Musings on famed 'Brawl of the Wild' Rivalry

MISSOULA – Washington-Grizzly Stadium will kick off the 144th annual gridiron skirmish between the visiting Montana State Bobcats and the host University of Montana Grizzlies Nov. 22. The rivalry began over a century ago in Bozeman back on November 26, 1897 and is reputed to be the 31st oldest among still active rivalries within NCAA Division I ranks and the 11th oldest west of the Mississippi River. Among active Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) rivalries it is considered to be the oldest west of the Mississippi River and 4th oldest overall.

The Montana Grizzlies currently lead the series by approximately a 2:1 ratio at 71-37-5. The gulf between wins-losses expanded as wide as 30 games back in the mid-1950s, which Montana State almost cut in half when it pared the difference down to 16 games before Montana went on a 16 game win streak from 1986 through 2001 to recoup the margin once again in addition to tacking on a few games more.

By contrast, Montana State has strung together a trio of streaks that entail a half dozen consecutive games at a time.

Embarking upon the 114th BOW, the UM Grizzlies (5-2, 7-4) are currently tied for 2nd in the Big Sky Conference standings, while the MSU Bobcats (6-1, 8-3) are tied for 1st place. Since 2009 the visiting team has prevailed, a factor which would seem to tilt slightly in favor of Bobcat followers. But the Griz will be playing in their own home stadium with a partisan crowd in attendance, a countering factor which would seem to favor the bruin bandwagon. Given the nature and intensity of this long-standing rivalry, the only defensible position to take is that the outcome is up for grabs with bragging rights gravitating toward the team which plays the most fundamentally sound football.

Adding fuel to the fire is that the 2014 Grizzlies enter the fracas with their backs against the wall in a must-win scenario if they wish to keep their playoff chances alive.

An assortment of Mission Valley residents have shared in varying facets of the rivalry throughout the years. Most have done their viewing from the stands as fans, although there is a select group which have actually participated out on the field of play itself.

Players who have actually participated in the game itself which this writer was able to track down some information about include QB Darryl Dupuis (MSU 1958-59), DL Kirk Murphy (UM 1988-91), and DE Neal Smith (MSU 1994-97). There are others which time did not permit to trace, but whose reflections would be of interest to authors of future BOW preview endeavors. The most recent would be DB Vince DiGiallonardo (MSU 2013, CC 2014-), who has since transferred over to Carroll College.

Darryl Dupuis, long-time teacher and coach in the Polson school system, still remains involved in various administrative endeavors around the state. Dupuis commented that being able to play in the Brawl “was a great rivalry which I was honored to participate in.” He is inclined to hedge his bets when it comes to predictions when he said there is “hardly a favorite either way.”

In the 1958 game he threw a touchdown pass as the MSU Cats beat the UM Griz 20-6. The following year in 1959, Dupuis recalled that MSU made 5 interceptions in their 40-6 trouncing, the 5th interception caught by Darryl himself.

Kirk Murphy played for the Grizzlies from 1988 through 1991 as a Defensive Lineman. Murphy received all-conference 1st-team defense recognition in 1991. His current involvements include habitat preservation for the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation.

The most decorated player to emerge from the Mission Valley area is DE Neal Smith, who was inducted into the MSU Hall of Fame Class of 2013. Smith may be more familiar to Flathead Lake area fans as the post player who anchored the paint for Polson’s first State A basketball championship in 1992. After high school, Smith experienced a timely growth spurt that bumped him up to a 6-5, 245 behemoth that further accentuated his athleticism and speed. His junior season he earned All-Big Sky honorable mention honors. As a senior he smothered the backfield with 19 sacks and 22 tackles-for losses that season on his way to all-conference 1st-team defense honors and was conferred 1st-team Division 1-AA All-American status. After college, Smith joined the tryout camp of the Washington Redskins, but was unsuccessful in making the cut after their 3rd preseason game. Another tryout gained the attention of Canadian Football League scouts and he was signed by the Saskatchewan Rough Riders. Smith had an all-star season the only year he spent with the CFL, forced to withdraw from competition after the 1999 season on account of injuries. One of Smith’s most singular memories from his BOW days was his short stint on the offense at tight end in the 1997 game when he caught a 4 yd pass for a touchdown.

SEASON Tackles for losses - 3rd, 22 Neal Smith, 1997

CAREER tackles for losses - 6th, 48.5 Neal Smith, 94-97

SEASON sacks - 8th, 19 Neal Smith 1997

CAREER sacks - 2nd, 35.5 Neal Smith 94-97

But some of the more colorful stories come from the fans who have been in attendance of games season after season.

MSU Bobcat fan and booster club advisor Dan Barz, retired First Interstate Bank president with Billings and then Polson, has hardly missed a game since 1967. His most memorable Brawl would be the 2002 game when the Bobcats snapped the Griz 16 game win streak 10-7, elaborating that it is especially fun to win in Missoula.

 Attorney Matt O’Neill has been attending Brawl skirmishes since the mid-70s. The most memorable game that stands out in his mind is the 1997 match in which the Griz “snatched victory out of the jaws of defeat.” General contractor Hu Beaver has often accompanied O’Neill to many of these games since Y2K and commented that “any year the Griz win is a favorite.”

 General contractor Roy Sturm has been an avid Bobcat fan since the late 60’s. Sturm points to two games that stand out in his mind. His senior year in high school in 1968, MSU RB Paul Schafer almost single-handedly dismantled the Griz. Trailing 24-9 in the final quarter, the Bobcats scored 20 unanswered points the final 9 minutes and took the lead for good when Schafer plunged into the end zone with 12 seconds remaining. The following year also stands out for Sturm. With the Bobcats on the march trailing 7-6, the Griz were successful in blocking a late Cat FG attempt to eek out the win.

 Some of the more rip-roaring recollections came from the tandem of Dave and Sharon Murphy.

Sharon recalls the mid-70’s atmosphere in the old Dornblaser stadium with old wooden seats where the soccer stadium now resides. Sitting with the likes of Jim O’Day (UM Director of Athletics 2005-12), Pam Smith (Cutbank) and Bill Johnston (UM Alumni Association Dir., Pres., CEO) huddled in a down sleeping bag with the tie string drawn tight against the frigid air, Sharon reflected that she has “never been so cold, but also never had so much fun.”

Dave Murphy recalls several colorful incidents. In the mid-90s he recalls a time in Bozeman when a few Griz fans tossing a couple of snowballs in the direction of the locals, only to have a blizzard-like hailstorm of snowballs thrown back at them by partisan Bobcat fans.

Another recollection pertains to a fan partial to the Griz who had brought along his taxidermy stuffed Bobcat to one of the Brawl of the Wild games. The fan had tied a noose around its neck and then would hoist the entire exhibit up a pole like one would fly a flag on a staff, with the intention of hanging a representation of the Bobcats in effigy.

 One year in the early 2000s, a questionable call by the officiating resulted in a field goal that was kicked through the uprights into the stands where the Murphy’s were seated. Dave retrieved the ball, then instinctively threw it back onto the field in disgust much like fans at Wrigley Park in Chicago or Fenway Park in Boston tend to throw home run balls back onto the field in contempt of the turn of events that have not favored their team.

Only this time, Murphy’s throw sailed just over the shoulder of the offending official as his back was turned toward the stands, just missing him, resulting in some oohs and aaahs from the crowd in attendance.

 The Brawl game that stands out as the most memorable for Murphy is the 1997 rendition. Montana had cobbled together a 21-7 halftime lead exacerbated by a Bobcat penalty for having 12 men on the field with one second left, resulting in a Griz touchdown. The Bobcats came out of intermission and pared down the deficit to 24-19 when MSU QB Rob Compson hit Neal Smith on a 4 yd TD with 11:17 left in the game. Then with 22 seconds remaining in the game, MSU edged ahead 25-24 on a 3 yd rush that seemed to ice the game despite the missed 2pt conversion attempt.

But as most Brawl fans know, this rivalry isn’t over until the last tick of the clock expires. The ensuing MSU kickoff strayed out of bounds with no time expiring off the clock. Then the UM QB completed a 46 yd pass to advance the ball within field goal range, which kicker Kris Heppner would put between the uprights from 37 yds out with no time remaining to vault the Griz past the Bobcats 27-25.

Which direction might the winds of fortune gust in this 114th edition of the Brawl of the Wild? The prudent prognosticator is better off waiting to see what takes place because anything can take place when these two teams tangle.