“Griz or Cats?” -- The way you answer that question can turn strangers into friends or draw a well-defined line in the sand among family members – especially on one day a year, the Brawl of the Wild.
For more than a century, the University of Montana Grizzlies and the Montana State University Bobcats have gone head-to-head on the gridiron to determine who is the best under the Big Sky.
The Griz-Cat matchup is the 31st-oldest rivalry in NCAA Division I, and the 11th-oldest college rivalry this side of the Mississippi River. The fervent feud has a sprawling history, and there are plenty of opportunities for new Griz fans to get involved.
Here’s everything you need to know about Montana’s greatest sports rivalry kicking off at noon, Nov. 22, 2025 in Missoula:
History of the Brawl
The University of Montana was founded by the state Legislature in 1893 along with a state college in Bozeman. Within just five years, UM established its first football team with 24 men who answered the call of UM's first volunteer football coach, chemistry Professor Fred D. Smith.
Throughout its first season, the team practiced three days a week and scrimmaged against other men in town. In early November 1897, it was announced that if $250 could be raised for transportation, a Thanksgiving Day game would be played in Missoula against the Montana Agricultural College team from Bozeman — who we now know as MSU.
The student body in Missoula secured funds for train tickets and organized a city and campus tour, as well as a reception for the opposing team. It snowed overnight before the game, and students turned out early to clear the snow and mark the field. UM won the first game 18-6.
The Griz and Bobcats have faced off 123 times, with the Griz leading the all-time series with a record of 74-43-5 prior to the 2025 game. The rivalry matchup has marked the end of the regular season for both teams since 1993.
In 2001, the teams began competing for the Great Divide Trophy, a bronze statue created by Dave Samuelson that weighs 306 pounds, making it one of the heaviest trophies in college football.
How to Watch
Tickets to the Brawl of the Wild are a hot commodity and can be difficult to come by. Did you know that Washington-Grizzly stadium is the largest in the Big Sky Conference? When it’s at full capacity, which is most home football games, the stadium basically becomes the seventh largest city in Montana.
Thankfully, students get special access to free tickets to all home football games, including when the Griz host MSU. Be sure to join ZooCrew for early access to Griz-Cat tickets and secure your spot in the student section!
If you’re not in Missoula for the big game this year, you can also catch the game on TV throughout Montana from your local Scripps station. If you’re outside of Big Sky Country, you can stream the game on ESPN+.
You can also watch the big game alongside other Griz fans across the nation through our extensive alumni network. Check out this list to find a Griz-Cat watch party near you!
Can the Cats
For 26 years now, Griz and Cats fans have channeled the power of their feud into a good cause. The Can the Cats Food Drive is a friendly competition where UM and MSU compete to fight hunger across Montana. The food drive is a partnership between UM, the UM Food Pantry and the Missoula Food Bank & Community Center.
This year, the competition begins on Nov. 8 and runs through the first quarter of Griz-Cat on Nov. 22. Businesses around Missoula partake in the fun and accept donations of nonperishable food and money to Can the Cats. Last year, Can the Cats raised more than 650,000 pounds of food and donations .
What to Wear
The Griz as we know them today are most recognizable sporting maroon and silver. But did you know that those aren’t the University’s original colors?
When UM was first founded, copper, silver and gold made up the original color palette due to the state’s prominent mining industry. But it was hard to get fabric in metallic colors at that time, so in 1905 the Associated Students of UM voted to adopt “spirit colors” of maroon, gray and yellow.
Then in 1967, the University dove headfirst into its founding colors, which represented the Griz for nearly 30 years. In fact, the Griz football team won its first NCAA Division I-AA championship wearing copper, silver and gold in 1995.
The following year, the University transitioned away from the color scheme in favor of the now-familiar maroon and silver for the same reasons ASUM voted 91 years prior to adopt spirit colors. This year, UM brought back a specialty vintage line of copper, silver and gold clothing, derived from archival graphics, historic athletic wear and past artwork.
If you’re a traditionalist who loves vintage vibes, the copper look might be more your style. But if that’s not really your color, we’re sure you’ll look great in maroon! Either way, you’ll be welcomed with open arms by Griz Nation.
