No place like home for the Griz
Posted: Sun Oct 15, 2006 9:55 am
No place like home for the Griz
By Greg Rachac
Of The Gazette Staff
MISSOULA - For 20 years, the fans have come in droves.
They've been clad in copper, silver and maroon. They've come shirtless, with paint all over their faces and primed to scream their lungs out.
There's even been a streaker or two.
Eddie Vedder and Mick Jagger have rocked there. The aura of the place makes other schools green with envy.
And football teams? They've been pushed back on their heels more times than a spokesperson for Senator Burns.
Saturday marked the 20th anniversary celebration of Washington-Grizzly Stadium, and the Grizzlies rang in the hoopla with a throwback win, a 24-21 squeaker over Northern Arizona.
But the real celebration came and went in a flash.
Between the third and fourth quarters, Montana president George Dennison and athletic director Jim O'Day honored those most responsible for making the greatest home field advantage in all the land a reality.
They couldn't all be present, but former coach Larry Donovan, former president Neil Bucklew, former A.D. Harley Lewis and chief financier Dennis Washington were all venerated for their efforts.
The ceremony was short and sweet, but those guys deserved a standing ovation and then some.
The stadium they created has become this state's football Mecca.
Completed in 1986, the Grizzlies have punished teams in their crown jewel to the tune of a 129-18 record, a winning percentage of nearly 88 percent.
They once won 30 consecutive games there, which stands as one of the longest streaks in the history of Division I-AA football.
It's impressive how Donovan and Co. had the acumen to push the stadium project and bring Griz football back to campus after a two-decade hiatus.
But it's hard to imagine even Donovan could have predicted just how wonderfully it would all come together.
Construction crews broke ground in 1985, and the Grizzlies moved in midway through that '86 campaign.
It started out with a 12,500 capacity, but two separate stadium expansions (one in 1996 and another in 2003) turned it into an intimidating, 23,000-seat monster that foes fear and opposing coaches curse.
Saturday's attendance of 23,626 was the sixth-largest crowd in stadium history, and boy were they loud.
The only place in the country where I-AA quarterbacks are forced to work from a silent cadence is an asylum for Griz Crazies to rain down their wrath on the timid and the weak.
They have SprinTurf. They have Griz Vision. They have 48 suites to the east and west of the field where Silvertip Skydivers land before mayhem ensues.
The tailgate parties are stuff of legend.
The pre-game atmosphere and production is better than most I-A schools can manufacture.
Go ahead. Travel to Colorado or Minnesota or Idaho. See for yourself.
They've got nothing on this bash.
Bottom line, Washington-Grizzly Stadium resurrected a blundering program in the 1980s and lit a football fire in the state of Montana that can't be doused.
"The emergence of Grizzly football coincides with the stadium," said current coach Bobby Hauck. "The day I got the job I called Larry Donovan and thanked him."
What makes it even more special to Griz fans is the fact that no one in I-AA can match what they have.
Montana State? Forget it. The Cats are eons away from scaring up anything like this.
The Griz have dispatched four opponents at home so far this season.
Idaho State, Cal Poly and those meaty Bobcats are next on the list.
They call Grizzly football "The Biggest Show in Montana."
There's certainly nothing else like it.
Greg Rachac can be reached at 657-1291, or at grachac@billingsgazette.com
By Greg Rachac
Of The Gazette Staff
MISSOULA - For 20 years, the fans have come in droves.
They've been clad in copper, silver and maroon. They've come shirtless, with paint all over their faces and primed to scream their lungs out.
There's even been a streaker or two.
Eddie Vedder and Mick Jagger have rocked there. The aura of the place makes other schools green with envy.
And football teams? They've been pushed back on their heels more times than a spokesperson for Senator Burns.
Saturday marked the 20th anniversary celebration of Washington-Grizzly Stadium, and the Grizzlies rang in the hoopla with a throwback win, a 24-21 squeaker over Northern Arizona.
But the real celebration came and went in a flash.
Between the third and fourth quarters, Montana president George Dennison and athletic director Jim O'Day honored those most responsible for making the greatest home field advantage in all the land a reality.
They couldn't all be present, but former coach Larry Donovan, former president Neil Bucklew, former A.D. Harley Lewis and chief financier Dennis Washington were all venerated for their efforts.
The ceremony was short and sweet, but those guys deserved a standing ovation and then some.
The stadium they created has become this state's football Mecca.
Completed in 1986, the Grizzlies have punished teams in their crown jewel to the tune of a 129-18 record, a winning percentage of nearly 88 percent.
They once won 30 consecutive games there, which stands as one of the longest streaks in the history of Division I-AA football.
It's impressive how Donovan and Co. had the acumen to push the stadium project and bring Griz football back to campus after a two-decade hiatus.
But it's hard to imagine even Donovan could have predicted just how wonderfully it would all come together.
Construction crews broke ground in 1985, and the Grizzlies moved in midway through that '86 campaign.
It started out with a 12,500 capacity, but two separate stadium expansions (one in 1996 and another in 2003) turned it into an intimidating, 23,000-seat monster that foes fear and opposing coaches curse.
Saturday's attendance of 23,626 was the sixth-largest crowd in stadium history, and boy were they loud.
The only place in the country where I-AA quarterbacks are forced to work from a silent cadence is an asylum for Griz Crazies to rain down their wrath on the timid and the weak.
They have SprinTurf. They have Griz Vision. They have 48 suites to the east and west of the field where Silvertip Skydivers land before mayhem ensues.
The tailgate parties are stuff of legend.
The pre-game atmosphere and production is better than most I-A schools can manufacture.
Go ahead. Travel to Colorado or Minnesota or Idaho. See for yourself.
They've got nothing on this bash.
Bottom line, Washington-Grizzly Stadium resurrected a blundering program in the 1980s and lit a football fire in the state of Montana that can't be doused.
"The emergence of Grizzly football coincides with the stadium," said current coach Bobby Hauck. "The day I got the job I called Larry Donovan and thanked him."
What makes it even more special to Griz fans is the fact that no one in I-AA can match what they have.
Montana State? Forget it. The Cats are eons away from scaring up anything like this.
The Griz have dispatched four opponents at home so far this season.
Idaho State, Cal Poly and those meaty Bobcats are next on the list.
They call Grizzly football "The Biggest Show in Montana."
There's certainly nothing else like it.
Greg Rachac can be reached at 657-1291, or at grachac@billingsgazette.com
