Bobcat Pride spotted in Boettcher Park

The 18th annual Bobcat Scholarship fundraiser put on by the Polson Bobcat Club was held Friday night at Boetcher Park.

Barry Baker and Dan Lake were the main chefs who cooked up a wonderful BBQ feast and a self-serve open bar took up a large picnic table with additional beverages kept on ice in an ample tub to the side.

MSU grads and supporters filled the west side of the park catching up with old friends and making new ones. MSU Athletic Director Leon Costello and head football coach, Jeff Choate mingled with the attendees throughout much of the event and then spoke to the crowd about the achievements and goals of the MSU athletic program and MSU athletes.

A source of pride for the Bobcats is that the 350 athletes who compete in a wide variety of sports manage an average GPA of 3.19. The Bobcat athletes also have a graduation rate of 85 percent.

Following the dinner and talks by Costello and Choate, several items were auctioned off in both a live auction and a silent auction with all proceeds going to athletic scholarships.

A treat for all of the attendees was a spectacular sunset with a reflection streaking across the lake.

The second part of the annual fundraiser — a golf scramble — was held Saturday at the Polson Golf Course. Twenty-two teams competed with their entrance fees also going to support athletic scholarships.

It was rumored that a few Griz were at each of the two events, which certainly could be the case given there are many Cat-Griz “mixed marriages.”

But if there were any Griz roaming among the Cats, they behaved themselves very well leaving the ‘Brawl of the Wild’ to the annual football game in November.

The Bobcats are looking to qualify for the NCAA FCS football playoffs for the second-consecutive year since Jeff Choate took over during the 2016 season.