONORS: 1st Team All-Big Sky fullback in 1997 and 2nd Team in 1996
A CLOSER LOOK: Cliff Hysell's football teams at Montana State became known for a few specific things. First, they displayed toughness and physicality at all times. They generally played smart football. And the entire proposition for a Hysell, a standout lineman at Montana State in the 1960s, football remained a line of scrimmage game. These concepts converged in the fullback position during Hysell's tenure, and the best of them was Travis Cormaney. A First Team All-Big Sky choice as a senior in 1997, Cormaney possessed the athleticism to be an effective ball-carrier and the physicality to be a battering ram blocker. He backed up TT Ryan - also a prototypical Hysell era fullback - in 1994 then owned the position for the next three seasons. The main beneficiary of Cormaney's blocking was tailback Matt Engelking, who rushed for 1,176 yards in 1995 and 1,256 a season later. Cormaney held MSU's run game together in 1997, when the running-back-by-committee was plagued by injuries. Cormaney carried only 22 times in his career at MSU (for 117 yards), but his value to MSU's offensive cornerstone was unquestioned. As the team's starting fullback, Cormeny paved the way for 18 100-yard rushing games.
FROM FORMER BOBCAT ASSISTANT COACH GREG SALO: "He was a good athlete (for a Bobcat fullback), but he was a good, strong kid. He was perfect for that position."
FROM BOBCAT SAFETY AND TEAM CAPTAIN SCOTT MATTHEWS: "Travis Cormaney, or 'Cornbread' as the running backs called him. He was as tough as nails and a great competitor. A guy you want with you on the field, in war, or in a back alley."
FROM VOICE OF THE CATS DEAN ALEXANDER: "He performed like an offensive lineman - no glory, just blocked at an amazing level."
FROM CLIFF HYSELL IN MSU'S 1997 FOOTBALL MEDIA GUIDE: "Travis Cormaney has really become a special player for us. His versatility is really important... The best thing about Travis is his unselfishness. He's dedicated to the team."
A QUICK WORD... about TT Ryan, who preceded Travis Cormaney, and the fullback position at MSU in general.
When Ryan transferred to Montana State from Cal State Fullerton when that school discontinued its football program, the Bobcat offense really became whole. Like Fred Moore and Clint Morton, the running backs he blocked for, and Chad Mayer and Brock Spencer, the quarterbacks he protected, Ryan was part and parcel of MSU's offensive revival in 1993. Ryan and Mark Fisher, a converted quarterback, were valuable and versatile players, and completed the template for Hysell's offensive philosophy during his time at MSU.
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