Montana 2nd Round Playoff Preview

[ndsubison1]

Bison open as 6.5 favorites with O/U of 50.5 on 5 Dimes.

https://madduxsports.com/college-football-lines.php

[tony]

Those of us who are there will be into it. That's the nice thing about the playoffs at least. A 12-14k playoff crowd has about the same impact as an 17-18k regular season crowd. Based on recent attendance trends I'd say they'd top out at about 13-14k tickets sold to Bison fans. We'll see how many of the Griz faithful make the trek since there will be plenty of tickets for them.

Yeah, that's what I always thought. And it'd be a good time to get some first timers to go because playoff energy can be off the charts.

The folks who are in the "nothing attracts a crowd like a crowd" category are also first out the door during the game or during a bad season. They're like fondant on a cake or whip cream on a sundae (i.e. more isn't always more.)

[Professor Chaos]

They could literally pull a fan from the stands and run HB dives to that fan for the entire game, and that fan may rack up 100yds. The fan would probably fumble alot and break bones, but wont get touched for 6 yds on every carry.

IDK what the score will be but if the bison dont get 300+ yds on the ground I will be astonished.

I think the Bison will be able to run on them but I'm not as confident as you in their ability to bulldoze the Griz D. Even after getting demolished by Montana St on the ground they're still only allowing 130 yards per game at 3.4 yards per carry on the season. They held both USD and Indiana St to fewer rush yards at a lower per carry average than the Bison defense did. I think the Bison will be able to run on the Griz D but I don't think they're going to be a swinging gate.

[Snowgoose]

I think the Bison will be able to run on them but I'm not as confident as you in their ability to bulldoze the Griz D. Even after getting demolished by Montana St on the ground they're still only allowing 130 yards per game at 3.4 yards per carry on the season. They held both USD and Indiana St to fewer rush yards at a lower per carry average than the Bison defense did. I think the Bison will be able to run on the Griz D but I don't think they're going to be a swinging gate.

This Griz team is decent and we need to bring our A game. I am hoping to come this weekend so yes there will be some people at this game. 14K would be nice, but 16K would be better as it is Montana. Remember playoff ticket totals are always way different than regular season due to how the tickets are counted. Always fun to see and game and when you have a family sometimes making the trip from Bismarck is not always easy.

[tony]

I think the Bison will be able to run on them but I'm not as confident as you in their ability to bulldoze the Griz D. Even after getting demolished by Montana St on the ground they're still only allowing 130 yards per game at 3.4 yards per carry on the season. They held both USD and Indiana St to fewer rush yards at a lower per carry average than the Bison defense did. I think the Bison will be able to run on the Griz D but I don't think they're going to be a swinging gate.

Montana plays fast and aggressively - "double twist blitzes" are their security blanket so I'm sure Roehl will have some stuff cooked up for that.

Their defense seems high-risk, high-reward so I'm not sure how many 14-play drives we'll be able to grind out.

On the whole, Montana reminds me of UND.

[Professor Chaos]

This Griz team is decent and we need to bring our A game. I am hoping to come this weekend so yes there will be some people at this game. 14K would be nice, but 16K would be better as it is Montana. Remember playoff ticket totals are always way different than regular season due to how the tickets are counted. Always fun to see and game and when you have a family sometimes making the trip from Bismarck is not always easy.

Yeah, because of who they don't count (the band mainly I think) max reported attendance would be in the low 18k range. Attendance for this 2nd round playoff game over the years has been waning though:

2013 (Furman): 18,455
2014 (SDSU): 18,113
2015 (Montana): 18,232
2016 (San Diego): 18,305
2017 (San Diego): 18,067
2018 (Montana St): 17,007
2019 (Nicholls): 15,690
2021 (SIU): 12,557

[cbline]

Montana plays fast and aggressively - "double twist blitzes" are their security blanket so I'm sure Roehl will have some stuff cooked up for that.

Their defense seems high-risk, high-reward so I'm not sure how many 14-play drives we'll be able to grind out.

On the whole, Montana reminds me of UND.

What reminds you? The smell?

[NDSU92]

Yeah, because of who they don't count (the band mainly I think) max reported attendance would be in the low 18k range. Attendance for this 2nd round playoff game over the years has been waning though:

2013 (Furman): 18,455
2014 (SDSU): 18,113
2015 (Montana): 18,232
2016 (San Diego): 18,305
2017 (San Diego): 18,067
2018 (Montana St): 17,007
2019 (Nicholls): 15,690
2021 (SIU): 12,557

Man it would be great to get it back above 15k for this game. Sad to think about

As long as we keep winning, there'll be new teams coming to the dome so that should help stoke interest.

[tony]

What reminds you? The smell?

Why would I insult Montana like that?

How many do you want? They had a 7-4 team record, have some good WRs, didn't beat anybody this year, run a 3-4, and they're the worst DI football team in their state.

The main difference is that Montana is a top ten all-time program in DI while UND peaked in a regionalized, post-scholarship-cut version of D2 (and they weren't even a top 10 program there.) No, scratch that, Montana's sole measure of success isn't beating the other DI program in their state.

[TransAmBison]

On the whole, Montana reminds me of UND.

Hopefully there is the proper Preparation for that.*








*So it feels good.