By CHRIS WALTERSKIRCHEN
Here is a little trivia that should bring a smile to the face of Grizzly Football Nation…
Might Montana face Georgia Southernin the FCS title game next January? Only once previously have the teams that lost in the FCS semi-finals one year met the following season in the Championship game. In the 1994 national semifinals, Montana and Marshall lost out but 53 weeks later they were facing off for the national title, and we all remember Andy Larson’skick in that ’95 title game.
David Doernenhelped coach the Griz to the 2001 FCS title as an assistant to Joe Glenn, now Doeren is looking to get a post-season win as a head coach. Doeren has his Northern Illinois Huskiesin the GoDaddy.com Bowl this Sunday. Other than Joe Glenn, no former Grizzly head or assistant football coach has led a Division I team to a Bowl win in modern times.
Maybe someone from the coaching staffs of North Dakota Stateor Sam Houston Statehas given Montana StateBobcat coach Rob Asha call for some advice heading into Saturday’s FCS title game. The Bison and Bearkats have eliminated MSU from the play-offs the past two seasons.
For a number of teams playing in the opening weekend of the NFL play-offs it has been awhile since they claimed a play-off victory. The Detroit Lionsare looking for their first play-off win in 20 years, prior to their January 1992 win over Dallas the Lions had suffered 34 years without a play-off win. The Cincinnati Bengalshaven’t won in the play-offs in 21 years and haven’t won a post-season game away from home in the franchise’s 44 year history.
It has been 13 years since John Elwayretired from the Denver Broncosand his old team has won just once play-off game since 1999, a home win over New England6 years ago. The Giants won a Super Bowl four years ago, but it has been 11 seasons since they won a play-off game on their home field.
Actress Rooney Marais among the leading contenders for major acting awards for her performance in “ The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo,” but she will be keeping on her eye on the NFL play-offs as well. Mara is the great-granddaughter of the founder of the Pittsburgh Steelerson her mother’s side and the New York Giantson her father’s side. Mara worked two summers for the Giants as a teenager.
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Chris Walterskirchenhas been an observer of Montana sports for nearly half a century. A Kalispell native, Chris has worked in various capacities for professional and college sports organization of at various times: ranging from announcing and statistical work to the concessions and even a stint as a costumed mascot.
Chris has academic degrees in communications and elementary education. His style of sports trivia involves more than just who won and who lost, but also focuses on the obscure or human side of sports. In this blog you will learn things like the Grizzly football team has won 210 games over the 19 seasons since they have had Monte as their mascot or that UNLV is the only school that both the Griz and Lady Griz have both faced in the NCAA basketball tournament
When not following sports Chris enjoys taking care of animals of all kinds (a peacock rescue?) and reading to pre-schoolers.
