The Montana Grizzlies and Montana State Bobcats return to Big Sky Conference football action with a pair of rivalry games on Saturday, Oct. 17.
The Little Brown Stein is on the line in Missoula as the seventh-ranked Griz host one-win Idaho inside Washington-Grizzly Stadium. The No. 5-ranked Bobcats, meanwhile, return from their open week to face Eastern Washington on the red turf at Roos Field in Cheney, Wash.
Both games will be broadcast by Scripps Sports and air on CBS affiliates across Montana — KTVQ in Billings, KBZK in Bozeman, KXLF in Butte, KRTV in Great Falls, KXLH in Helena and KPAX in Missoula and the Flathead Valley. Coverage begins at 12:30 p.m. with the Saturday Showdown Pregame Show, followed by kickoff between Montana and Idaho at 1 p.m.
The Saturday Showdown Postgame Show immediately follows the Grizzlies and Vandals and then flips to pregame coverage of Montana State and Eastern Washington. The Bobcats and Eagles are scheduled to kick off at 5 p.m. Mountain time.
Of the four teams featured in the doubleheader, only Eastern Washington enters Saturday coming off a win. The Eagles defeated Northern Colorado 31-22 last week to improve to 2-5 overall and 1-3 in Big Sky play.
Montana State lost at Idaho 35-34 on Oct. 2, ending the Bobcats' 19-game winning streak. MSU is 5-1 overall and 2-1 in the Big Sky.
The Vandals, after rallying for the upset win over the Bobcats, lost to Weber State 38-27 last week. Idaho is 1-5 overall, 1-2 in conference.
And Montana suffered its first conference setback of the season last week, losing a 49-44 shootout at Northern Arizona. At 5-2 overall and 3-1 in the Big Sky, the Grizzlies remain tied for first in the conference standings.