BILLINGS — Twenty hours in the car—it's a reality many Montanans are facing this weekend as they make their way down to Frisco, Texas, to root on the Griz.
"This opportunity doesn’t come by very often,” said Andrea Lutz, an MTN anchor and lifelong Griz fan, on Thursday. “I’ve been a Griz ever since I was born. My dad was a University of Montana grad and so he was a Griz fan to start with. I remember being a little kid, a little girl, going to Griz games. I went to the University of Montana, it's my alma mater."
It’s been more than 20 years since the Griz last won a national championship.
"Winning in ’01 was amazing,” said Jeremy Seidlitz, a Griz fan from Billings driving to Frisco, on Friday. "It’s the ultimate win or loss in fandom."
The team’s win over the North Dakota State Bison in late December punched their ticket to Frisco.
"That was probably the wildest Griz game I've ever been to,” said Beau Rosean, a Eureka resident driving to Frisco, on Friday. “It was insane."
"We sat in the living room here, we were watching it, it was just like a nail-biter the entire time. And then they went into double overtime, it was insane," Lutz said. "But they won it. And I remember jumping off of the couch saying, ‘We’re going to Frisco!’”
Now, fans are making their way to Texas.
"If they ever get this far, we’re going. We’ve always said that to each other,” Lutz said about a deal she and her husband made long ago. "I think that’s just a Griz fan thing."
Following the cancellation of a charter flight from Billings to nearby Dallas, many from the Magic City resorted to road trips.
“Twenty-two hours is what they say. This is kind of a family thing," said Seidlitz. "My old man’s driving now, my brothers and stuff in front of me, and then some close family friends.”
Lutz and her husband, Andy, drove from Billings to Denver, where they caught a flight to Texas.
"My dad actually went to the ’95 championship game," Lutz said. "Hearing him talk about how special it was, I knew we had to go."
Others made the entire 20-hour trek by car.
"We got about, I think maybe, 17 hours left," Rosean said from the road in Wyoming. "I think (the Jackrabbits are) going to be pretty overwhelmed with maroon in the stadium.”
It's a long trip for a rare opportunity.
"I’m going to be so excited to see how many Griz fans travel down there," Lutz said. "I do really think Griz fans travel well.”
Whether you’re a lifelong Griz fan or a Cats fan switching sides for the championship, it's all about Team Montana this weekend.
"Everybody in Montana’s pulling for the Griz. I don’t want to hear any of those Bobcat fans cheering against us," Seidlitz said. "We’re all Montanans at least this weekend.”
The stakes are high, and for Montanans, so are the emotions.
"It’s kind of a funny thing to get emotional about a team maybe, but I’ve spent so much time in Missoula," Lutz said. "Being a college student, going to the games, feeling the pride. Even though now I’m five hours away from Missoula, I still feel that."
To learn more about the Griz facing off the Jackrabbits, click here.
