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The Little Brown Stein is on the line Saturday afternoon in Missoula when No. 3 Montana takes on Idaho in their annual rivalry game. The Grizz have won this matchup seven times in a row, including three dominant performances since the series was renewed in 2018.
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The game (3 p.m. ET start time) will be televised locally on MTN, but anyone in the US can watch Idaho vs Montana live on ESPN+ right here:
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Once signed up for ESPN+, you can watch Idaho vs Montana live on the ESPN app or ESPN.com.
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Idaho vs Montana Preview
The Big Sky marquee matchup this week is between the 3-2 Idaho Vandals and the undefeated Montana Grizzlies.
Despite Idaho’s two losses coming against FBS schools — Washington State on September 3 and Indiana on September 10 — Idaho head coach Jason Eck said in his pre-game press conference (via local news station KREM) that he thinks Montana might be the best football Idaho will be face this year.
“Obviously this would be a huge win for us, it would be our biggest win of the season. It’s a chance to get that little brown stein and reignite this rivalry. Rivalries are not rivalries when one team always wins,” said Eck, whose Idaho team hasn’t beaten Montana since 1999.
As for their strategy, Eck is focusing on time of possession, finding a way to run the ball and trying to eliminate turnovers.
“We have to find a way to run the ball and to maintain possession. They like to run the ball as well, so I think that will be a big challenge in this game. They only give up about 2.2 yards per rush which is outstanding. If they win the rushing battle and run for a lot more yards than we do, it will be tough to win this game,” Eck said, adding, “Eliminating turnovers and pre snap penalties will be key. I think we need to do a good job of negating the momentum of the game. We cannot allow them to have big plays to energize the crowd and let that rattle you,” Eck said.
In his own pre-game press conference, Montana coach Bobby Hauck said that coming off a bye week gave them a chance to get some good rest.
“Coming off an open date, we had a couple, few good practices … hopefully we have a fairly fresh team, fresh as you can be this time of year. Idaho’s a huge game this weekend. It’s our second-oldest rival in terms of number of games played and they’ve got a very good team. I like where we’re at and they probably like where they’re at coming off a three-game win streak,” said Hauck.
“They’re playing hard, they look really physical … they look like they’re enjoying the game and having fun playing,” Hauck added of Idaho’s team.
The Idaho vs Montana game, which is the 87th battle for the Little Brown Stein, kicks off on Saturday, October 15 at 3 p.m. Eastern time on MTN and ESPN Plus.