Montana Grizzlies finalize kick times, TV details 2024 football schedule

(Editor's note: Montana Athletics news release.)

SPOKANE, Wash. — Kickoff times and broadcast details for the coming Montana Grizzly football season were announced by the Big Sky Conference on Saturday.

For the first time in over a decade the majority of Montana’s games — both home and away, in conference and out — will be televised by a single broadcaster with Scripps Sports and the Montana Television Network securing nearly all of UM’s broadcast rights.

The only game not available on statewide MTN stations this year will be available nationwide, with the UC Davis game on Nov. 9 set to be aired to millions of viewers on ESPN2 from Missoula.

The Griz vs. Aggies game will mark Montana’s first regular season home game broadcast on ESPN2 since the Big Sky partnered with “The Worldwide Leader in Sports” in 2021, and the first on ESPN linear networks since 2015 when the Griz beat NDSU in Missoula.

UM vs. UC Davis will be a “Big Sky After Dark” contest, with kickoff from Washington-Grizzly Stadium set for 8:15 p.m. Montana will have two regular season night games at home this year, with the season opener against Missouri State set to kick at 7 p.m.

UM’s remaining five home games will kick off in more traditional time slots, with Morehead State, Western Carolina, Weber State, and Portland State all starting at 1 p.m., and the homecoming game against Northern Arizona Starting at 2 p.m.

On the road, the Griz will kick off from North Dakota at 5 p.m. Mountain, with MidCo Sports producing a broadcast that will be picked up by MTN.

Other road kickoff times include a 6 p.m. (MT) start at Eastern Washington on Sept. 28, a 1 p.m. start at Northern Colorado on Oct. 26, 3 p.m. (MT) at Cal Poly on Nov. 2, and noon at Montana State on Nov. 23 — all available to watch on MTN stations.

Montana Television Network stations owned by Scripps include KPAX in Missoula, KTVQ in Billings, KXLF in Butte, KBZK in Bozeman, KRTV in Great Falls, and KXLH in Helena. Games not shown on CBS stations across the state will be available at mtnmontana.com, a new secondary network available over the air and via DirecTV across the state.

Each MTN game will also be available to stream live nationwide and without blackout on ESPN+.

Last year’s Brawl of the Wild game against Montana State also drew an extraordinary number of viewers to the Montana Television Network, with more than four times more in-state viewers watching the Griz beat the Cats than watched the College Football Playoff national championship.

Scripps-owned CBS stations across the state averaged a 35.7 household rating, making Griz/Cat the highest-rated college football game of the year in Big Sky country by far.

Montana will play seven regular season home games in 2024 for the first time since 2007 and for just the fifth time in program history.

2024 Montana Football Schedule

(All times Mountain)