Griz picked to win Big Sky title race by coaches and media

The Montana Grizzlies have been picked by the coaches and media of the Big Sky to win the program's first conference championship since 2009, with the league announcing the results of its preseason polls at the annual football kickoff event in Spokane on Monday.

Coming off back-to-back 10-win seasons and FCS quarterfinal appearances, the Griz were picked No. 1 in both preseason prognostications.

"I believe we have a really good football team, and I'm pleased to see other coaches and the media agree with that assessment," said UM head coach Bobby Hauck.

"It's nice to have that reinforcement, but now we have to go execute our plan to win."

In tight voting, only three points separated the top three teams in the coaches' poll, while only one first-place vote separated the top two teams in the media poll.

Montana earned 111 total points and three first-place votes to slot in at No. 1 in the coaches' poll, with Sacramento State earning 110 total points on four first-place votes to come in second and Montana State totaling five first-place votes but only 109 total points to come in third.

In the media poll, the Griz earned 14 first-place votes and 356 points, followed closely by Montana State with 13 votes for first and 352 points. The Hornets were close behind in third with 335 points and four first-place votes.

Weber State came in fourth in both polls, followed closely by UC Davis in fifth, Eastern Washington in sixth, and Northern Arizona in seventh.

Montana returns 18 starters from the 2021 FCS quarterfinal squad, nine on offense and nine on defense, with 38 total returning lettermen. The Griz also return seven All-Big Sky performers, including Newcomer of the Year and unanimous All-American cornerback Justin Ford. Buck Buchanan Award finalist linebacker Patrick O'Connell also returns for his senior campaign.

Offensively, Montana returns 75% of its rushing production from, not just the last season, but the previous three seasons, dating back to a 2019 campaign that saw Marcus Knight break school records for scoring and cross the 1,000-yard barrier.

In fact, the team's top three individual rushers from the last three years are each set to return in 2022 as well. Led by Knight, the UM running back room also returns 2021's leading rusher Xavier Harris, Nick Ostmo, and Isiah Childs, with support from Malik Flowers and Junior Bergen.

Defensively, the Griz return seven of 2021's 10 top tacklers, who, together, accounted for 50% of UM's total tackle production last year.

Despite the returning experience, Montana will field an overall young team in 2022. Just 28 of the team's current 100 players on the roster check in as upperclassmen this year, meaning 72 enter the season listed as freshman or sophomores, more than 61 percent of the roster.

Set to enter his fourth season since returning to coach the Grizzlies in 2018, Hauck won seven-straight Big Sky championships in his first tenure at UM from 2003-2009. This is the first time the Griz have been picked to win the league since his return to Missoula.

With an overall record of 108-29 and 63-14 in conference play in his ten years at UM, Hauck is the Grizzlies' winningest coach of all time. He is also closing in on becoming the all-time winningest coach in Big Sky Conference history.

He needs just 16 more career wins to pass former NAU head coach and UM assistant Jerome Souers' Big Sky record of 123 wins. However, he only needs four more wins to pass Nevada's Chris Ault's total of 111 to move into second place on the league's win table.

In conference play, Hauck's career total of 63 wins ties him in fourth place with Mike Kramer, needing six more wins to pass Ault's Big Sky total of 68, 12 more to pass Tim Walsh's total of 74, and 24 more to pass Souers' total of 85.

Montana has won 18 Big Sky Championships since its inception in 1963 – the most of any team in the league – and have had 13 runner-up seasons. The Griz have also totaled an FCS record 25 playoff appearances dating back to 1982.

Montana is scheduled to open fall camp in the first week of August.

Big Sky Coaches Poll

No.	School (1st) - Points
1	Montana (3) - 111
2	Sacramento State (4) - 110
3	Montana State (5) - 109
4	Weber State - 84
5	UC Davis - 82
6	Eastern Washington - 76
7	Northern Arizona - 62
8	Idaho - 45
9	Portland State - 42
10	Cal Poly - 33
11	Idaho State - 19
12	Northern Colorado – 19

Media Poll

No.	School (1st) - Points
1	Montana (14) - 356
2	Montana State (13) - 352
3	Sacramento State (4) - 335
4	Weber State - 261
5	UC Davis (1) - 255
6	Eastern Washington - 236
7	Northern Arizona - 191
8	Portland State - 146
9	Idaho - 142
10	Cal Poly - 85
11	Northern Colorado - 71
12	Idaho State - 66

University of Montana Athletics