MISSOULA – Montana Grizzly football doesn’t take the field this week, and that’s probably a good thing. Montana’s bye comes at a time when the team needed a break.
Two straight poor performances have led to two straight losses. A Big Sky Conference championship is all but out of the question now, and Bobby Hauck’s club will need to make a run to earn a playoff spot.
With plenty of reasons to hang their heads, the young Grizzlies are instead spending this time off building confidence.
“Saturday was a tough one, no doubt, but our spirits are still up,” said wide receiver Samori Toure when asked about last week’s loss at North Dakota. “Ever since we got here we’re taught to be resilient. We’re taught to be prideful of being Montana. And a couple losses aren’t going to change that.”
“You’ve got to learn from mistakes and move on,” added linebacker Dante Olson. “We still have four games. Going to take this next one, UC Davis, and try to be 1-0. You know, obviously disappointed, but we can’t be focused on the fact of being disappointed. We have to be focused on where we can improve.”
The bye week also gives a few banged-up Grizzlies a chance to heal up for the stretch run, and Montana coaches have traveled far and wide on the recruiting trail.
