Cat-Griz divides Havre homes and offices

When it comes to college football in the state of Montana, it doesn’t get any bigger than the Montana Grizzlies and the Montana State Bobcats.

The Brawl of the Wild is one of the greatest rivalries in college football today. Not only are the two fan bases passionate, both in the love of their team, but as well as the hated for the other, but both teams are also good. And each will have plenty to play for when the two nationally ranked FCS teams meet inside Washington-Grizzly Stadium in Missoula Saturday.

While there are playoff berths and a possible share of the Big Sky Championship on the line, when it comes to fans of the Cats and the Griz, the biggest thing on the line Saturday is bragging rights.

This is the one weekend, when families, co-workers, husbands and wives are split, divided by their loyalties. That passion and intense fandom is one of the reasons this rivalry is so heated and meaningful to the schools, players and the fans.

In order to gauge the feeling of the fans before the 114th meeting between Montana and Montana State, the Havre Daily News caught up with some local followers of each team leading up to Saturday’s game.

Shawn Huse

Talk about having your loyalties divided. Huse, the head coach of the Montana State University-Northern men’s basketball team knows as much about that as anyone, thanks to his strong ties to both teams.

His brother, Brad Huse, was the head basketball coach for Montana State from 2006-2014, while his father, Dick Huse, and his brother, Thad Huse, both played football for the Grizzlies.

“It’s funny when people talk to me about that, they don’t realize that yeah my brother Brad was the coach at Montana State but my Dad and my other brother both played football for Montana,” Shawn Huse said. “So, I grew up a huge Grizzly fan and I have pretty much stayed that way ever since.”

So while Huse said that blood is thicker than water and he always rooted for his brother’s team to beat the Griz in basketball, his loyalty to Montana football has never wavered.

“I think the Bobcats might have the edge,” Huse said. “But, being in Missoula and all that considered, I think the Griz will win.”

Prediction: Griz 34, Cats 31

Darci Heninger

Heninger, who is the Havre High cross country coach, knows how this game can pit families against each other. She loves the Bobcats but her husband Nick Heninger and his brothers all love the Griz, which can cause some tension during the Cat-Griz game.

“I used to live in Bozeman for four years before I moved here, so that’s why I am a Cats fan,” Heninger said. “We (her husband, Nick, and herself) try to watch the games together and then we give each other a hard time after — he’s preparing for that.

“I think it’s going to be 24-17 Cats,” She added. “That number just popped into my head. The Cats have had a little better year than the Grizzlies and I just think they will end up winning.”

Prediction: Cats 24, Griz 17

Jeff Miller

Miller, who is an individual state champion in tennis and also plays golf and basketball for Havre High, knows first-hand of the Heninger’s divided house on the day of the Cat-Griz game. That is because he is Nick’s younger brother and the brother-in-law of Darci Heninger.

Miller has been a lifelong Griz fan after following the lead of his brothers, but he was also influenced by Marc Mariani, the former Blue Pony, who became an All-American playing for Montana.

“With all my brothers liking the Griz and following Marc, it just kind of grew on me,” Miller said. “I don’t know what my brother was thinking (marrying a Cats fan). She gives it to us pretty good when the Cats win but I give her all of it when the Griz do.”

With bragging rights on the line and the Bobcats likely missing their starting quarterback, Dakota Prukop, due to injury, Miller feels confident that the Griz will pull off the win.

“I think the Grizzlies’ defense is a lot stronger,” Miller said. “And with (Prukop) out, I don’t think he is supposed to play, that will hurt them quite a bit.

Prediction: Griz 24, Cats 13

Kip Lewis

When it comes to Bobcat fans, you won’t find many that are more devoted than Havre High Vice Principal Kip Lewis.

Lewis, who graduated with two degrees from Montana State, along with his brother, his wife, his father and father-in-law, who are all MSU grads, said his love for the Bobcats simply runs in the family.

“It’s bred into me,” Lewis said. “I was born and raised in Hamilton but my Dad wrestled for the Bobcats, so I never liked the Grizzlies, not a chance.”

Lewis believes that if the Bobcats can get healthy and get all their key players back for Saturday’s tilt, they will have the upper hand.

“If the Cats have their four main players back that were out a week ago, I think they will be fine,” Lewis said. “The Cats haven’t been firing on all cylinders this season, and it’s always tough to win in Missoula, but I think if all our guys are back, we will win.”

Prediction: Cats 42, Griz 24

Jase Stokes

Stokes, who plays running back and linebacker for the Blue Ponies, knows a thing or two about football. And after rushing for 120 yards and six touchdowns against Miles City in the Class A playoffs, he could potentially garner some interest from either team a few years down the road. For now, he is an avid Griz fan and is looking for UM to pull of the win Saturday and earn a berth in the FCS playoffs.

“My mom and dad went there for college, so I have just kind of always liked the Griz because of them,” Stokes said. “I think with the game being in Missoula, the Griz will win. It’s pretty much a playoff game, if they win they will get in the playoffs, if they lose they won’t.”

Prediction: Griz 34, Cats 27

Dr. Gerald Olsen

Dr. Olsen might be one of the few fans that actually does consider himself a follower of the both the Griz and the Cats, just not when they play each other.

Olsen, who graduated from MSU, had two sons graduate from MSU and two daughters graduate from Montana, knows as well as anybody about divided families. He is also one of the rare Bobcat fans that is a season ticket holder for Montana football.

“A lot of people have the saying that they have two favorite teams, the Grizzlies and whoever the Cats play, or vice versa,” Olsen said. “But I am one of the odd ones that always cheers for the Montana teams, except when they play each other.

“I go to a lot of Grizzly games,” He added. “I actually go to more Grizzly games than Bobcat games, but when I go to the Bobcat-Grizzly game, I wear my Bobcat hat and coat in the middle of the Grizzly cheering section.”

Olsen also has a fun office tradition surrounding the game. On the desk when people walk into his office in downtown Havre are the figurines of the Bobcats mascot Champ and Monte, the mascot for Montana. Well, it used to be Monte, now it has been replaced by an owl that represents Monte, but the point is still the same.

The two figurines are placed on the desk each week when the Bobcats and the Grizzlies compete and the winning team’s mascot gets to stay on the desk for the entire next week if their team wins. Showing that not only houses are divided but offices, too.

Prediction: Cats 27, Griz 17

Kim Larson and Amy

Ferguson

Larson and Ferguson are the perfect example of a work place that is divided by their respective loyalties to the Cats and the Griz, as they work side-by-side at Hill County Health Department.

Larson, who went to MSU and was a track star, throwing the javelin for the Bobcats, comes from a long line of Bobcats, while Ferguson said she has always been a follower of the Griz.

“We definitely play some pranks on each other,” Ferguson said. “You should have seen my desk like a week ago, (Kim) plastered my desk with Bobcat stuff.”

While both Ferguson and Larson said their office rivalry is all about fun, they each stuck with their team when it came to their predictions.

“I think it’s going to be a close game but the Griz have a good defense, so I think they will win,” Ferguson said.

“I also think it will be a good game,” Larson said. “I just hope it will be a little better game for the Bobcats.”

Ferguson's prediction: Griz 34, Cats 31

Larson's prediction: Cats 34, Griz 27.