Montana–Montana State football rivalry
| Sport | Football |
|---|---|
| First meeting | November 25, 1897; 120 years ago Montana, 18–6 |
| Latest meeting | November 19, 2016 in Missoula Montana State, 24-17 |
| Next meeting | November 2017 in Bozeman |
| Trophy | The Great Divide Trophy |
| Statistics | |
| Meetings total | 115 (one vacated: 2011) |
| All-time series | Montana leads 72–38–5 (.648); with both in NCAA Montana leads 32–27 (.542); with both in Big Sky Montana leads 30–23 (.566) |
| Largest victory | Montana, 79–0 (1904) |
| Longest win streak | Montana 16 (1986–2001) |
| Current win streak | Montana State 1 (2016–2016) |
The Montana–Montana State football rivalry is an annual college football rivalry game between the University of Montana Grizzlies and the Montana State University Bobcats. Also known as Cat-Griz, Griz-Cat and the Brawl of the Wild, the winner receives the Great Divide Trophy.
The rivalry began in 1897, making it the 31st oldest in NCAA Division I and the 11th oldest west of the Mississippi River, as well as the fourth-oldest Football Championship Subdivision rivalry and the oldest FCS rivalry west of the Mississippi. Montana leads the series 72–38–5, but that margin is considerably smaller since Montana State joined the NCAA in 1957 at 32–27. The game, especially of late, has major implications on the Big Sky Conference championship and its automatic bid to the Division I FCS tournament.
The rivalry began on November 26, 1897 when the two teams played in Bozeman, home of Montana State, with Montana prevailing by the score of 18–6. At the time, Montana State was known as Montana State College, while Montana was known as Montana State University. The rivalry is the 31st oldest among active rivalries in NCAA Division I and of those is the eleventh oldest west of the Mississippi River. It is also the fourth oldest active rivalry in the FCS and the oldest west of the Mississippi River.
The series has three distinct periods. From 1897 to 1916, Montana State did not belong to a conference, while Montana was in the Northwest Intercollegiate Athletic Association. In addition to Montana, the Northwest Conference included Washington, Washington State, Oregon, Oregon State, Idaho, and Whitman College. At times they would play twice per year. Early seasons had seven games or less with one season seeing the Grizzlies play just one game. Four of the five ties in the series came during this era. Montana won 12 games to Montana State's 7.
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