The Cat-Griz Insider

The football recruits at Montana and Montana state have been signed, sealed and delivered. Rob Ash just got done locking down his third recruiting class at Montana State while Robin Pflugrad put together his first-ever group as the new coach at Montana.

Who fared better? It's hard to say at the moment. The Bobcats won the local turf war, signing eight Montana recruits versus the Grizzlies' three.

Among Ash's Treasure State finds were Laurel WR Brian Flotkoetter, Helena Capital DB Josh Dirks and Huntley Project DL Taylor Dees. The Cats also brought in six more recruits from Texas, which has become an MSU pipeline.

Montana inked Kalispell Glacier QB Shay Smithwick-Hann, Whitefish DL Derek Crittendon and Missoula Sentinel DL Zach Wagenmann. They also brought in several key guys from the state of Washington.

Ash lauded the versatility and athleticism of his recruiting class, while Pflugrad talked at length about his crop's physicality and leadership.

Below are the full lists, with Montana commits in bold italics. View them, and don't be afraid to chime in. Tell us: WHO WON THE RECRUITING BATTLE?

MONTANA

CJ Atkins, wr, 6-2, 210, College of the Canyons; Alex Bienemann, dt, 6-2, 275, Regis Jesuit HS, Denver; Derek Crittendon, dl, 6-3, 230, Whitefish HS; Sean Haynes, wr, 6-3, 183, Bishop Alemany HS, Los Angeles; Jake Hendrickson, og, 6-3, 285, Scottsdale CC; Jordan Johnson, qb, 6-1, 185, Sheldon HS, Eugene, Ore.; John Kanongata'a, lb, 5-11, 218, Bellevue (Wash.) HS; Brett Kirschner, rb, 5-10, 207, Bellevue (Wash.) HS; Danny Kistler Jr., ot, 6-3, 335, O'Dea HS, Seattle; William Poehls, ot, 6-8, 286, Chandler (Ariz.) HS; Trevor Poole, dl, 6-5, 275, Ferris HS, Spokane, Wash.; Austin Reifeis, te, 6-3, 230, Eastlake HS, Sam-mamish, Wash.; Stephen Sabin, og, 6-4, 305, Scottsdale CC; Mitch Saylor, wr, 6-5, 210, Union HS, Camas, Wash.; Shay Smithwick-Hann, qb, 6-4, 215, Glacier HS, Kalispell; Taylor Tuliaupupu, lb, 6-0, 225, Claremont HS, LaVerne, Calif.; Bo Tully, s, 6-2, 185, Mead HS, Spokane, Wash.; Zach Wagen-mann, de, 6-3, 210, Sentinel HS, Missoula; Justin Whitted, s, 6-1, 175, St. Bernard HS, Los Angeles.

MONTANA STATE

Steven Bethley, db, 5-11, 220, Don Antonio Lugo HS, Chino, Calif.; Parker Bignell, wr, 6-2, 200, Drummond (Mont.) HS; David Dash, athlete, 5-9, 175, A.B. Miller HS, Fontana, Calif.; Taylor Dees, de, 6-2, 225, Huntley Project HS; Josh Dirks, db, 6-1, 200, Helena (Mont.) Capital HS; John Ellis, wr, 5-10, 180, Summit HS, Mansfield, Texas; Brian Flotkoetter, wr, 6-2, 175, Laurel (Mont.) HS; Michael Foster, lb, 6-1, 210, Clear Lake HS, Seabrook, Texas; Sean Gords, db, 5-10, 185, North Torrance (Calif.) HS; Zach Logan, dt, 6-3, 295, South HS, Deer Park, Texas; Robert Marshall, db, 6-0, 185, Creekview HS, Carrollton, Texas; Na'a Moeakiola, lb, 5-11, 220, Trinity HS, Euless, Texas; Lee Perkins, te, 6-2, 220, Great Falls (Mont) HS; Tiai Salanoa, te, 6-3, 225, Oxnard (Calif.) HS; Kerry Sloan, rb, 5-11, 210, Harker Heights (Texas) HS; Matthew Thibault, athlete, 6-1, 185, Belgrade (Mont.) HS; Connor Verlanic, de, 6-4, 205, Drummond (Mont.) HS; Rhett Young, lb, 6-0, 185, Augusta (Mont.) HS.

For the first time since the spring of 2007, Mike Kramer has a job within an NCAA football program.

Though it had been known for about a week prior, it was officially announced Monday that Kramer - the former head coach at Montana State - was brought on to be the assistant director of football operations at Washington State.

Kramer joins his old pal Paul Wulff (Kramer's former assistant at Eastern Washington) with the Cougars, a struggling program in the Pac 10.

It marks a fresh start for Kramer after his controversial firing nearly three years ago and subsequent dismissal of his lawsuit against MSU, which came last week.

Kramer is back in the game, finally, and this is the first step in Kramer's road back to a head coaching position somewhere on the collegiate landscape.

As current Cats coach Rob Ash readies to enter his fourth season in Bozeman, you can't help but wonder where the Bobcats would be if athletic director Peter Fields had never fired Kramer. Are the Bobcats better off now? Are they worse off? Would things be any different?

It will be interesting when the Cats visit Washington State on Sept. 11. Though Kramer is not part of Wazoo's coaching staff, it still adds a juicy subplot to that particular matchup.

Were you here in 2007 when the Grizzlies brought their annual spring game to Billings? If so, you remember what a success it was.

About 5,000 packed the bleachers at Wendy's Field and approximately $40,000 was raised for the Grizzly Scholarship Association. It was a huge boon for them.

That's why it's no surprise the Griz are bringing the spring game back to Billings in April of 2011. The Billings Chapter of the GSA finalized an agreement earlier this week to host the game. What's more, they think they can raise even more money this time around. Said Mike Persha, co-chair of the GSA's Billings chapter:

"We felt if we were better organized this time that we might do even better. I really think we can raise between $55,000 and $60,000 next year. That would be the goal."

Persha said the local boys will likely put together a slew of functions prior to the event. Think along the lines of a team dinner, a silent auction, a "meet the team" gathering for the public to attend, and a tailgate party on Saturday morning. Persha said more than $12,000 was raised during a silent auction in 2007, and more than $4,000 was pocketed on beer sales alone. The $40,000 raised overall, according to Griz A.D. Jim O'Day, is a UM spring game record.

Montana's spring game will be held in Butte this year. But come 2011 the Griz will expet great things in Billings yet again.

Montana State led most of the way and were in control late in the second half. But Montana came roaring back and got within one point with 2:34 remaining.

But that's when big Branden Johnson took over, knocking down a 3 and driving the lane for a layup to help the Cats outlast the Griz 61-52.

MSU improved to an impressive 6-2 in league play. Montana, meanwhile, continued with its road woes. The Griz are now 1-4 in the conference away from home.

The Griz made a nice run led by Anthony Johnson and Brian Qvale. Johnson hit a pair of free throws and a pull-up baseline jumper to bring UM withint four with under 5:00 left. Qvale added an inside bucket and a dunk to close the gap to 51-50.

But Johnson's deep 3-pointer and drive, coupled with Marquis Navarre's nice take down low, and the Cats were able to fend off their rival.

The Lady Griz took the first round of the doubleheader, but the Bobcat men evened the score.

Contrary to what was written in a previous blog post of mine (oops!), Montana State will play Washington State at Qwest Field in Seattle on Sept. 11.

MSU coach Rob Ash confirmed it tonight during halftime of the men's basketball game between the Cats and Montana at Worthington Arena in Bozeman, saying MSU will play a home game Sept. 4 before travling to play the Cougars at Qwest Field, the home of the NFL's Seattle Seahawks.