DILLON, Mont. – In a continued effort to showcase Montana Western current and former student-athletes as more than just a number on a jersey, UMW Athletics continues on with its regular web series titled "Off the Leash". You can view the collections of stories as they are released by clicking here.
NAIA Football Playoffs: The Very First Time! - by UMW alumni Wally Feldt
The 2023 Montana Western football regular season is over but the season is not. The Bulldogs won their first outright conference title in 28 years (1995) and will host their first playoff game in 29 years, almost 29 years exactly on Saturday, Nov. 25 against College of Idaho.
In 1994, it was Western Montana College (WMC). On Nov. 6, the Bulldogs wrapped up an unbeaten Frontier Conference title with a 33-22 home victory over Montana Tech. Western finished the regular season with a 7-2 overall mark and a perfect 6-0 conference record.
The Bulldogs were one of eight teams playoff bound, but would be probably taking their high-powered football show on the road or so the Bulldogs thought. At that time, Western had not submitted a bid to host a first-round playoff game.
The wait now would be to see who the Bulldogs would play and where they would go for their first round playoff game. Based on rankings, the Bulldog players speculated that Western would probably travel east and play at Morehead State (Minn.).
In 1994, NAIA football was divided into two divisions. The Frontier Conference was playing their first season as an NAIA, Division I school.
The 1994 NAIA playoff protocol dictated that a team needed to be ranked in the top 12 to qualify for the playoffs. There was no automatic bid as a conference champion but WMC was assured a place in the playoffs due to their No. 7 ranking.
There was no Sunday selection show that year. It was just a patience-testing, waiting game. Monday came and went without an NAIA playoff announcement. By Friday, Nov. 11 there was still no word of a playoff opponent for the Bulldogs, but there was good news.
Tom Yahraes, assistant to Chancellor Sheila Stearns, announced that WMC would be submitting a playoff hosting bid. That bid would include a guarantee to the schools that would travel to Dillon and information concerning lodging and meals. The NAIA would make the official announcement on Sunday, Nov. 13.
Head Bulldog football coach Bob Beers made the official announcement at the second annual fall sports banquet Sunday afternoon.
"I would like to announce we will play Glenville State College of West Virginia on Saturday, Nov. 18 in the first round of the NAIA Playoffs," Beers said.
After a long pause, Beers continued.
"And we will play them here in Dillon at Vigilante Field!"
The Glenville State College Pioneers, coached by Rich Rodriguez, were ranked second in the NAIA with an 8-2 record. In an interview later in his career, when asked where the coldest place he had ever coached a football game. Rodriguez replied, "In Dillon, Mont!"
Glenville State boasted an equally high-powered offense that was a mirror image of the Bulldogs. That Pioneer offense featured the NAIA's top receiver in Chris George, who, going into the game, had just set a single-season receiving record of 311 catches.
The Pioneers were familiar with the Frontier. In 1993, they made the trip to Helena, Mont. where they beat Carroll College 41-21 in the first round of the playoffs. Glenville went on to lose to East Central Oklahoma in the national championship game.
Current Bulldog coach Ryan Nourse was a wide receiver on that 1994 Bulldog team.
"The whole week prior to the game was very, very cold," Nourse remembered. "We would warm up in the arena, hop in our vehicles and drive to the practice field. We went through our routine as quick as possible. The cold didn't matter to us either in practice or during the game. We were all caught up in the excitement of playing and playing against a team that was the favorite, at least on paper!"
The game kicked off on an icy, cold Saturday afternoon. Temperatures were in the low teens, the winds were howling and the field was icy slick.
It didn't get warmer as the game continued, it seemed to get colder. Pretty good reasons why Rich Rodriguez had such chilly memories of Dillon, Mont. The press box was really a big wooden box on four wooden beams. The window was plexiglass and was suppose to slide open or close. On that Saturday afternoon, it chose to remain open.
The Pioneer team had invaded downtown Dillon the morning of the game. Their mission was to find warm clothes. Items such as long underwear quickly sold out at Eliels Department store.
There were rumors of the fine tuning of the cleats of the Bulldog footwear. Former players will neither confirm nor deny that cleat-tweaking actually happened. After all, it's been 29 years!
Bob Beers summed up playing a game in such adverse conditions to Dillon Tribune reporter J.P. Plutt.
"Both teams have to step onto the same surface," Beers said. "Usually it doesn't matter, the team that plays best In given circumstance is going to win the football game. It comes down to not who's the best team, not field conditions, it comes down to whoever executes and plays best."
Fast forward to 2023, Bob Beers has a lot memories from that game but one, not just winning, but one that stands out.
"Glenville State underestimated our talent level and the players we had on the team," Beers said. "They had come to Helena the year before and beat Carroll, and beat them easily. They were expecting that same degree of talent when they faced Carroll. They underestimated us and I know that for a fact, because they didn't bid on the first round, but did on the second round. They were already planning on hosting a second-round game even before they played us."
Bobby Beers was a Bulldog wide receiver and had a monster game with 11 catches for 148 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
"We owe Tom Yahraes a lot," Beers said. "The relationship he developed with my Dad and that relationship brought the campus and town together and how they supported us not just in the playoffs but all season long. It takes a lot of people behind the scenes of a game to make it successful. The support we got from Dillon and from the campus was amazing and something I will never forget."
Nick Howlett, a Bulldog running back on the 94' team echoed Bobby Beers thoughts on that magical weekend.
"There are so many memories from that weekend," Howlett said. "It is hard to focus on just one. What I remember from that time is how great the community support was. And how that place was packed, a raucous crowd and the Dillon community was so excited we had a good football team and actually had the opportunity to host a playoff game."
In his post game story, Plutt's opening line said it best.
"It was a game that lived up to it's billing, a wild shootout in Western Montana!"
Western's sophomore quarterback Jason Truman had himself a monster game. He was 33 of 55 passing for 401 yards, four touchdowns, no interceptions. He added 70 yards on the ground and a touchdown.
Truman and Howlett's on field relationship was unique and memorable to not just them but the rest of the team.
"He liked to change my blocking assignments after we broke the huddle," Howlett added. "I remember one time in particular that I'm glad he did. Truman's saw matchups that no one else saw and he was right every time."
One of those changes in blocking assignments happened in the playoff game against Glenville State. Leading only 28-23 entering the fourth quarter, the Bulldogs were facing a fourth-and-20 situation on the Glenville State 28-yard line. At that time, momentum wore a white Glenville State jersey. The Bulldogs needed to convert and score, and not a field goal.
"Nick and I always lined up next to each other," Truman said. "He was football smart and saw the field very well and we would compare notes. But he didn't always agree with his blocking assignments. He didn't agree on one play and I think it is the one you are talking about. I changed his assignment and he said no and then yes. I told him block that guy and I'll make this guy look silly."
The end result was a 25-yard strike to Bobby Beers for the first down. Two plays later, Paul Snow scored from one-yard out.
When the dust or ice chips settled, the seventh-ranked Western Montana College Bulldogs made their debut in the NAIA football playoffs with a 48-38 victory over the No. 2 team in the NAIA. What a game it was! Nine-hundred sixty-nine yards in total offense between the two teams and a total of 86 points scored.
Bulldog quarterback Truman was the game's offensive MVP and Bulldog safety Rich Ferris was named the defensive MVP. Ferris returned a second quarter interception 20 yards for a touchdown.
Western now advanced to the semi-final round of the playoffs to face Arkansas Pine-Bluff. The Bulldogs made more history in that game, but that's another story!
Coach Beers and many of the players from the 1994 team have since entered the Bulldog Hall of Fame with solo inductions. The team was inducted into the Bulldog Athletic Hall of Fame in 2007.
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