Flag from Arie Grey to Tommy Mellott

[BelgradeBobcat]

I remember back in 2000. Kramer's first season as the Bobcat's coach-which would turn out to be a winless season. MSU played the Idaho Vandals. Idaho was an FBS/IA team then, playing their home games in Martin Stadium in Pullman, Wa to get around the NCAA's 30,000 seat requirement at the time. It was a weird vibe pulling up to a pretty empty parking lot in Pullman that night. Somebody handed us a couple of tickets-no charge. There was a small gathering of Bobcat fans there and not many more Idaho fans in the stadium as I recall. I don't think Vandal fans ever got on board with playing home games at Wazzu. Idaho had a pretty good team that year and put it on us. But MSU cobbled together a drive in garbage time and Arie Grey caught a touchdown pass in the dying minutes to make the score 50-something to 7.

Last night the Bobcats played the Vandals in front of a packed house of almost 22,000-no free tickets being handed out. Arie handed the flag to Tommy, and Tommy lead us to a shut out until the last minute when Idaho got a score in garbage time to avoid the shut out. I feel like it was Kramer who got this ball rolling in Bozeman. The 0-11 season was a rough slow start. Arie Grey had a hand in turning it around and he coached up Tommy Mellott to help get where we are now. A nice full-circle moment last night. Idaho's late TD kinda made it seem poetic.

[bobcatfan123]

I remember back in 2000. Kramer's first season as the Bobcat's coach-which would turn out to be a winless season. MSU played the Idaho Vandals. Idaho was an FBS/IA team then, playing their home games in Martin Stadium in Pullman, Wa to get around the NCAA's 30,000 seat requirement at the time. It was a weird vibe pulling up to a pretty empty parking lot in Pullman that night. Somebody handed us a couple of tickets-no charge. There was a small gathering of Bobcat fans there and not many more Idaho fans in the stadium as I recall. I don't think Vandal fans ever got on board with playing home games at Wazzu. Idaho had a pretty good team that year and put it on us. But MSU cobbled together a drive in garbage time and Arie Grey caught a touchdown pass in the dying minutes to make the score 50-something to 7.

Last night the Bobcats played the Vandals in front of a packed house of almost 22,000-no free tickets being handed out. Arie handed the flag to Tommy, and Tommy lead us to a shut out until the last minute when Idaho got a score in garbage time to avoid the shut out. I feel like it was Kramer who got this ball rolling in Bozeman. The 0-11 season was a rough slow start. Arie Grey had a hand in turning it around and he coached up Tommy Mellott to help get where we are now. A nice full-circle moment last night. Idaho's late TD kinda made it seem poetic.

Thanks for sharing. I like your perspective

[MSU01]

I was also at that Idaho game in 2000, one of the stranger games I've ever been to since as you say it was played in a mostly empty stadium. MSU has come a long, long way in the 24 years since then! It was nice to see Coach Kramer at the 1984 team celebration, things ended very badly for him at MSU but I also don't think the program would be where they are now without his contributions to ending the various streaks MSU was on the wrong end of when he was hired.

[AFCAT]

[TomCat88]

This was a very cool moment, and it was especially cool for me. In 2000, the Bobcats/Kramer did some housecleaning (I'm sure some people were displeased with that but it's a story for another day) and ended up with only 4/5 seniors on the team. Grey was one of them. The season was special in its futility but also in the heart that a lot of the players showed as the season progressed. I've always held a soft spot for teams like this and always wonder what their locker room is like after they finally punch through.

Anyway, MSU didn't punch through that year and finished 0-11. The Bobcats played relatively well in a 28-0 loss at UM to finish the year. They also showed well by sending the band which put on a great halftime and showed up the UM band then and all day. During the game the big horn section was on non-stop blast with the USC loop music that it plays after every good play the Trojans make. I was told this was requested by Kramer, but have never verified that. But it started out driving the UM fans in the vicinity nuts until they finally just gave in and began going with it and having some fun, which was really cool to see.

Anyway Part 2: the main thing about this game came at the press conference after the game. Arie Grey spoke after Kramer, and someone asked him a question and he just blew past it and gave a short speech in tribute to the coaches. It was special. The whole room went quiet aside from some initial nervous chuckles from Kramer, which quickly turned into a solemn stare at the table as Grey continued. Grey went on to explain something to the effect of how impressed he was with the coaches and what a special time he had at MSU. I taped it and transcribed it and sent it to MSU's Athletics. I never forgot it and when Grey became coach at Butte, I was constantly checking on how his teams were doing. I was especially happy for him when they won the state title.

Cut to Saturday night when they were doing the flag thing in the EZ. I usually don't pay that much attention to it because it just isn't my style as I see it as being a little sappy and I can be a bit of a curmudgeon. But when I saw who was down there, I continued to watch as Mellott went to the locker room with the flag. I didn't think too much about it after that, but then someone asked Tommy about it in the press conference, and he started saying some of the same things about Grey that Grey said about the MSU coaches so many years ago. It really hit me. Since Mellott was the last interviewee and I'm usually the first person to bolt out of the presser, I noticed he was just a half flight down the stairs with Sean Chambers. I couldn't resist and yelled at him, so I could tell him the story about his coach from 2000 at Cat-Griz. As he always is, Tommy was respectful and listened politely to my story. He was actually a little enthralled if I may say so and asked for the video of it to which I had to smile and tell him that things have changed a bit and there's likely not a video, but that I did tape record and transcribe it, however, that I wasn't sure where I put it. I told him I'd look for it and he was very interested. I was told by the MSU SID that he remembers me sending him the transcription and that it's likely in Grey's file. Waiting to hear back.

That's where my little story sits, but I'll update if I/someone tracks it down. Just thought some of you might find it interesting. Cheers!

[AFCAT]

I really liked Cole Sain receiving the flag from his dad two Saturdays ago. That was a cool exchange from father to son and must have been special for them. The one flag handoff that really got to me was from Paul Dennehy to Tommy back in 2022. This photo of Paul has so much meaning behind it. Paul is from Butte and QB'd the 1976 team to the National championship. I can just imagine what Paul was thinking in this photo and the memories and pride that must have been going through his mind at that moment.

[seataccat]

I really liked Cole Sain receiving the flag from his dad two Saturdays ago. That was a cool exchange from father to son and must have been special for them. The one flag handoff that really got to me was from Paul Dennehy to Tommy back in 2022. This photo of Paul has so much meaning behind it. Paul is from Butte and QB'd the 1976 team to the National championship. I can just imagine what Paul was thinking in this photo and the memories and pride that must have been going through his mind at that moment.

What a great shot of Paul Dennehy. That 76 team had to have been extraordinary. In those days all of what is now FCS was Div II and a good share of the FBS teams. It was an amazing run for sure.
Also we are really lucky to have Cole Sain. He started off as a griz. Considering that his father was such a great player for the cats, it was good that he came around to the right team.

[AFCAT]