It was success that set the stage for the cruel letdown. Only success in an unusual form - an 11-0 regular season - could have produced such a heart-wrenching end.
It was plenty hard just being a fan at Washington-Grizzly Stadium Saturday. Sitting in the press box with my Griz goggles and rotten angle for Dan Carpenter's last-second field goal attempt, I was sure he split the uprights. My son was sitting directly behind the left upright and swore the kick missed by the length of his shoe. Others tell me if that's the case, my son must wear size 72s.
I asked Griz coach Bobby Hauck the last time he felt so disappointed walking off a football field. He remembered to the day: It was 11 months and two weeks ago when his team lost to UMass in a FCS semifinal.
“We didn't have as many opportunities to win that game as we did this one,” Hauck noted. “We put a lot of time in getting to this point.
“Three, four and five years ago, we had to ham-and-egg it a little bit to get to this point. We've been two years just mowing through folks, week-in and week-out. When you've got it all right there, it's disappointing.”
I was impressed with the way Hauck and his athletes handled their fate. The coach was congratulating Wofford players as he left the field and roughly 20 Griz players stuck around for a prayer session with the Terriers.
The fact this year's Montana team posted a perfect regular season wasn't the only thing that made it special. I'll also remember the Grizzlies' class and cohesiveness on the field.
“Over the last five years you meet some amazing guys and I wouldn't trade anything in the world for it,” Montana senior running back Lex Hilliard said. “Just to leave the field with the group of guys I did ... It hurts, but at the same time it's a good thing I did it with them.”
Senior defensive lineman Kelly Kain echoed Hilliard.
“You meet some of the best guys in the world,” he said. “We all look forward to hanging out with each other and I'll never again have the chance to hang out with 90 of my good friends every day of the week. That's what I'll miss most.”
Feeling the quiet heartbreak of 20,000 shivering fans, I almost wished I could grab hold of the PA microphone to express my admiration. Anyone who tells you it wasn't painfully cold in the stands Saturday is bluffing. Yet there they were, all those maroon-clad enthusiasts, doing everything in their power to help the Griz.
“Tough and classy,” Wofford coach Mike Ayers said of Griz fans. “I've never been to a place where they root so hard against you and then after you play your tails off and you win, they congratulate you.
“I thought that 82,000 at (North) Carolina (State) was a tough crowd, but it doesn't hold a candle to these people. That's what makes it so tough here.”
The image of Hauck walking to the locker room with his hands folded over his head will probably stick with me for a while. Disbelief is the word that comes to mind.
In reviewing the game, it's easy to point to a moment when things went south. The illegal procedure penalty that probably prevented Montana from going up by 10 early in the final period is my favorite, although the holding penalty that stalled the Grizzlies' first drive of the second half was also big.
What ifs are always easy to pick out when you lose by a point.
In reality, the speedy, shifty Terriers are every bit as good as the Griz and things fell their way. The team that takes Wofford down is going to have to put up some points, because I don't see anybody shutting down its oddball triple-option offense.
“The defensive scheme we had in was good,” Kain said. “It's just a tough offense to defend. Just guys going everywhere.”
Rather than dwell on the frustrating part of Saturday's season-ender, I'll try to hold on to the positives. Cole Bergquist played with the poise of a champion at quarterback, and Colt Anderson was an impressive force at safety. They'll make great senior leaders next season.
Win or lose, it's virtually impossible to weaken the bond between the Griz and their supportive fans. I've moved seven times in 22 years as a sportswriter and never seen anything quite like it.
The painted words on a bank window in downtown Missoula Saturday pretty much said it all:
Good luck Griz. We love you.
Sports columnist Bill Speltz can be reached at 523-5255 or bill.speltz@lee.net.
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