How do Cats stack up against Griz

[Cats15]

We will be going into Missoula as conquerors. Griz fans are starting to see the writing on wall

I wasn't to believe that the gris fans are seeing the writing on the wall. . Why do you think that?

I live outside of Butte in Anaconda,MT. Almost everyone here is a Griz fan….. they are not feeling very confident after the last two weeks.

Why is everyone in that area a friz fan??

[PapaG]

Bobcats show up at all Missoula and it’s 15 point win.

Somehow lose that game, still beat them in rematch.

Great day for football in Bozeman today. So nice seeing Caden Dowler dominate.

[bobcatfan123]

We will be going into Missoula as conquerors. Griz fans are starting to see the writing on wall

I wasn't to believe that the gris fans are seeing the writing on the wall. . Why do you think that?

I live outside of Butte in Anaconda,MT. Almost everyone here is a Griz fan….. they are not feeling very confident after the last two weeks.

Why is everyone in that area a friz fan??

In the 70s and 80s Cats had all sorts of athletes from Butte and surrounding area. The head coach from North Dakota that came in (can’t remember his name) didn’t like the drinking culture from our area and outright refused to recruit our area. This led most of the football fans in the area to root for the Griz for the next 40 years. Just now changing!!

[golden77]

Just look at all of the Montana kids getting significant playing time on both offense and defense for the Bobcats compared to the Grizzlies. Years ago the griz were getting the majority of the local kids. I have the same amount of respect for any kid playing for the bobcats but the fans of the state of Montana have a great sense of pride when the local kids do well. Now many in Missoula are saying it doesn't matter whether their players are from Montana or out of state, they just want the best players. We all want the best players but believe me when the local kids do well it really does matter, and your kidding yourself if you think it doesn't. Bobby 1.0 was getting those kids and Bobby 2.0 is not

[ilovethecats]

The Oregon game isn’t “irrelevant” when Gris fans are using W/L record as a point of comparison.

UM hasn’t played anyone like Oregon, or even SDSU when they were healthy, and that’s really what matters in the SOS argument if W/L record matters.

The “best” team UM played is probably UND, and they just got beaten by a 4-loss team.

Sure, it's relevant in the sense that it accounts for one of the losses and therefore the Cats only have one loss that really deserves to be considered.

However, it's irrelevant in the sense that it won't be counted against MSU in ranking or seeding and therefore it doesn't make sense to cite it for the sake of SOS resume building.

I'll put it this way:

MSU's resume is not and should not be harmed by the fact that they have a road loss to a highly ranked FBS team.

Also, MSU's resume is not and should not be enhanced by the fact that they went to Eugene and got their doors blown off.

So throw out that loss for the Cats and throw out the Central Washington game for the Griz. Where does that leave them? With essentially comparable schedules:

-Both teams have played 5 conference games, 2 at home and 3 on the road; the collective records of the two opponent sets are identical at 18-27.

-Both teams have played good MVFC team at home that has recently fallen on hard times.

-Both teams have played two weak FCS teams OOC-- Mercyhurst and USD for the Cats; ISU and SH for the Griz.

So the SOS in my mind is basically identical. The difference is that the Griz won their game against UND narrowly and the Cats lost their game against SDSU narrowly. So I have no problem with the Griz being ranked ahead of MSU.

However, I also have no doubt that the Cats are the better team given how much better they've performed in conference play.

It’s going to be a fun rivalry game. It’s interesting that you have no doubt, yet the FCS coaches and the FCS writers who cover the game professionally see the Griz as the better team.

Any doubts today? If not you’re delusional

No doubts today. The Cats lost at home to a team (SDSU) that might not even make the playoffs.

In the land of fans who don’t matter talking weak crap; that’s fair. But for full disclosure, your “best” win is still 6-4 North Dakota correct?

If your biggest knock against the Cats is a game we played over 2 months ago against a team much better then than now due to major injuries; also good.

But do you honestly believe the griz are much better than Cats based on what you’ve seen so far?

[OldGriz]

The Oregon game isn’t “irrelevant” when Gris fans are using W/L record as a point of comparison.

UM hasn’t played anyone like Oregon, or even SDSU when they were healthy, and that’s really what matters in the SOS argument if W/L record matters.

The “best” team UM played is probably UND, and they just got beaten by a 4-loss team.

Sure, it's relevant in the sense that it accounts for one of the losses and therefore the Cats only have one loss that really deserves to be considered.

However, it's irrelevant in the sense that it won't be counted against MSU in ranking or seeding and therefore it doesn't make sense to cite it for the sake of SOS resume building.

I'll put it this way:

MSU's resume is not and should not be harmed by the fact that they have a road loss to a highly ranked FBS team.

Also, MSU's resume is not and should not be enhanced by the fact that they went to Eugene and got their doors blown off.

So throw out that loss for the Cats and throw out the Central Washington game for the Griz. Where does that leave them? With essentially comparable schedules:

-Both teams have played 5 conference games, 2 at home and 3 on the road; the collective records of the two opponent sets are identical at 18-27.

-Both teams have played good MVFC team at home that has recently fallen on hard times.

-Both teams have played two weak FCS teams OOC-- Mercyhurst and USD for the Cats; ISU and SH for the Griz.

So the SOS in my mind is basically identical. The difference is that the Griz won their game against UND narrowly and the Cats lost their game against SDSU narrowly. So I have no problem with the Griz being ranked ahead of MSU.

However, I also have no doubt that the Cats are the better team given how much better they've performed in conference play.

It’s going to be a fun rivalry game. It’s interesting that you have no doubt, yet the FCS coaches and the FCS writers who cover the game professionally see the Griz as the better team.

Any doubts today? If not you’re delusional

No doubts today. The Cats lost at home to a team (SDSU) that might not even make the playoffs.

In the land of fans who don’t matter talking weak crap; that’s fair. But for full disclosure, your “best” win is still 6-4 North Dakota correct?

If your biggest knock against the Cats is a game we played over 2 months ago against a team much better then than now due to major injuries; also good.

But do you honestly believe the griz are much better than Cats based on what you’ve seen so far?

Much better? Not at all. For context, you’ll see that my responses have been to commenters who said the Cats are undoubtably better than the Griz, and I’ve merely suggested that not all of those FCS coaches and writers who rank the Griz above the Cats can be crazy. I took some bait above when asked if I have any doubts after today’s games. But honestly, I can’t say either team is much better than the other. Thats my point.

[grizzh8r]

The Oregon game isn’t “irrelevant” when Gris fans are using W/L record as a point of comparison.

UM hasn’t played anyone like Oregon, or even SDSU when they were healthy, and that’s really what matters in the SOS argument if W/L record matters.

The “best” team UM played is probably UND, and they just got beaten by a 4-loss team.

Sure, it's relevant in the sense that it accounts for one of the losses and therefore the Cats only have one loss that really deserves to be considered.

However, it's irrelevant in the sense that it won't be counted against MSU in ranking or seeding and therefore it doesn't make sense to cite it for the sake of SOS resume building.

I'll put it this way:

MSU's resume is not and should not be harmed by the fact that they have a road loss to a highly ranked FBS team.

Also, MSU's resume is not and should not be enhanced by the fact that they went to Eugene and got their doors blown off.

So throw out that loss for the Cats and throw out the Central Washington game for the Griz. Where does that leave them? With essentially comparable schedules:

-Both teams have played 5 conference games, 2 at home and 3 on the road; the collective records of the two opponent sets are identical at 18-27.

-Both teams have played good MVFC team at home that has recently fallen on hard times.

-Both teams have played two weak FCS teams OOC-- Mercyhurst and USD for the Cats; ISU and SH for the Griz.

So the SOS in my mind is basically identical. The difference is that the Griz won their game against UND narrowly and the Cats lost their game against SDSU narrowly. So I have no problem with the Griz being ranked ahead of MSU.

However, I also have no doubt that the Cats are the better team given how much better they've performed in conference play.

It’s going to be a fun rivalry game. It’s interesting that you have no doubt, yet the FCS coaches and the FCS writers who cover the game professionally see the Griz as the better team.

Any doubts today? If not you’re delusional

No doubts today. The Cats lost at home to a team (SDSU) that might not even make the playoffs.

In the land of fans who don’t matter talking weak crap; that’s fair. But for full disclosure, your “best” win is still 6-4 North Dakota correct?

If your biggest knock against the Cats is a game we played over 2 months ago against a team much better then than now due to major injuries; also good.

But do you honestly believe the griz are much better than Cats based on what you’ve seen so far?

Facts and reason don't matter to him. All that matters is how he can spin narrative to his favor; getting tougher and tougher to spin it as the season wears on and his team is showing more and more than they are paper tigers, not true contenders.

[ClowderUp]

Oldgris lacks basic understanding of the game of football. From his posting, he's never played the game. Once framed this way, all his posts makes sense. He's special.

[kwcat]

The Oregon game isn’t “irrelevant” when Gris fans are using W/L record as a point of comparison.

UM hasn’t played anyone like Oregon, or even SDSU when they were healthy, and that’s really what matters in the SOS argument if W/L record matters.

The “best” team UM played is probably UND, and they just got beaten by a 4-loss team.

Sure, it's relevant in the sense that it accounts for one of the losses and therefore the Cats only have one loss that really deserves to be considered.

However, it's irrelevant in the sense that it won't be counted against MSU in ranking or seeding and therefore it doesn't make sense to cite it for the sake of SOS resume building.

I'll put it this way:

MSU's resume is not and should not be harmed by the fact that they have a road loss to a highly ranked FBS team.

Also, MSU's resume is not and should not be enhanced by the fact that they went to Eugene and got their doors blown off.

So throw out that loss for the Cats and throw out the Central Washington game for the Griz. Where does that leave them? With essentially comparable schedules:

-Both teams have played 5 conference games, 2 at home and 3 on the road; the collective records of the two opponent sets are identical at 18-27.

-Both teams have played good MVFC team at home that has recently fallen on hard times.

-Both teams have played two weak FCS teams OOC-- Mercyhurst and USD for the Cats; ISU and SH for the Griz.

So the SOS in my mind is basically identical. The difference is that the Griz won their game against UND narrowly and the Cats lost their game against SDSU narrowly. So I have no problem with the Griz being ranked ahead of MSU.

However, I also have no doubt that the Cats are the better team given how much better they've performed in conference play.

It’s going to be a fun rivalry game. It’s interesting that you have no doubt, yet the FCS coaches and the FCS writers who cover the game professionally see the Griz as the better team.

Any doubts today? If not you’re delusional

No doubts today. The Cats lost at home to a team (SDSU) that might not even make the playoffs.

In the land of fans who don’t matter talking weak crap; that’s fair. But for full disclosure, your “best” win is still 6-4 North Dakota correct?

If your biggest knock against the Cats is a game we played over 2 months ago against a team much better then than now due to major injuries; also good.

But do you honestly believe the griz are much better than Cats based on what you’ve seen so far?

Much better? Not at all. For context, you’ll see that my responses have been to commenters who said the Cats are undoubtably better than the Griz, and I’ve merely suggested that not all of those FCS coaches and writers who rank the Griz above the Cats can be crazy. I took some bait above when asked if I have any doubts after today’s games. But honestly, I can’t say either team is much better than the other. Thats my point.

I don’t think you have said it, but I will say it Weber was way better last week and Eastern was way better this week than they were earlier

[tetoncat]

Oldgriz is onto something. The griz are better than the Cats in many ways. Better at inconsistent play, better at letting weaker opponents staying around, better at getting their starters as many minutes as possible, better at letting other QBs think they are really good. I'm not sure why we all didn't realize it.

[91catAlum]

If the griz D plays like it did today, the Cats will score 50 in missoula.

[JoeCatsJoe]

I’ll say what I said a couple weeks ago. The griz offense is good. I’m just not see what oldgriz is seeing that they are the obvious number one offense in the league.

Seems like our O has put up more points than theirs in league play. The common opponents we’ve played we’ve killed and they’ve let hang around.

Ah yat and other starters are good no doubt. I won’t bash on players. They look good. But numbers wise their starters get to play all game cause they can’t put anyone away.

I ask again, mainly to griz fans and especially to oldgriz claiming the griz are easily the better offense; what do they do that makes them better? Numbers don’t support it really and either do results of games.

I won’t even touch on the defense cause that isn’t close. I didn’t see final numbers but looks like that D gave up another 400 yards or so today. To a young kid. In their defense they stepped up when needed or a very bad eastern team had a chance to beat them!

In two weeks the 2 things I literally fear most is Washington Grizzly; and rowdy fans.

The Gris D did not step up in the end. The EWU QB fumbled the spike and ended up running out the clock accidentally. They Gris are nowhere near as good as the Cats.

MSU 66 - Weber 14. UM 38 - Weber 17.
MSU 57 - EWU 3. UM 29 - EWU 24.

In what world are the Gris even with us?

In a world where Cat/gris is in missoula.

That's the answer. if this was a neutral field game, I'd be pretty confident in a two or more score win. However, the game being down in the Snake Pit adds an element of chaos and unpredictability in the favor of the home team, as it has for 4 of the last 5 Cat-Griz games (not necessarily including last year, cuz the score was an accurate representation of the two teams). That's the wildcard that can change this game, and they have enough talent to strike early and get the wave of momentum on their side. I'm becoming more and more confident about this game, but there's still a chance the tsunami of momentum gets on their side and wins them the game. But I still think we can leave no doubt in Missoula and win by 2+ scores. We shall see.

[ilovethecats]

Much better? Not at all. For context, you’ll see that my responses have been to commenters who said the Cats are undoubtably better than the Griz, and I’ve merely suggested that not all of those FCS coaches and writers who rank the Griz above the Cats can be crazy. I took some bait above when asked if I have any doubts after today’s games. But honestly, I can’t say either team is much better than the other. Thats my point.

I was only speaking to you saying the griz were undoubtedly the best offense in the conference. I just don’t know what that’s based on.

[grizzh8r]

Much better? Not at all. For context, you’ll see that my responses have been to commenters who said the Cats are undoubtably better than the Griz, and I’ve merely suggested that not all of those FCS coaches and writers who rank the Griz above the Cats can be crazy. I took some bait above when asked if I have any doubts after today’s games. But honestly, I can’t say either team is much better than the other. Thats my point.

I was only speaking to you saying the griz were undoubtedly the best offense in the conference. I just don’t know what that’s based on.

Bias. That's what it's based on.

[Utcatsfan]

The answer is throw against the Griz and we will have success, especially a quick passing attack.

[BroncoCat]

Much better? Not at all. For context, you’ll see that my responses have been to commenters who said the Cats are undoubtably better than the Griz, and I’ve merely suggested that not all of those FCS coaches and writers who rank the Griz above the Cats can be crazy. I took some bait above when asked if I have any doubts after today’s games. But honestly, I can’t say either team is much better than the other. Thats my point.

I was only speaking to you saying the griz were undoubtedly the best offense in the conference. I just don’t know what that’s based on.

Mostly Dementia

[Bocephus]

There is a very real scenario where the Cats are trailing early in Missoula while they survive the wave of momentum. I think as the game goes on the better team will start to shine through and the Cats could win by 2 scores.

[mslacatfan]

Ahyat, Gilman and wortham are studs, no question….. but that is seriously it.

Their OL is average at best, DL is not good, defense in general is not good.

I’m trying to look at this objectively (and take off the bobcat glasses)…. But it seems like the Cats are significantly better across the board, much more complete team, better depth, better coaching, better OL and DL…. I just don’t see us losing this game.

[CodyCat]

There is a very real scenario where the Cats are trailing early in Missoula while they survive the wave of momentum. I think as the game goes on the better team will start to shine through and the Cats could win by 2 scores.

This is exactly how I feel as well.

[ilovethecats]

Ahyat, Gilman and wortham are studs, no question….. but that is seriously it.

Their OL is average at best, DL is not good, defense in general is not good.

I’m trying to look at this objectively (and take off the bobcat glasses)…. But it seems like the Cats are significantly better across the board, much more complete team, better depth, better coaching, better OL and DL…. I just don’t see us losing this game.

It’s always so tough in this matchup but I feel the same. If all the stats were identical and records as well, but instead it being the griz we’re on the road against say Idaho state, we’d all be picking the cats by 20 plus. Easily. But it’s a game in Missoula. That’s it. If Vigen can get the guys to overcome the first couple possessions and a crazy environment; I really am just not seeing where their team is better than the Cats. Vigen just needs to show he can win there. We control our own destiny!