Page 61 - Flathead Beacon // 8.17.16

MONTANA ST.
W
hat exactly does new head coach Je Choate have planned for the Montana State Bobcats?
BATTLE IN THE BIG SKY
UNDER NEW HEAD COACH, BOBCATS LOOK TO REGAIN COMPETITIVE EDGE
PLAYERS TO WATCH
COLUMBIA FALLS NATIVE AUSTIN BARTH ENTERS SENIOR SEASON AS BOBCAT LEADER
MAC BIGNELL
#49 | Junior | Outside Linebacker
A product of Drummond, Bignell had a breakout season last fall, starting 11 games and leading the Bobcats with 101 tackles and 20.5 for loss. He also led the Big Sky in tackles for loss and solo tackles per game (6.5), nishing among the top 10 in the FCS in each category. A star in the making, Bignell is poised for another huge season
as one of the best linebackers in the conference and earned preseason all-Big Sky honors.
GUNNAR BREKKE
#27 | Senior | Running back / Return Specialist
Another great in-state product, Brekke developed into one of the most versatile players in the conference
a year ago, averaging 107.9 all-pur- pose yards per game, the most on
the Bobcats. Brekke can do it all; he caught 22 passes for 352 yards and had 17 kick returns for 326 yards. He will share carries again this fall with Chad Newell, a senior returning back who was named to the preseason all-conference team with guard J.P. Flynn and Bignell.
MITCHELL HERBERT
#82 | Junior | Wide Receiver
A native of Eugene, Oregon, Herbert is poised for a breakout season as one of the best receivers in the Big Sky.
In his rst season for the Bobcats last fall, he caught 28 passes for 339 yards and a team-high four TDs. This season he will line up at the X receiver position and could be the top target for whomever takes the starting role at quarterback.
MSU running back Gunnar Brekke.
KELLY GORHAM, MONTANA STATE UNIVERSITY
in Bozeman.
Choate is taking over the MSU program
after spending the last two seasons as defensive line coach and special teams coor- dinator at Washington. Before that he was an assistant under Chris Petersen at Boise State and previously served at Florida.
Now Choate is head honcho of an FCS program looking to regain its standing as one of the best in the Big Sky. The Bobcats kick o the season at Idaho on Sept. 1 before returning home on Sept. 10 to play Bryant.
Rob Ash was red two days after the Bobcats’ season ended a year ago in a loss to rival Montana. Ash nished his nine- year tenure with a 70-38 record. But last
Fans are waiting in suspense as the football season commences and a new era dawns
“I LIKED THE EXCHANGE BETWEEN THE OFFENSE AND THE DEFENSE TODAY, I THOUGHT IT WAS COMPETITIVE, AND RIGHT ... I THOUGHT THE COMPETITIVE BALANCE WAS WHERE IT NEEDED TO BE TODAY. I’M EXCITED TO SEE WHERE THAT GOES
JEFF CHOATE, MSU HEAD COACH
season, in which the Bobcats were picked to be a deep playo contender, the team went 5-6 overall and 3-5 in the Big Sky Conference.
Now Choate, with the help of former Griz defensive coordi- nator Ty Gregorak, who joined the Bobcats in the o season, is trying to instill a new hard-nosed culture.
The start of football camp last week marked a “crucible” for the Cats.
“I liked the exchange between the o ense and the defense today,” Choate said after the team’s opening session. “I thought it was competitive, and right ... I thought the competitive balance was where it needed to be today. I’m excited to see where that goes once we put the pads on.”
Montana State’s rst-year coaching sta welcomes 34 new players.
The Bobcats were picked tied for seventh in the Big Sky Con- ference preseason coaches’ poll and eighth in the media poll.
Northern Arizona is returning the FCS freshman of the year in quarterback Case Cookus. Cookus threw for 3,117 yards in 2015, with 37 touchdowns. The sophomore is also a preseason All-Big Sky selection at quarterback, after being named a rst- team All-Big Sky quarterback in 2015. The Lumberjacks last quali ed for the FCS postseason in 2013, when the team nished in second place in the Big Sky.
Eastern Washington received rst-place votes in both polls, and the Eagles return wide receiver Cooper Kupp, the reigning STATS FCS O ensive Player of the Year, and a two-time Big Sky Preseason O ensive Player of the Year selection.
Defending Big Sky champion Southern Utah was selected
CONTINUED ON PAGE 58
ONCE WE PUT THE PADS ON.”
MONTANA STATE
BOBCATS
2016 SEASON
Date
SEPT. 1 SEPT. 10 SEPT. 17 SEPT. 24 OCT. 1 OCT. 8 OCT. 15 OCT. 22 NOV. 5 NOV. 12 NOV. 19
Opponent
@ IDAHO
BRYANT
WESTERN OREGON NORTH DAKOTA
@ SACRAMENTO ST. NORTHERN ARIZONA
@ WEBER ST.
EASTERN WASHINGTON @ SOUTHERN UTAH
UC DAVIS
@ MONTANA
Time TV
7 P.M.
2 P.M.
2 P.M.
2 P.M.
7 P.M.
5 P.M. 1:40 P.M. NOON NOON TBD
TBD
NA
ABC/FOX ABC/FOX
NA*
ABC/FOX ROOT SPORTS ROOT SPORTS ROOT SPORTS ABC/FOX ROOT SPORTS ROOT SPORTS
*HOMECOMING
AUGUST 17, 2016 // FLATHEADBEACON.COM
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