Montana at Oregon State
Oregon State (0‑2) hosts Montana (3‑0). Too early for a market line, but the model likes Oregon State (66%).
How they got here
Last three games
Montana · 3-0
Picked #93 in the preseason · now #106.
Three straight wins — but still hunting a ranked opponent.
W 35–14 vs Utah Tech #242 of 669
won by 21 as a 35.5-point favorite
W 45–10 vs Drake #194 of 669
won by 35 as a 35.5-point favorite
W 28–21 vs Southern Utah #149 of 669
won by 7 as a 15.5-point favorite
Last two games
Oregon State · 0-2
Picked #69 in the preseason · now #60 — about right.
Two straight losses.
L 24–35 vs Texas TechTop 25 #8 of 669
lost by 11 as a 25.5-point underdog
L 20–33 @ HoustonTop 25 #22 of 669
lost by 13 as a 21-point underdog
What’s at stake
Montana
- Montana needs 5 more wins in the final 8 to reach bowl eligibility — 3% to get there with a win here, 0% with a loss.
- Montana is coming off a 21-point win.
Oregon State
- Oregon State hasn’t beaten a ranked opponent since 2024.
The series
Oregon State leads the series 12-2-2
16 meetings since 1925 · Montana has won the last 2
- 1996Montana 35–14
- 1990Montana 22–15
- 1982Oregon State 30–10
- 1950Oregon State 20–0
- 1949Oregon State 63–14
Face-off
What each fanbase carries into this one.
Montana
The chip · vs big brotherMontana State''s ascendancy stings because it came from within the state, on Montana''s home field. The Bobcats are now the elite program in the Cat-Griz rivalry after decades of dominance by the Grizzlies. For a program built on consistency and Big Sky supremacy, losing that title to your rival—especially with the coach who defined the modern era retiring—feels less like a passing phase and more like a changing of the guard.
What this game touches
2025 Montana State Sweep—Loss of Generational Identity. Montana State defeated Montana twice in 2025 (31–28 in the regular-season Brawl of the Wild, 48–23 in the FCS semifinals), winning the Big Sky championship and advancing to the national title game while Montana''s season ended in the semis. For a program that led the all-time series 74–44–5 just one year prior, the back-to-back losses to its fiercest rival—combined with Bobby Hauck''s retirement citing the ''unenjoyable'' state of modern college football—mark the end of a 23-year winning era.
Oregon State
The chip · vs big brotherOregon walked into the Big Ten and left the Civil War behind without a backward glance. The fanbase in Corvallis hasn't forgotten which neighbor abandoned the rivalry — or that the Beavers stayed when staying was the hard thing.
What this game touches
Left behind in the Pac-12 collapse. When ten Pac-12 schools announced departures for 2024, only Oregon State and Washington State were left holding a 108-year-old conference with no other members. The Beavers won the legal fight to keep the brand, then spent 2025 paying the football cost: a 2-10 season, a 0-7 start, and Trent Bray fired seven games in.
Best players
Oregon State
- Jesse Legree (WR) · 376 receiving yards
- Braden Atkinson (QB) · 789 passing yards
- Aiden Sullivan (LB) · 19 tackles
Conditions
62°F · 8 mph wind
Oregon State is worth +2.7 points (±3.8) more at home than on the road since 2018 — bottom third of FBS, 25th percentile.
48% at home, 29% on the road against FBS opponents (21–23 home, 12–30 away).
Our model gives every stadium the same flat 2.3-point home edge (why); the books use about 3. Against the closing line this stadium reads -0.9 at home vs. away over 73 games — inside the ±6.4 noise, so the flat number is the honest one here.
Night kickoff — historically worth about half a point more to the home side against the number, and not much more than that. The visitors travel about 476 miles to get here.
Recent games
Oregon State
- Wk 1Lat Houston20-33
- Wk 2Lvs Texas Tech24-35
Montana
- Wk 1Wvs Southern Utah28-21
- Wk 1Wvs Drake45-10
- Wk 2Wvs Utah Tech35-14