George Ferguson: Not only was last year no fluke, MSU football proving to be a program that's built to last

The Montana State Bobcats aren't out to prove anything - at least it's not public if they are.

But, while it may not be the case, it sure looks like the Bobcats are trying to prove that last year's run to the FCS national championship game was no fluke, and certainly not a one-time deal.

No, the Cats appear to finally be in it for the long haul. The program has always flirted with longevity, but it's never fully materialized.

Blame winning the 1984 national championship, because after that, it's been a roller coaster of a program at MSU. Lean years under Cliff Hysell, a 16-game losing streak to arch rival Montana, and some good to great seasons under Mike Kramer and Rob Ash, though both of those tenures ended in turmoil.

Then came Jeff Choate. And at first, the Cats didn't get much better. But, they started beating the Grizzlies, and that eventually led all the way to where MSU is now.

Choate built a program that is now very highly sustainable. He, along with the addition of Leon Costello, have brought MSU up to a standard that isn't even looked at as equal, but now is sought after by other Big Sky and FCS programs.

That's right, Choate built the team, the culture, a program founded on offensive and defensive line dominance, running the football, being tough and talented. Costello then added the facilities. With the Bobcat Athletic Center, and more projects in the pipeline, the Cats are becoming a premier program on the field and off of it.

And all that set the table for Brent Vigen to bring his years of knowledge from the program that set the standard - North Dakota State - and implement it at MSU. And make no mistake,, right now, Montana State has a lot of the qualities that have made the Bison one of the single most successful college football programs in NCAA history.

Now, I'm not putting the cart before the horse so to speak. The Cats, while reaching the national championship game last year, haven't even won a Big Sky title just yet. They certainly have areas they need to improve upon, and they still have some big games left on their schedule, including Saturday's Top 10 showdown against Weber State in Bozeman.

However, in general, the Cats are starting to look like a program that's built to last, that's going to stick around, that's going to actually deserve the word dominant.

And programs built like MSU is, program's that keep winning, keep knocking on the door, eventually, they break through, eventually, they reach the top of the mountain. That's certainly been MSU's trajectory of late, and I see no reason why that's going to change anytime soon.

Editor's Note: The No. 3 Bobcats host No. 5 Weber State Saturday at 1 p.m. in Bozeman. The game can be seen on all MTN affiliates. The No. 7 Montana Grizzlles also have a huge game at No. 2 Sacramento State Saturday night. The game kicks off at 9 p.m. and is televised nationally on ESPN2.