BOBCATS 125 - TOP 50: Paul Schafer
8/4/2022 2:00:00 PM | Football
A rugged, record-setting running back, Paul Schafer logged a brief and brilliant Bobcat career
We look at the 25 players that Bobcat fans and a blue ribbon panel of long-time MSU football observers ranked between 26th and 50th in the quest to determine the program's all-time players. In this segment of the countdown, players are listed alphabetically. You can find details here and a directory here.
Paul Schafer, RB, 1967-68, 70
ALL-TIME TEAM: None previously
HONORS: Honorable Mention All-America and 1st Team All-Big Sky in 1968, 1st Team All-Big Sky in 1970
A CLOSER LOOK: Here's a rule in sports: If you have a game named after you, you're probably a big deal, and that's because that only happens with supreme performances and really big, memorable games. So the thing to know about Paul Schafer is that Montana State's amazing win over the Grizzlies in 1968 will forever be remembered as The Paul Schafer Game. Even by those who weren't there, or weren't born yet.
Paul Schafer's effort that day was amazing. On his injury-ravaged body, he carried the Bobcats to victory, a thrilling 29-24 win that the Cats trailed 24-7 in the fourth quarter.
But here's the thing about team sports - it's never just one player. It can't be. That game could be The Dennis Erickson Game, or the Game-Saving Tackle Game, or many other things.
But it's not. It's The Paul Schafer Game.
The sophomore running back from Great Falls carried the Bobcats to the stunning win by carrying the ball 58 times for 234 yards. His scoring plunge with 12 seconds to play provided the winning margin (although it took a game-saving tackle by Terry Brown deep in Bobcat territory to preserve the victory).
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 and also played with a recently repaired separated shoulder and what proved to be a blown out knee. Led by Schafer, Erickson and brilliant flanker Ron Bain Montana State had scored 20 points in the game's final nine minutes.
Schafer didn't play football in 1969, but in 1970 returned to earn 1st Team All-Big Sky honors. He played through injuries to rush for 575 yards on 132 carries, and finished his career as one of the school's all-time greats in spite of playing less than two seasons of varsity football.
One would think those gridiron heroics would carry a man through the rest of his life, but upon his untimely passing after a ski accident in 1993, Schafer's football exploits stood as a mere footnote to an amazing life. He was a world-renowned bow hunter and by the end of his life had become famous for his wildlife videography. He was also known for his skiing, and attacked every pursuit he chose with tireless tenacity.
FROM ALL-AMERICA BOBCAT QUARTERBACK AND COLLEGE FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME COACH DENNIS ERICKSON: "I'll tell you what, I played with two great backs. Donny Hass was a year ahead of me, he was the first one, and he was great, but Paul Schafer might have been the toughest human being I ever played with or coached or anything. He played hurt. I remember when we beat Montana my senior year he was hurt, but he played the whole game and carried the ball 58 times. He was a roommate of mine in college for a while. You talk about a physical guy, he was a wrestler, and you didn't screw with Paul Schafer. No one wanted that. He was a great, great player, gave it all he had, and that's how he lived his life. There's nobody tougher."
Paul Schafer, RB, 1967-68, 70
ALL-TIME TEAM: None previously
HONORS: Honorable Mention All-America and 1st Team All-Big Sky in 1968, 1st Team All-Big Sky in 1970
A CLOSER LOOK: Here's a rule in sports: If you have a game named after you, you're probably a big deal, and that's because that only happens with supreme performances and really big, memorable games. So the thing to know about Paul Schafer is that Montana State's amazing win over the Grizzlies in 1968 will forever be remembered as The Paul Schafer Game. Even by those who weren't there, or weren't born yet.
Paul Schafer's effort that day was amazing. On his injury-ravaged body, he carried the Bobcats to victory, a thrilling 29-24 win that the Cats trailed 24-7 in the fourth quarter.
But here's the thing about team sports - it's never just one player. It can't be. That game could be The Dennis Erickson Game, or the Game-Saving Tackle Game, or many other things.
But it's not. It's The Paul Schafer Game.
The sophomore running back from Great Falls carried the Bobcats to the stunning win by carrying the ball 58 times for 234 yards. His scoring plunge with 12 seconds to play provided the winning margin (although it took a game-saving tackle by Terry Brown deep in Bobcat territory to preserve the victory).
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 and also played with a recently repaired separated shoulder and what proved to be a blown out knee. Led by Schafer, Erickson and brilliant flanker Ron Bain Montana State had scored 20 points in the game's final nine minutes.
Schafer didn't play football in 1969, but in 1970 returned to earn 1st Team All-Big Sky honors. He played through injuries to rush for 575 yards on 132 carries, and finished his career as one of the school's all-time greats in spite of playing less than two seasons of varsity football.
One would think those gridiron heroics would carry a man through the rest of his life, but upon his untimely passing after a ski accident in 1993, Schafer's football exploits stood as a mere footnote to an amazing life. He was a world-renowned bow hunter and by the end of his life had become famous for his wildlife videography. He was also known for his skiing, and attacked every pursuit he chose with tireless tenacity.
FROM ALL-AMERICA BOBCAT QUARTERBACK AND COLLEGE FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME COACH DENNIS ERICKSON: "I'll tell you what, I played with two great backs. Donny Hass was a year ahead of me, he was the first one, and he was great, but Paul Schafer might have been the toughest human being I ever played with or coached or anything. He played hurt. I remember when we beat Montana my senior year he was hurt, but he played the whole game and carried the ball 58 times. He was a roommate of mine in college for a while. You talk about a physical guy, he was a wrestler, and you didn't screw with Paul Schafer. No one wanted that. He was a great, great player, gave it all he had, and that's how he lived his life. There's nobody tougher."
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