(Editor’s note: Montana State University athletics release)
BOZEMAN — Jeff Choate reached into Montana State’s football past on Wednesday to fill the final remaining hole on his 2019 coaching staff, bringing former all-America linebacker Bobby Daly back to his alma mater. The move is pending background check.
One of Montana State’s all-time leading tacklers (382, fourth in school history), Daly takes over linebacker and assistant head coach duties on the MSU coaching staff. The Helena Capital product was first team all-Big Sky and first team all-America in 2007 as a junior, and second team all-Big Sky and honorable mention all-America in 2008. He was voted team captain as a senior, sharing that distinction with his father J. and brother Brad, and led the Big Sky in tackles in 2006.
Choate said Daly fits the criteria he laid out for that staff position. “Bobby is a high-energy coach with a great reputation as a recruiter and strong ties to the state of Montana and our program,” he said. “He has done a great job of developing linebackers at the University of Idaho, and I’m very excited that he is joining our coaching staff.”
Daly returns to Montana State after a successful six-year career at Idaho, rising from graduate assistant (2013-15) to Director of Operations (2016), to linebackers coach in 2017-18. He also coached the defensive line in the Vandals’ 2016 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl victory. In Idaho’s first season back in the Big Sky last fall, Daly coached first team all-Big Sky linebacker Kaden Elliss and third team selection Christian Elliss. Before beginning his coaching career, Daly played with the Billings Outlaws Indoor Football League team for three seasons (2009-11).
While Daly is steeped in the Bobcat tradition, he also carries strong football bloodlines. His father J. was a Helena Capital assistant coach during Bobby Daly’s childhood, and starred for the Cats in the 1970s. His brother Brad, a Bobcat defensive end, earned the 2013 Buck Buchanan Award as the top defensive player in the FCS. All three earned all-Big Sky and all-America honors in the blue and gold.
