Montana Mint Sports

Land Grab - Chapter Four: Exodus

In the fourth chapter of Land Grab,  20 years of pressure comes to a head, as Charlo’s bands of Salish people in the Bitterroot valley are finally forced out by troops from Fort Missoula, and make the long walk through downtown Missoula and up to the Jocko Reservation. We go deep into the circumstances that ultimately brought Charlo and his people to that  decision, and find Andrew Hammond’s influence everywhere. 

We also see Montana officially enter the Union as the 41st state,  and witness Hammond go to war with his former partner, Marcus Daly, over the shape that  new state will take. 

Link to Greg Gordon’s book When Money Grew on Trees: Andrew B. Hammond and the Age of the Timber Baron: 

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/when-money-grew-on-trees-greg-gordon/1117684711

Find out more about Land Grab, and consider making a contribution at www.landgrabpodcast.com and find us on social media @landgrabpod

Griz Fan Podcast - Pod Therapy after the season ending JMU quarterfinal loss

The 2021 season for the Montana Grizzlies officially came to a close with a loss against James Madison.  With the season now in the rear view mirror the guys take time to discuss their thoughts and observations from the game.   The talk then spans out into a more broad discussion reflecting on the season as a whole.  While there's the pain of a playoff loss, we celebrate the many successes of this season as well.  Montana finished with it's first back to back double digit win seasons since 08-09.  Big wins over MSU and revenge against EWU, plus a stunning upset of Washington.  Also, they talk on what the 2022 outlook is and what shoes need to be filled by losses from graduation and transfer.  There's then a 15 minute discussion covering the two semifinal games.  The guys do give some extended thought given to the MSU game.  Finally, and as always, fan questions.  With so much to discuss the fan questions take up over half the pod.  The questions leave practically no topic uncovered; recruitment, staffing, favorite plays, future pods, roster talk, the transfer portal, and more.  

 

TOC:

0 - 9 - Intro with James

9 - 1:03 - JMU recap and season reflection

1:03 - 1:18 - Playoff semifinals

1:18 - 2:56 - Fan questions/topics

Quarterfinals! Griz spank EWU and MSU takes down UT Martin

Hot Take Nate and Bear Tycoon discuss last weekend's big wins and predict this weekend's semifinal matchups.  Bear Tycoon is so excited he's barely coherent and Nate gives a geography lesson. 

Griz Fan Podcast - EWU revenge and the upcoming JMU game

The Montana Grizzlies are once again in the quarterfinal round of the FCS playoffs.  To get there, the Griz had to play the Eastern Washington Eagles again, a team they lost to in the regular season.  EWU was all talk in the weeks leading up to the game but in the end Montana came away with a decisive win.  With guest Kyle Sample the guys go over all aspects of the game.   From the atmosphere, to the officiating, to the big plays, and more.  

 

And now it's time to shift focus to this Friday's game against the JMU Dukes, the #2 ranked team in the FCS.  The Grizzlies have not faced JMU since a memorable upset win in the 2008 semifinals.  This JMU team is different than ones of prior decades though.  They've dominated their conference for years and are arguably the 2nd most successful FCS program of the last 10 years.  We spend quite a bit of time talking about who to look for, what to expect, and what Montana must do to win the game.

 

We close with your fan questions, Montana history trivia, memories from prior games, and some fun stories.  

 

TOC:

0 – 7:30 Intro & James

7:30 – 1:12 – EWU recap

1:12 – 1:30  - Playoffs

1:30 – 2:18  -  James Madison

2:18 - 2:57 Questions / end

Land Grab - Chapter Three: Depredations

Welcome to Land Grab chapter three! In this chapter, the political intrigue really takes off on another level. Last episode, we laid out the formation of the Montana Improvement Company: a massive timber monopoly created to build the transcontinental railroad and the Anaconda Company smelter. In this episode, we dive into the actual operation of that monopoly, as Andrew Hammond, Marcus Daly, and their partners construct their illegal monopoly, draw the full ire of the federal government, and launch one of Montana’s biggest ever political conspiracies. 

 

All the while, the Bitterroot Salish are getting increasingly squeezed out of their homelands. Just as the Improvement Company reaches the peak of its political powers, Hammond and his partners announce plans to build a railroad branch line through the Bitterroot Valley, and start the final legislative push to forcibly remove Charlo and his people.  

 

Link to Greg Gordon’s book When Money Grew on Trees: Andrew B. Hammond and the Age of the Timber Baron: 

 

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/when-money-grew-on-trees-greg-gordon/1117684711

 

Find out more about Land Grab, and consider making a contribution at www.landgrabpodcast.com and find us on social media @landgrabpod

Playoffs! Griz vs EWU and Cats vs UT Martin | MT Mint Sports Pod Ep. 67

Hot Take Nate makes good on a bet (kind of) by singing the Griz fight song, and he and Bear Tycoon relive Cat/Griz after a week off. Then they preview this weekend's playoff games Griz vs EWU and Cats vs UT Martin .

Griz Fan Podcast - EWU Playoff game, Brawl final thoughts, guest Colt Palmer

On this playoff edition of the Griz Fan Podcast the guys are joined by Colt Palmer, a Griz player from 2001 - 2004.  Colt shares some incredible stories and insight from his time as a player.  What does a week of playoff prep look like?  How does this staff adjust it's schedule with a Friday game?  What is it like playing the same team twice in one season?  Colt goes on to share some memories from his playing time and brings up his continued disdain for all things Bobcat.  There's also plenty to discuss about the upcoming EWU playoff game.  What's changed on each team since they last met, and what needs to be done for a Grizzly win.   The final segment, as always, is your fan questions and comments.

 

TOC:

0-5 - James and intro of Colt

5-1:30 - Brawl wrap / team prep / general playoff talk

1:30 - 1:50 - EWU rematch

1:50 - 2:39 - Questions and close

Land Grab - Chapter Two: The Big Deal

In chapter two of Land Grab, our narrative for the season kicks off in earnest. We meet the key figure for the rest of the show: Andrew B. Hammond, and chart his journey from teenage lumberjack to prospector to partner in the corporation that will become the Missoula Mercantile. 

In the Bitterroot Valley, future President James Garfield arrives and forges an agreement that claims Chief Charlo’s Salish band are willing to leave their homelands. The forgery enrages Charlo and sets the Salish up for decades of tensions with the Valley’s white settlers. 

And we finish up the episode by examining the most consequential business deal in Montana history, as the Northern Pacific Railroad comes to town and partners with Hammond and the Anaconda Copper company to create a new timber monopoly in the territory that will build the railroad and the giant smelter at Anaconda. 

Land Grab - Chapter One: Foreign Country

Welcome to the first season of Land Grab! In this first chapter, we’re laying out the terms of the story we’re going to tell in this season: the story of the opening of the Flathead Indian Reservation to white settlement; and the real foundations of Missoula and Western Montana. 

This first chapter largely focuses on the precolonial history of Montana. We’ll learn about the origins of Montana’s aboriginal people, and the complex societies they developed over tens of thousands of years in the area. We then move into the early interactions between the indigenous people in the region and the first white explorers, trappers, and settlers who ventured into the Northwest: from Lewis and Clark to the Hudson Bay Company.

And we’ll finish the episode by looking at how the Flathead Reservation came into existence with the Hellgate Treaty of 1855. We’ll dive into the miscommunications and outright deception used by Washington Territorial Governor Isaac Stevens to engineer a treaty agreement on paper that was vastly different from the one tribal negotiators believed they were signing. And we’ll end as the first permanent settlement, a little shanty town called Hellgate, gets started in the Missoula valley, right as the first gold discoveries are made in the area, and Montana explodes into a new age. 

Find out more about Land Grab, and consider making a contribution at www.landgrabpodcast.com and find us on social media @landgrabpod 

Links to sources mentioned at the end of the episode:

OPI Indian Education for All Videos: https://montanatribes.org/iefa-big-picture/

CSKT Natural Resource Department Online Education Portal: http://fwrconline.csktnrd.org/

Griz Fan Podcast - Griz stomp the Cats, playoff talk, & team thoughts, with guest Shaun Rainey

Still euphoric, and with maybe 1 or 2 GFP members a little hungover, we're celebrating the Montana Grizzlies dismantling of the Bobcats.  Shaun Rainey with ABC/Fox, SWX joins us for this marathon pod to give his thoughts and insights every step of the way as well.  

The Montana defense put forth its most dominant performance of the year.  The special teams were near perfect in every fashion, and the offense shocked MSU early and then steadily moved the ball through the day.  On this episode we go over our thoughts and observations from as many points of the game as possible. 

From there, it's time to talk playoffs.  Montana is the #6 seed and will face the winner of UNI vs EWU.  We look around the bracket, discuss games worthy of watching, and talk about regionalization and the challenges its caused to the FCS playoffs. 

With a 9-2 regular season record we then move into discussions on the team as a whole, team awards, conference awards, and more.   Shaun also brings a fun trivia type game to the pod, where we try to identify what Griz player best symbolizes a Thanksgiving Day dish.  After that, we've got nearly an hour of questions and comments to cover.  At the GFP, we care about you and we know it's a holiday week.  We wanted to get this pod out a day early, and make it a long one.  Hopefully it helps with some holiday travel or getting away from (or spending time with) family.

TOC:

0 - 5 - James & Shaun's intro

5 - 1:07 - Recap of the Brawl

1:07 - 1:35 - Playoff talk

1:35 - 2:00 - Awards, team discussion, regular season wrap

2:00 - 2:15 - Shaun's Thanksgiving game

2:15 - 3:02 - Fan questions and close