Sports on The Bozeman Daily Bee

Bobcats offensive line holds, mostly, in first full-pad scrimmage

Tue, 04 Aug 2026 17:38:39 +0000

The Montana State Bobcats strapped on full pads for the first time this fall Saturday at Bobcat Stadium, and if you ask Randy Pflug — and nobody did, but he’ll tell you anyway — the whole season lives or dies right there in the trench.

Head coach Brent Vigen watched from the sideline with a clipboard and the expression of a man who has seen seventeen Augembers and knows the seventeenth feels exactly like the first. “We’re evaluating communication up front,” Vigen said. “The schemes don’t matter if the five don’t move as one.”

Championship softball game pits ski bros against ranchers at former hay field

Tue, 04 Aug 2026 14:14:10 +0000

The Gallatin Valley Rec League championship took place Tuesday at the Four Corners complex, where the infield dirt still smells like alfalfa if you get low enough. The Belgrade Beef, a roster of ranch hands and feed store managers, faced the Bridger Bowl Bombers, who list their occupations as ‘ski patrol,’ ‘barista,’ and ‘gear rep’ on the lineup card.

Beef starting pitcher Dale Haskins threw 82 pitches in the first inning, three of them strikes. ‘He works the corners like he works the fence line,’ said third baseman Troy McAllister, wiping pine tar onto his jeans. ‘Slow and deliberate. The umpire’s zone is just a suggestion.’

Thursday night league decided by who remembered the snacks

Sun, 02 Aug 2026 12:58:28 +0000

The Bozeman Co-Ed Softball League championship came down to the bottom of the seventh at the Regional Park complex Thursday night, where the Bleacher Creatures held off the Free Agents 11-10 on a walk-off grounder that the shortstop decided not to charge.

“The line held,” said Randy Pflug from his usual spot behind the backstop, scorebook open on his knee. “That’s the game right there. The line held, and the other team’s line didn’t.”

Bobcats open fall camp under watchful eye of new indoor facility's space heaters

Sat, 01 Aug 2026 12:01:38 +0000

MONTANA STATE UNIVERSITY — The Bobcats took the field Monday for the first day of fall camp, which is what we call it when 115 large men gather in August to hit each other while Coach Brent Vigen watches from a golf cart.

The big story this year is the quarterbacks. Redshirt freshman Jake Metcalf of Belgrade is competing with Tyrell Washington, a transfer from Houston who has never seen snow but owns three heated vests. Metcalf’s dad owns Metcalf Feed & Seed. Washington’s dad owns a logistics company. Both threw nice balls Tuesday. Both also threw two interceptions. Vigen said the position will be decided by “who protects the football and runs the offense,” which is coach speak for “please stop throwing it to the other team.”

Midnight oil changes lead to extra innings in co-ed softball title game

Fri, 31 Jul 2026 11:09:05 +0000

The Bozeman Brewing Company Fighting Fermenters edged the Belgrade Building Supply Two-by-Fours 11-10 in the Gallatin Valley Co-Ed Rec League championship Monday night at the Regional Park complex. The game lasted three hours and seventeen minutes, which league officials confirmed is the longest title contest since the 2019 mercy-rule debate extended a semifinal by forty-five minutes.

Starting pitcher Dave Haverstock of the Fermenters threw 142 pitches over six innings before leaving for a 5:30 a.m. shift at the concrete plant. “He told me his arm felt fine,” said Fermenters player-manager Clint Voss, 34, who also plays third base and sells industrial lubricants. “I told him his arm isn’t the one mixing batch tickets at midnight.”

Bobcats open fall camp with familiar question: will the line hold

Thu, 30 Jul 2026 17:13:49 +0000

BOZEMAN — The Montana State Bobcats took the field at Bobcat Stadium Thursday morning for the first practice of fall camp, and if you listened closely between the whistle blasts and the clatter of helmets, you could hear the same question that has echoed through this valley since the Eisenhower administration.

Will the line hold.

“Everything comes down to whether the line holds,” said Randy Pflug, who has covered Bobcat football, prep wrestling, and the Tuesday night co-ed softball league at Kirk Park with identical gravity for twenty-three years. “Same as it ever was. Same as the softball league. If the line holds, you got a chance. If it don’t, you’re just watching the other team celebrate.”

Bobcats open fall camp; offensive line coach reminds reporters that rent was $400 when he played

Thu, 30 Jul 2026 12:03:00 +0000

Fall camp opened Monday at Bobcat Stadium. The air smelled like cut grass and the particular anxiety of August two-a-days. Head coach Brent Vigen watched from the sideline in a visor that has seen three presidential administrations.

The big story this year is the offensive line. Coach Mike Schmidt, who has been coaching the line since 1998, held his position group meeting in the shade of the scoreboard. He told the freshmen that when he started, a two-bedroom near campus went for $400 a month and the locker room had a working sauna. Neither fact checked out but nobody corrected him.

Midvalley merchants hold line, win rec title in extra innings

Tue, 28 Jul 2026 19:22:10 +0000

The Midvalley Merchants won the Gallatin Valley Rec League championship Thursday night at the Four Corners Complex, beating the Belgrade Bandits 7-6 in eight innings on a walk-off single by third baseman Dale Henderer.

The game lasted two hours and forty minutes. Nobody complained about the length.

“The line held when it had to,” said Merchants player-coach Buck Pendleton, wiping infield dust from his forearms. “That’s the whole game right there. You hold the line, good things happen.”