Photo by: Bobcat Creative Services
GAME #1: Bobcats Open Title Defense at Big Sky Newcomer Utah Tech on Saturday
8/27/2026 2:32:00 PM | Football
Montana State defends a national championship for the first time in 41 years
BOZEMAN, Mont. (Aug. 25, 2026) – Montana State enters a new reality and a new season simultaneously on Saturday night, when the reigning FCS Champion Bobcats visit Utah Tech for the Trailblazers' first-ever game as a Big Sky Conference member. Kickoff is 8 pm at Greater Zion Stadium.
MSU's first season defending a national championship since 1985 opens with a road game at night in southern-most Utah, where the expected temperature at kickoff is a just below 100 degrees. None of those things, though, concern Bobcat head coach Brent Vigen. "They have good players, they have good coaches, and they're building that thing the right way," he said. "That's the challenge."
Senior safety Caden Dowler said the unique situation doesn't factor into his team's focus. "We're looking at each game as its own," he said. "When we fly around and we play our brand of football we know we can hang in there with anyone in the country. We prepare the same whether it's this week or week 12."
Utah Tech finished 2-10 in 2025, with wins over Northern Iowa and North Alabama. But the Trailblazers lost by one touchdown to both UC Davis and Northern Arizona, nationally-ranked Big Sky schools, and were competitive in most of the other losses. Vigen said that the progress made by Lance Anderson and his coaching staff is evident.
"Coach Anderson has a great track record, in his time at Stanford they had a great run, and his mindset is to continue to grow this thing," Vigen said. "He's a defensive coach, (his plan is to) do it the right way as far as combining a great defense with the ability to do enough on offense. These last couple of years they've given some people a real tough time."
The Bobcats played an August game at Utah Tech in 2024, coming away with a hard-fought 31-7 win. Both offenses struggled in the first half, with Adam Jones and Tommy Mellott both scoring touchdowns to give MSU a 14-0 halftime lead. The Cats held Utah Tech to six first downs and 176 total yards in the win. MSU also beat the Trailblazers in 2023.
"I remember it was hot," Caden Dowler said previous trip to St. George.
Vigen agreed. "Playing in St. George is a challenge," he said. "(It was) 95 degrees at kickoff, 103 or whatever during the day, that is a challenge. The good thing is a lot of our guys played there two years ago and have a sense for what that is about. Having played them a couple times in previous years is helpful. This is a conference game, so this is a unique situation where you start out in week zero with a conference game."
The Bobcats endured an off-season like none in program history, returning from Nashville, Tennessee in early January with a national title in tow and from Washington, D.C. after a trip to the White House the day before preseason camp began in late July. Four weeks later, the team flies to St. George to open a new season.
"We've had a good camp, three-plus weeks now, and I feel like our team continues to grow in the right direction," Vigen said. "But ultimately it's the Saturdays, and one Friday, that will determine where we're at. Getting the chance to see guys out in a game situation is what's next for us, and I'm excited about what this team has to prove, has in front of it."
Many familiar names dot Montana State's depth chart entering 2026. Offensively, the All-America pass-and-catch tandem of quarterback Justin Lamson and receiver Taco Dowler, who combined on some of the biggest plays in Bobcat football history in the team's two most recent games, and they operate with running back Adam Jones in the backfield and behind an offensive line featuring returning All-Americas Titan Fleischmann and Braden Zimmer and tackle and all-league guard Burke Mastel.
Caden Dowler, the league's reigning defensive player of the year, returns to anchor the defense from his safety position. In fact, all three safeties and the top four linebackers return, along with part-time starting cornerback Takhari Carr. While the Cats lost all four defensive linemen, the four projected starters each return with considerable experience, having been rotational players a season ago.
Vigen said that much of the recent personnel work centered on calculating the team's top reserves in each position group. "We still have some depth to sort out," he said, "not necessarily starting positions but depth in general. I feel like we're a fairly deep team, but that will have to play out over the next couple of weeks in particular."
Saturday's season opener at Greater Zion Stadium airs around Montana on The Spot-MTN (check local listings), and streams on ESPN+.
#GoCatsGo
MSU's first season defending a national championship since 1985 opens with a road game at night in southern-most Utah, where the expected temperature at kickoff is a just below 100 degrees. None of those things, though, concern Bobcat head coach Brent Vigen. "They have good players, they have good coaches, and they're building that thing the right way," he said. "That's the challenge."
Senior safety Caden Dowler said the unique situation doesn't factor into his team's focus. "We're looking at each game as its own," he said. "When we fly around and we play our brand of football we know we can hang in there with anyone in the country. We prepare the same whether it's this week or week 12."
Utah Tech finished 2-10 in 2025, with wins over Northern Iowa and North Alabama. But the Trailblazers lost by one touchdown to both UC Davis and Northern Arizona, nationally-ranked Big Sky schools, and were competitive in most of the other losses. Vigen said that the progress made by Lance Anderson and his coaching staff is evident.
"Coach Anderson has a great track record, in his time at Stanford they had a great run, and his mindset is to continue to grow this thing," Vigen said. "He's a defensive coach, (his plan is to) do it the right way as far as combining a great defense with the ability to do enough on offense. These last couple of years they've given some people a real tough time."
The Bobcats played an August game at Utah Tech in 2024, coming away with a hard-fought 31-7 win. Both offenses struggled in the first half, with Adam Jones and Tommy Mellott both scoring touchdowns to give MSU a 14-0 halftime lead. The Cats held Utah Tech to six first downs and 176 total yards in the win. MSU also beat the Trailblazers in 2023.
"I remember it was hot," Caden Dowler said previous trip to St. George.
Vigen agreed. "Playing in St. George is a challenge," he said. "(It was) 95 degrees at kickoff, 103 or whatever during the day, that is a challenge. The good thing is a lot of our guys played there two years ago and have a sense for what that is about. Having played them a couple times in previous years is helpful. This is a conference game, so this is a unique situation where you start out in week zero with a conference game."
The Bobcats endured an off-season like none in program history, returning from Nashville, Tennessee in early January with a national title in tow and from Washington, D.C. after a trip to the White House the day before preseason camp began in late July. Four weeks later, the team flies to St. George to open a new season.
"We've had a good camp, three-plus weeks now, and I feel like our team continues to grow in the right direction," Vigen said. "But ultimately it's the Saturdays, and one Friday, that will determine where we're at. Getting the chance to see guys out in a game situation is what's next for us, and I'm excited about what this team has to prove, has in front of it."
Many familiar names dot Montana State's depth chart entering 2026. Offensively, the All-America pass-and-catch tandem of quarterback Justin Lamson and receiver Taco Dowler, who combined on some of the biggest plays in Bobcat football history in the team's two most recent games, and they operate with running back Adam Jones in the backfield and behind an offensive line featuring returning All-Americas Titan Fleischmann and Braden Zimmer and tackle and all-league guard Burke Mastel.
Caden Dowler, the league's reigning defensive player of the year, returns to anchor the defense from his safety position. In fact, all three safeties and the top four linebackers return, along with part-time starting cornerback Takhari Carr. While the Cats lost all four defensive linemen, the four projected starters each return with considerable experience, having been rotational players a season ago.
Vigen said that much of the recent personnel work centered on calculating the team's top reserves in each position group. "We still have some depth to sort out," he said, "not necessarily starting positions but depth in general. I feel like we're a fairly deep team, but that will have to play out over the next couple of weeks in particular."
Saturday's season opener at Greater Zion Stadium airs around Montana on The Spot-MTN (check local listings), and streams on ESPN+.
#GoCatsGo
Players Mentioned
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