2025 Griz Hail Mary

[BelligerentBobcat]

The whole "Bobbi is playing 4D chess" narrative that Colter rolls out there every now and then is really annoying. I don't believe for a second that Bobbi thinks that the way to win a championship is to be wildly different than NDSU and play the portal lottery every year. I think his recruiting team just straight failed for a few years and he got backed into a corner where he had to go shopping for transfers to field a competitive enough team to get the big boosters off his back. Colter even acknowledges that he'd rather do it the NDSU/MSU way. Bobbi isn't outsmarting anyone (except Colter and Tootell), he's just going with Plan B because he failed at Plan A.

I think Colter knows good and well because you see it slip every now and then in his talks. Colter has to pay bills too though.

I do think the Griz can have success with what they’re doing, especially because a decent number of those transfers have multiple years to play. However, their biggest problem is they haven’t recruited OL or DL very well. Actually, I lied. Their biggest problem is within their strength and conditioning program. Every year at pro day their best players test pretty mediocre. Always an exception or two, but lately it’s been bad.

[coloradocat]

The whole "Bobbi is playing 4D chess" narrative that Colter rolls out there every now and then is really annoying. I don't believe for a second that Bobbi thinks that the way to win a championship is to be wildly different than NDSU and play the portal lottery every year. I think his recruiting team just straight failed for a few years and he got backed into a corner where he had to go shopping for transfers to field a competitive enough team to get the big boosters off his back. Colter even acknowledges that he'd rather do it the NDSU/MSU way. Bobbi isn't outsmarting anyone (except Colter and Tootell), he's just going with Plan B because he failed at Plan A.

I think Colter knows good and well because you see it slip every now and then in his talks. Colter has to pay bills too though.

I do think the Griz can have success with what they’re doing, especially because a decent number of those transfers have multiple years to play. However, their biggest problem is they haven’t recruited OL or DL very well. Actually, I lied. Their biggest problem is within their strength and conditioning program. Every year at pro day their best players test pretty mediocre. Always an exception or two, but lately it’s been bad.

I agree that Colter is largely just feeding his family with these conversations. He knows what's really going on.

I think it's possible that a team can have success with this model but I'm not sure if the griz can, without an All-American PR/KR to bail them out. Their defense is too difficult to learn in a year, and especially in a summer, and this isn't the kind of coaching staff to tailor its style to its roster. Plus, when it comes to QBs Bobbi seems to be Choate without the decision making ability. The only reason they are almost guaranteed a seed every year is their strength of schedule and abundance of home games.

I would be shocked if the griz finish lower than 3rd in the conference this year but I'd also be somewhat shocked if they made it to the quarterfinals (pending bracket structure).

[Joe Bobcat]

If I had wanted to say they were title contenders, I would have.

They are not relevant in the way Idaho State is. That’s just asinine. They are relevant in the way USC is. In the way Miami is. A top tier program that has the ability to quickly and consistently become a title contender. They will always have one of the best stadiums in the FCS. They will always have one of the best fan bases in the FCS while at the same time having some of the worst fans imaginable. They have the history, the facilities, the program. Them not being title contenders right now doesn’t change that. Realistically, anybody can coach there and have a solid record. The same cannot be said for Idaho State. They have different floors and ceilings, their relevance is not the same.

I dislike UM. I dislike Bobby. I think his current recruiting approach is fantastically horrid. That doesn’t change who they are as a program, and they are always a relevant program. When people think of FCS football, one of the programs they think of is Montana. That’s relevance.
[/quote]

FIFY see bolded

Yeah, UM football is and most likely always will be relevant in the FCS but they are nowhere near as relevant as they once were and even further removed from the relevance and importance so many in their fan base think they had or think they currently have.

[BelligerentBobcat]

The whole "Bobbi is playing 4D chess" narrative that Colter rolls out there every now and then is really annoying. I don't believe for a second that Bobbi thinks that the way to win a championship is to be wildly different than NDSU and play the portal lottery every year. I think his recruiting team just straight failed for a few years and he got backed into a corner where he had to go shopping for transfers to field a competitive enough team to get the big boosters off his back. Colter even acknowledges that he'd rather do it the NDSU/MSU way. Bobbi isn't outsmarting anyone (except Colter and Tootell), he's just going with Plan B because he failed at Plan A.

I think Colter knows good and well because you see it slip every now and then in his talks. Colter has to pay bills too though.

I do think the Griz can have success with what they’re doing, especially because a decent number of those transfers have multiple years to play. However, their biggest problem is they haven’t recruited OL or DL very well. Actually, I lied. Their biggest problem is within their strength and conditioning program. Every year at pro day their best players test pretty mediocre. Always an exception or two, but lately it’s been bad.

I agree that Colter is largely just feeding his family with these conversations. He knows what's really going on.

I think it's possible that a team can have success with this model but I'm not sure if the griz can, without an All-American PR/KR to bail them out. Their defense is too difficult to learn in a year, and especially in a summer, and this isn't the kind of coaching staff to tailor its style to its roster. Plus, when it comes to QBs Bobbi seems to be Choate without the decision making ability. The only reason they are almost guaranteed a seed every year is their strength of schedule and abundance of home games.

I would be shocked if the griz finish lower than 3rd in the conference this year but I'd also be somewhat shocked if they made it to the quarterfinals (pending bracket structure).

You’re giving Choate way too much credit when it comes to QB’s. His best actual QB was Tucker Rovig.

[TomCat88]

The whole "Bobbi is playing 4D chess" narrative that Colter rolls out there every now and then is really annoying. I don't believe for a second that Bobbi thinks that the way to win a championship is to be wildly different than NDSU and play the portal lottery every year. I think his recruiting team just straight failed for a few years and he got backed into a corner where he had to go shopping for transfers to field a competitive enough team to get the big boosters off his back. Colter even acknowledges that he'd rather do it the NDSU/MSU way. Bobbi isn't outsmarting anyone (except Colter and Tootell), he's just going with Plan B because he failed at Plan A.

I think Colter knows good and well because you see it slip every now and then in his talks. Colter has to pay bills too though.

I do think the Griz can have success with what they’re doing, especially because a decent number of those transfers have multiple years to play. However, their biggest problem is they haven’t recruited OL or DL very well. Actually, I lied. Their biggest problem is within their strength and conditioning program. Every year at pro day their best players test pretty mediocre. Always an exception or two, but lately it’s been bad.

I agree that Colter is largely just feeding his family with these conversations. He knows what's really going on.

I think it's possible that a team can have success with this model but I'm not sure if the griz can, without an All-American PR/KR to bail them out. Their defense is too difficult to learn in a year, and especially in a summer, and this isn't the kind of coaching staff to tailor its style to its roster. Plus, when it comes to QBs Bobbi seems to be Choate without the decision making ability. The only reason they are almost guaranteed a seed every year is their strength of schedule and abundance of home games.

I would be shocked if the griz finish lower than 3rd in the conference this year but I'd also be somewhat shocked if they made it to the quarterfinals (pending bracket structure).

You’re giving Choate way too much credit when it comes to QB’s. His best actual QB was Tucker Rovig.

New rule: whenever someone compares a coach’s quarterback development to Choate they’re exaggerating for effect.

[BelligerentBobcat]

The whole "Bobbi is playing 4D chess" narrative that Colter rolls out there every now and then is really annoying. I don't believe for a second that Bobbi thinks that the way to win a championship is to be wildly different than NDSU and play the portal lottery every year. I think his recruiting team just straight failed for a few years and he got backed into a corner where he had to go shopping for transfers to field a competitive enough team to get the big boosters off his back. Colter even acknowledges that he'd rather do it the NDSU/MSU way. Bobbi isn't outsmarting anyone (except Colter and Tootell), he's just going with Plan B because he failed at Plan A.

I think Colter knows good and well because you see it slip every now and then in his talks. Colter has to pay bills too though.

I do think the Griz can have success with what they’re doing, especially because a decent number of those transfers have multiple years to play. However, their biggest problem is they haven’t recruited OL or DL very well. Actually, I lied. Their biggest problem is within their strength and conditioning program. Every year at pro day their best players test pretty mediocre. Always an exception or two, but lately it’s been bad.

I agree that Colter is largely just feeding his family with these conversations. He knows what's really going on.

I think it's possible that a team can have success with this model but I'm not sure if the griz can, without an All-American PR/KR to bail them out. Their defense is too difficult to learn in a year, and especially in a summer, and this isn't the kind of coaching staff to tailor its style to its roster. Plus, when it comes to QBs Bobbi seems to be Choate without the decision making ability. The only reason they are almost guaranteed a seed every year is their strength of schedule and abundance of home games.

I would be shocked if the griz finish lower than 3rd in the conference this year but I'd also be somewhat shocked if they made it to the quarterfinals (pending bracket structure).

You’re giving Choate way too much credit when it comes to QB’s. His best actual QB was Tucker Rovig.

New rule: whenever someone compares a coach’s quarterback development to Choate they’re exaggerating for effect.

Lol fair enough.

[iaafan]

Maybe. This story makes it sound like the Cats and Griz have been even-Steven the last 5 years. Simply not true.

The author uses the last three years as a comparison. Meanwhile, since 2019 the Cats were in 4 semi finals and two finals. Griz 1 semi and 1 final. Cats have two undefeated seasons and only four losses in the BSC. Griz have one 7-1 season and 12 losses.

The last three years Cats are 22-2, Griz 16-8.

[HookedOnGriz]

Maybe. This story makes it sound like the Cats and Griz have been even-Steven the last 5 years. Simply not true.

The author uses the last three years as a comparison. Meanwhile, since 2019 the Cats were in 4 semi finals and two finals. Griz 1 semi and 1 final. Cats have two undefeated seasons and only four losses in the BSC. Griz have one 7-1 season and 12 losses.

The last three years Cats are 22-2, Griz 16-8.

Cute, using the old “conference records only” for your analysis. This would be effective if all the teams played the same teams. This is a terrible statistical analysis when the same teams don’t play each other. Quite literally apples to oranges.

If you look at the most wins by an FCS coach, the last five years, both Vigen and Hauck are at the tops of that list. Seems to me they can both coach.

[Cataholic]

I hope Hauck coaches for another 20 years. If that program had a truly outstanding coach at the helm, I would be seriously concerned.

[iaafan]

Maybe. This story makes it sound like the Cats and Griz have been even-Steven the last 5 years. Simply not true.

The author uses the last three years as a comparison. Meanwhile, since 2019 the Cats were in 4 semi finals and two finals. Griz 1 semi and 1 final. Cats have two undefeated seasons and only four losses in the BSC. Griz have one 7-1 season and 12 losses.

The last three years Cats are 22-2, Griz 16-8.

Cute, using the old “conference records only” for your analysis. This would be effective if all the teams played the same teams. This is a terrible statistical analysis when the same teams don’t play each other. Quite literally apples to oranges.

If you look at the most wins by an FCS coach, the last five years, both Vigen and Hauck are at the tops of that list. Seems to me they can both coach.

Pathetic. How many FCS coaches have been coaching the same team the last five years? Not Vigen. But in his four years he’s won 29 conference games, 47 overall. Hauck has 22 and 40 in that same timeframe. 29-3 (90%) vs 22-10.
(69%). 11 of the 22 vs psu, ISU, UNC and Poly. 47-11 vs 40-15. It isn’t close and MSU has played a tougher schedule. League and overall. MSU played one of the toughest schedules in FCS history in 2023 vs six top 10 with 5 on the road. Non-conference vs Wyoming, Oregon St, New Mexico, NDSU three times, SDSU twice. Only two of those at home. No D2s. And MSU has a better record vs common opponents.

[wbtfg]

The whole "Bobbi is playing 4D chess" narrative that Colter rolls out there every now and then is really annoying. I don't believe for a second that Bobbi thinks that the way to win a championship is to be wildly different than NDSU and play the portal lottery every year. I think his recruiting team just straight failed for a few years and he got backed into a corner where he had to go shopping for transfers to field a competitive enough team to get the big boosters off his back. Colter even acknowledges that he'd rather do it the NDSU/MSU way. Bobbi isn't outsmarting anyone (except Colter and Tootell), he's just going with Plan B because he failed at Plan A.

Even the griz fan pod delved into this last season. Kyle did a dive into their recruiting classes and the amounts that are still on the team and making a difference by their Junior or Senior seasons in BH 2.0 and it is not good. Of course the rest pushed back on it but the numbers didn't lie. I just don't think their coaching staff is great at evaluating talent or body types and developing those players into D1 athletes. To be honest we get into recruiting back and forth but the number of times both teams go after the same recruit with the same fervor is actually less common than you think. One pertinent example is the rumor was the Cats got the Dowler twins because we offered both but the griz only offered Taco. Seeing Caden get picked as captain and when healthy has been a standout shows they didn't do a good analysis on him. Same with Ortt. Bobby thought he was too slow and still thought it last season, targeted him in the Brawl with bubble screens etc. and had it backfire. He constantly has to go to the portal because the freshman they are bringing in just aren't good enough.

All good points. It's interesting that one of the hallmark's of Bobby 1.0 was his success in recruiting and developing talent.

[coloradocat]

The whole "Bobbi is playing 4D chess" narrative that Colter rolls out there every now and then is really annoying. I don't believe for a second that Bobbi thinks that the way to win a championship is to be wildly different than NDSU and play the portal lottery every year. I think his recruiting team just straight failed for a few years and he got backed into a corner where he had to go shopping for transfers to field a competitive enough team to get the big boosters off his back. Colter even acknowledges that he'd rather do it the NDSU/MSU way. Bobbi isn't outsmarting anyone (except Colter and Tootell), he's just going with Plan B because he failed at Plan A.

I think Colter knows good and well because you see it slip every now and then in his talks. Colter has to pay bills too though.

I do think the Griz can have success with what they’re doing, especially because a decent number of those transfers have multiple years to play. However, their biggest problem is they haven’t recruited OL or DL very well. Actually, I lied. Their biggest problem is within their strength and conditioning program. Every year at pro day their best players test pretty mediocre. Always an exception or two, but lately it’s been bad.

I agree that Colter is largely just feeding his family with these conversations. He knows what's really going on.

I think it's possible that a team can have success with this model but I'm not sure if the griz can, without an All-American PR/KR to bail them out. Their defense is too difficult to learn in a year, and especially in a summer, and this isn't the kind of coaching staff to tailor its style to its roster. Plus, when it comes to QBs Bobbi seems to be Choate without the decision making ability. The only reason they are almost guaranteed a seed every year is their strength of schedule and abundance of home games.

I would be shocked if the griz finish lower than 3rd in the conference this year but I'd also be somewhat shocked if they made it to the quarterfinals (pending bracket structure).

You’re giving Choate way too much credit when it comes to QB’s. His best actual QB was Tucker Rovig.

New rule: whenever someone compares a coach’s quarterback development to Choate they’re exaggerating for effect.

Lol fair enough.

[BelligerentBobcat]

The whole "Bobbi is playing 4D chess" narrative that Colter rolls out there every now and then is really annoying. I don't believe for a second that Bobbi thinks that the way to win a championship is to be wildly different than NDSU and play the portal lottery every year. I think his recruiting team just straight failed for a few years and he got backed into a corner where he had to go shopping for transfers to field a competitive enough team to get the big boosters off his back. Colter even acknowledges that he'd rather do it the NDSU/MSU way. Bobbi isn't outsmarting anyone (except Colter and Tootell), he's just going with Plan B because he failed at Plan A.

Even the griz fan pod delved into this last season. Kyle did a dive into their recruiting classes and the amounts that are still on the team and making a difference by their Junior or Senior seasons in BH 2.0 and it is not good. Of course the rest pushed back on it but the numbers didn't lie. I just don't think their coaching staff is great at evaluating talent or body types and developing those players into D1 athletes. To be honest we get into recruiting back and forth but the number of times both teams go after the same recruit with the same fervor is actually less common than you think. One pertinent example is the rumor was the Cats got the Dowler twins because we offered both but the griz only offered Taco. Seeing Caden get picked as captain and when healthy has been a standout shows they didn't do a good analysis on him. Same with Ortt. Bobby thought he was too slow and still thought it last season, targeted him in the Brawl with bubble screens etc. and had it backfire. He constantly has to go to the portal because the freshman they are bringing in just aren't good enough.

All good points. It's interesting that one of the hallmark's of Bobby 1.0 was his success in recruiting and developing talent.

I think some of it is the difference between a young coach eager to prove himself and advance and a coach who is, more or less, accepted that where he’s at is the best he can do. He is “content”. Same with half that coaching staff. They’re on the downside of their career, sure some of them coached at big programs 20 years ago, but it’s been a steady decline since then.

At the same time, I have to give credit to him. He is unwilling to waver on only getting players who will buy in. He appears to have very little flex, with the exception of his son. In a lot of ways, a very commendable approach. It worked 20 years ago because that’s all anybody did. Probably not the best approach anymore if the goal is to win.