Poll finds Griz more likely to root for Cats than vice versa
By AJ MAZZOLINI
The disdain appears to flow one way a bit more than the other in the Griz-Cat rivalry.
In the lead-up to the Montana-North Dakota State heavyweight brawl last week, a Treasure State blog posed the question: Who are Bobcat fans rooting for? A Montana Mint online poll of fans of both teams showed Montana State supporters were far less likely to support their in-state rivals than Montana fans.
While 83.9 percent of Griz fans said they would cheer for the Bobcats in a similar matchup with a big nonconference opponent, Cats supporters offered just 38.5 percent positive responses.
Here’s a look at the responses through the end of the week:
| Results as of 8/31/15 | |||
| Fan of | Total fans | Cheer for rival | Percentage |
| Cats | 83 | 32 | 38.5 |
| Griz | 62 | 52 | 83.9 |
So of the 145 total fans polled, a little more than half, 57.9 percent (84 of 145) to be exact, would be willing to cross the aisle and cheer for their team’s rival.
Perhaps Grizzly fans will remember this the next time the Bobcats find themselves in such a big game.
Maybe its positive energy at UM vs negative energy at MSU. Why? I don’t know. I almost always root for the Cats, except when a Cat loss will help the Griz in a conference championship. My ideal FCS championship game would be Griz vs. Cats. I don’t know how many Frisco TX fans would watch that, but I would love it.
I’m an ABC fan – Anybody But the Cats!
My 2 favorite teams are the Griz and whoever the Cats are playing!
I attend MSU and watched the griz game last weekend and cheered for them like I would for the cats. So I feel like the cats should do the same for the griz
We were in Bozeman visiting friends for this game, which we did watch and it was an incredible effort – for both teams. One of our friends went to a sports bar in Bozeman, and she said there were only about 4-6 people there with Griz shirts – and that the rest of the entire bar population (it was packed) was rooting AGAINST the Griz and for the Bison. Which I found really weird, because unless the Griz and BobCats are playing each other, we always root for the Montana team. So this ‘informal’ poll seems to be accurate.
No, I won’t remember it. I have pride in my state, even if they don’t.