MISSOULA — The Montana Grizzlies have added a pair of one-off football games to the 2026 and 2027 football schedules, featuring matchups against an old conference foe from the FBS ranks and a first-time opponent that advanced to the FCS playoffs last season.
Montana will travel to Corvallis, Oregon, on Sept. 19, 2026, to face Oregon State of the re-established Pac-12 at Reser Stadium. The Griz will then open the 2027 schedule at home with a matchup against Lehigh University of the Patriot League on Sept. 4 in Missoula.
Montana and Oregon State were co-members of the Pacific Coast Conference from 1924-1950 until the Grizzlies departed for the old Skyline Conference in 1951. The Griz and Beavers have faced each other 16 times over the years, dating back to the first meeting in 1925. While Montana has a 2-12-2 all-time record against Oregon State, the Grizzlies have won the previous two meetings.
UM last beat OSU 35-14 in the 1996 season opener en route to a 14-1 record and a trip to the Division I-AA national championship game at Marshall under head coach Mick Dennehy. The Griz also beat the Beavers 22-15 in the 1990 season opener in Corvallis with Grady Bennett at quarterback under coach Don Read.
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Lehigh comes to Missoula to kick off the 2027 season in a first-time matchup between the schools, historically a pair of the most successful in FCS history. The Griz and Mountain Hawks are two of less than 30 teams currently in the subdivision that boast more than 600 wins in program history. Lehigh played its first year of college football in 1884, while Montana would not start a program for more than a decade in 1897.
Based in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, roughly an hour and a half northwest of Philadelphia, Lehigh is coming off a Patriot League championship season in 2024, going 9-4 overall and 5-1 in conference play to share the title with Holy Cross and receive the league’s automatic bid to the FCS Playoffs.
Lehigh defeated No. 9 Richmond on the road 20-16 in the first round before traveling to Moscow to face Idaho in the second, falling to the Vandals 24-13.
The Grizzlies now have one remaining open date in both 2026 and 2027 before the schedules are complete. Montana also has future non-conference games scheduled for 2028 against Monmouth and a home-and-home series against Incarnate Word in 2028 and 2029.
In 2025, Montana will play an FCS-record eight home games starting with Central Washington in the season opener on Sept. 6 at Washington-Grizzly Stadium in Missoula. Highlights on the schedule also include home games against North Dakota, Idaho, Eastern Washington and Montana State, with Homecoming set for Oct. 11 against Cal Poly.
A Montana man with four prior impaired-driving convictions told police he slammed into another vehicle because he was trying to pee into a Budweiser can while behind the wheel, according to a probable cause affidavit.
James Howard, 53, was arrested Nov. 8 after his Chevrolet Suburban plowed into the back of a Volkswagen at an Interstate 90 exit ramp in Missoula, the affidavit, which was posted by the news site The Smoking Gun, states.
“I’m going to jail for a f–king long time,” Howard, who had been driving with a suspended license, told the arresting officer.
James Howard, 53, was arrested by law enforcement officials in Montana on the evening of Nov. 8 in Missoula. weerapat1003 – stock.adobe.com
Montana Highway Patrol Trooper Van Kerkove spotted Howard holding a large Budweiser can in his right hand when he arrived at the Grant Creek Town Pump gas station just after 9 p.m. local time on Nov. 8.
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Van Kerkove also noticed that Howard had wet his pants and was alleged to have slurred his speech while his breath reeked of alcohol, according to the affidavit.
Both drivers had pulled over to the gas station in Missoula after their crash, which resulted in no injuries, the affidavit read.
Howard then moved the beer can into the center console of his vehicle, according to the document.
When Van Kerkove asked for it, Howard handed it over and said it contained urine, not suds. He told the trooper he’d rear-ended the other car while attempting to relieve himself into the can, the affidavit read.
The Volkswagen’s driver, Scott Drury, told officers he had exited I-90 and stopped at a light on North Reserve Street when he saw headlights approaching rapidly in his rearview mirror.
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He “told his girlfriend to brace for impact” before the vehicle was hit, the filing notes.
Van Kerkove reported a “strong smell of alcoholic beverage coming from Howard’s breath,” and that Howard’s speech was “slow and slurred,” according to the affidavit.
Howard was arrested after his Chevrolet Suburban plowed into the back of a Volkswagen at an Interstate 90 exit ramp in Missoula. Stephen Fore – stock.adobe.com
The trooper also noted that “Howard’s pants were wet with urine.”
Howard stated he had consumed one beer. He also said he had “more than a couple of DUIs” and was not supposed to be driving.
Howard did not agree to perform the walk-and-turn or one-legged-stand tests, stating, “I just can’t do it,” according to the filing.
A preliminary alcohol screening test showed Howard had a breath alcohol concentration that was more than three times Montana’s legal limit, it was alleged in the document.
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A check of Howard’s criminal record showed one impaired-driving conviction in North Dakota earlier this year as well as three others in Montana in 1994, 1995 and 2007.
Howard was arrested on charges of aggravated DUI, driving while his license was suspended or revoked and careless driving, according to the affidavit and charging information.
The Post has sought comment from Howard and Drury.
MISSOULA, Mont. — Blackfeet Law Enforcement Services is asking for the public’s help locating 15-year-old James Patterson, who has been missing since Nov. 2.
Patterson is described as 6 feet 1 inch tall and 220 pounds. He has black hair and black eyes. He was last seen wearing a black sweater, blue jeans and a black baseball cap. His family and friends have had no contact with him since Nov. 2.
Anyone with information on Patterson’s whereabouts is urged to call Blackfeet Law Enforcement at 406-338-4000 or contact their local police department.
