Gus Wylie
BOBCAT PRIDE: Max Worthington's Letter Sweater Returns to Bozeman After 50 Years
9/5/2026 5:17:00 PM | Football
1976 and 1984 Bobcats hand treasured artifact on to the reigning national champs
BOZEMAN, Mont. (Sept. 5, 2026) – It began as an innocent gesture, a display of pride an loyalty by one of Montana State's most legendary figures, after the Bobcat football team won the 1976 NCAA Division II National Championship.
Max Worthington, who played basketball on the school's 1929 Golden Bobcats national championship team and whose touchdown beat archrival Montana in football that fall, presented two of his letter sweaters to 1976 team captains Bert Markovich and Tim Nixon at the banquet celebrating that season. Worthington had a suggestion that night.
"If the Bobcats ever won another (national championship)," Markovich said, "we knew we were to pass those sweaters along."
So after the Bobcats beat Louisiana Tech in Charleston, S.C., to win the 1984 crown, Markovich trekked to Bozeman. "At the banquet they announced that Bert Markovich was going to make a presentation," said Joe Roberts, one of the team captains in 1984. "Bert got up and said he was gifting us the sweaters from the 1929 Golden Bobcats, and he presented it to us. I was shocked."
That tradition continues in Bobcat Stadium on Saturday, when Markovich and Nixon join Doug Kimball of the 1984 team in presenting Worthington's monogram and sweater to six members of the 2025 national championship squad. Team captains Paul Brott, Kenneth Eiden IV and JT Reed join Julius Davis, Hunter Parsons and Alec Eckert in receiving the sweaters.
The tradition spanning almost a century began on the whim of a Bobcat legend. Worthington played for the 1928-29 Golden Bobcats national championship team, and also starred in football for the Cats. His touchdown boosted Montana State to a win over the Grizzlies in 1929.
"We were very much in awe," Markovich said of the moment. "He was a member of the Golden Bobcats, the most sacred team at Montana State, and was always around."
And Nixon, whose father had worked at the Seattle shipyards with Worthington during World War II, savored the moment on a personal level. "He was one of the first people I met in Bozeman, he had us over for dinner, he was just an incredible person."
Worthington's presence felt around Bobcat Athletics throughout his life. "He was always around," Nixon said. "He was such a legend," Markovich added.
Worthington's presence will be felt in Bobcat Stadium on Saturday, as well. Bozeman's Paul Wylie will join in the presentation. His uncle, Gus Wylie, was team captain in 1929 and Paul Wylie's family remained friends with the Worthingtons throughout his life.
"Max was such a gentleman," Paul Wylie said. "His family and mine wintered together in California for years and remained very close."
Members of the 1984 and 1976 team remember being surprised by the gesture and tradition. "It was really a cool deal, to be honest with you," Roberts said. "I didn't think I'd have it for 41 years."
The 2025 seniors involved on Saturday, however, are fully dialed in. "It's a really cool tradition," said Brott, a team captain and All-America during MSU's most recent national championship season. "It's really an honor."
#GoCatsGo
Max Worthington, who played basketball on the school's 1929 Golden Bobcats national championship team and whose touchdown beat archrival Montana in football that fall, presented two of his letter sweaters to 1976 team captains Bert Markovich and Tim Nixon at the banquet celebrating that season. Worthington had a suggestion that night.
"If the Bobcats ever won another (national championship)," Markovich said, "we knew we were to pass those sweaters along."
So after the Bobcats beat Louisiana Tech in Charleston, S.C., to win the 1984 crown, Markovich trekked to Bozeman. "At the banquet they announced that Bert Markovich was going to make a presentation," said Joe Roberts, one of the team captains in 1984. "Bert got up and said he was gifting us the sweaters from the 1929 Golden Bobcats, and he presented it to us. I was shocked."
That tradition continues in Bobcat Stadium on Saturday, when Markovich and Nixon join Doug Kimball of the 1984 team in presenting Worthington's monogram and sweater to six members of the 2025 national championship squad. Team captains Paul Brott, Kenneth Eiden IV and JT Reed join Julius Davis, Hunter Parsons and Alec Eckert in receiving the sweaters.
The tradition spanning almost a century began on the whim of a Bobcat legend. Worthington played for the 1928-29 Golden Bobcats national championship team, and also starred in football for the Cats. His touchdown boosted Montana State to a win over the Grizzlies in 1929.
"We were very much in awe," Markovich said of the moment. "He was a member of the Golden Bobcats, the most sacred team at Montana State, and was always around."
And Nixon, whose father had worked at the Seattle shipyards with Worthington during World War II, savored the moment on a personal level. "He was one of the first people I met in Bozeman, he had us over for dinner, he was just an incredible person."
Worthington's presence felt around Bobcat Athletics throughout his life. "He was always around," Nixon said. "He was such a legend," Markovich added.
Worthington's presence will be felt in Bobcat Stadium on Saturday, as well. Bozeman's Paul Wylie will join in the presentation. His uncle, Gus Wylie, was team captain in 1929 and Paul Wylie's family remained friends with the Worthingtons throughout his life.
"Max was such a gentleman," Paul Wylie said. "His family and mine wintered together in California for years and remained very close."
Members of the 1984 and 1976 team remember being surprised by the gesture and tradition. "It was really a cool deal, to be honest with you," Roberts said. "I didn't think I'd have it for 41 years."
The 2025 seniors involved on Saturday, however, are fully dialed in. "It's a really cool tradition," said Brott, a team captain and All-America during MSU's most recent national championship season. "It's really an honor."
#GoCatsGo
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