FARGO — First the rumor was Fresno State. Then Utah State. Then Washington State. With each passing week, Brent Vigen’s employment status was tied to those three schools, who ended up hiring different head football coaches.

Vigen stayed with Montana State.

“I’ve long lived be being where my feet are now,” Vigen said. “We addressed it with the team as no different than say the transfer portal. Our success is going to lead to opportunities for people in this room and if the time comes, I’ll be as transparent as I can with the team and at the same time not do anything to compromise this team.”

The university rewarded his loyalty on Monday, giving him a four-year contract extension heading into the Division I FCS national championship game next Monday against North Dakota State. The former Bison player and assistant coach married to a former Bison women’s basketball player will face his old team for the third time.

NDSU defeated the Bobcats in the 2021 title game in Frisco, Texas, and took a 35-34 thriller in the second round last year at Montana State.

Vigen’s son Brooks is a sophomore defensive end with the Bobcats and a younger son, Grant, was part of the signing day class earlier this month as a 6-foot-6 quarterback. Brooks redshirted in 2022, played in seven games last season and nine games this year with five tackles.

“As a a family, we’ve enjoyed our time here,” Vigen said. “A lot of things go into this type of opportunity, our boys continue to grow up in this community and it’s been great.”

Fresno went with former NDSU head coach Matt Entz, Utah State hired Bronco Mendenhall and Washington State plucked Jimmy Rogers from South Dakota State. The fact two of those schools hired coaches with extensive FCS experience means successful FCS coaches like Vigen are in high demand.

Vigen’s base salary was increased to $295,000, up from $215,000, according to MontanaSports.com. Various incentives around at least $100,000 make it worth much more than that.

It keeps Vigen on a Bobcat contract through 2029. The buyout ranges between $300,000 and $450,000.

“He’s a guy of a few words but the words he does say and very calculated and very intentional,” MSU quarterback Tommy Mellott said in an FCS zoom press conference Monday. “He just gives us so much motivation to do everything we can for him.”

Vigen will carry a 47-9 record into the title game. He’s 29-3 in the Big Sky Conference. Vigen is the latest in the line of disciples of head coach Craig Bohl, with former assistants under Bohl reaching FBS head coaching status like Kansas State’s Chris Klieman, Wake Forest’s Jake Dickert and Entz.

“The Bobcat program has soared to new heights under the leadership of Brent Vigen,” MSU athletic director Leon Costello said in a statement.

Jeff would like to dispel the notion he was around when Johannes Gutenberg invented the printing press, but he is on his third decade of reporting with Forum Communications. The son of a reporter and an English teacher, and the brother of a reporter, Jeff has worked at the Jamestown Sun, Bismarck Tribune and since 1990 The Forum, where he’s covered North Dakota State athletics since 1995.
Jeff has covered all nine of NDSU’s Division I FCS national football titles and has written three books: “Horns Up,” “North Dakota Tough” and “Covid Kids.” He is the radio host of “The Golf Show with Jeff Kolpack” April through August.

It seems fitting that North Dakota State will face Montana State to close out the 2024 football season.

It was the Bobcats who were the opponents that started this entire Bison FCS dynasty.

A 42-17 NDSU rout of Montana State in Bozeman in 2010 opened eyes not just in Fargo, but across the FCS that the Bison could play in this division.

14 years and nine national championships later, there’s no debate on who’s the top program in FCS.

Montana State may know as well as anyone. The Bobcats have had their seasons ended by the Bison four separate times since 2018, including last year’s heartstopping 35-34 overtime win in Bozeman.

NDSU stomped the Bobcats in the second round in 2018 and the semifinals in 2019. Brent Vigen took MSU to the national championship game in 2021, but after freshman quarterback Tommy Mellott got injured in the first quarter, NDSU ran over the Cats, winning 38-10.

Montana State of 2024 is a different animal. The Bobcats have won every game, scoring 30 points in each game, something no team has done in Division I this year.

Mellott has had a tremendous year, in a battle with Bison quarterback Cam Miller for the Walter Payton Award.

The Forum’s Jeff Kolpack and WDAY’s Dom Izzo begin Championship Week with a look at what the matchup will be like between the Bison and Bobcats.

Dom Izzo is the Sports Director at WDAY-TV. He began working for WDAY in 2006 as the weekend sports anchor and was promoted to Sports Director in 2010.

The Montana Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big. Here’s a look at Dec. 29, 2024, results for each game:

Winning Lucky For Life numbers from Dec. 29 drawing

07-18-26-35-38, Lucky Ball: 01

Check Lucky For Life payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Big Sky Bonus numbers from Dec. 29 drawing

01-02-11-26, Bonus: 13

Check Big Sky Bonus payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

When are the Montana Lottery drawings held?

• Powerball: 8:59 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
• Mega Millions: 9:00 p.m. MT on Tuesday and Friday.
• Lucky For Life: 8:38 p.m. MT daily.
• Lotto America: 9:00 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
• Big Sky Bonus: 7:30 p.m. MT daily.
• Powerball Double Play: 8:59 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
• Montana Cash: 8:00 p.m. MT on Wednesday and Saturday.

Missed a draw? Peek at the past week’s winning numbers.

Winning lottery numbers are sponsored by Jackpocket, the official digital lottery courier of the USA TODAY Network.

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Tickets can be purchased in person at gas stations, convenience stores and grocery stores. Some airport terminals may also sell lottery tickets.

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