We need to give Jeff Choate credit; the man can raise the temperature in a room.

Nevada’s third-year football coach was about 150 seconds into a Monday press conference when he addressed Saturday’s intriguing matchup with Montana State. 

“I’m sure that Colter (Nuanez) and Victor (Flores) are going to make a big deal out of this,” Choate, referring to two writers that cover MSU like a rash, said. “I think there is going to be a perception or desire to make this personal. This is not personal.” 

So before long, he made it personal with somebody else. 

“Montana is the first team we looked at, and you can print this, and if they deny it, they’re lying,” he said. “I wanted to play Montana. That’s who I wanted to play for obvious reasons. They said they weren’t interested, OK?” 

Most of us know the rest: Montana athletic director Kent Haslam produced an email exchange from 2024 that began with a query from a Nevada associate AD to UM’s Ryan Martin about playing in 2027. 

Martin — chief financial officer for UM athletics — replied that UM was definitely interested in playing, but 2027 wouldn’t work. And also that, “The mininum right now that we need to substitute a home game for a money game is $650k.” 

So we’re off a year, and Montana asked for a quarter of a million more than Nevada is reportedly paying Montana State (Oregon State is paying the Griz $675,000 to come in next week). Other than that, he nailed it. 

At any rate, when Choate left Bozeman after four seasons for Texas, Brent Vigen was hired away from Wyoming in early 2021. The rest is history, including the Bobcats’ first national title since 1984. Flores, who didn’t cover the Choate-Era Bobcats, and others documented all of it.

All Choate did was, ahem, guide the Bobcat to a 4-0 mark over the Grizzlies and take a perfectly-posed photo after the 2018 win. Hence the, “for obvious reasons.” 

Beyond that, he and Vigen formed a mutual admiration society separated by 800 miles. 

“Coach Choate definitely left his mark here,” Vigen said Monday. “I think for the fans, it’s a huge story. It is. He was revered here. I think it’s very interesting to them.  

“For us and our team, that part isn’t that big a deal. It’s a chance to play at Mountain West team, and a team that on film looks very good.” 

Choate’s record at Nevada, after last week’s 49-14 win over Western Kentucky, stands at 7-19.  

“This whole thing has felt very similar to Montana State,” he said. “The difference being we weren’t able to beat UNLV in Year 1 and Year 2. The talent level needed to be elevated; the investment level in the program needed to increase.  

“I feel like we’re heading in the right direction. But we’ve played one game.” 

Saturday, with the Bobcats installed as 5.5-point favorites, will mark two. 

Sports Editor Fritz Neighbor can be reached at 406-758-4463 or [email protected]. If you value local journalism, pledge your support at dailyinterlake.com/support.