One of the best rivalries (with one of the coolest trophies) in all of FCS football is the “Little Brown Stein” showdown. Montana and Idaho duke it out almost annually in a game that usually has a lot riding on it for at least one, if not both, of the teams. The Grizzlies and Vandals come together on Saturday afternoon in Missoula for the 91st time and once again the storylines are aplenty heading in.
Montana, sitting at 5-2 overall, is coming in off of a surprising loss to Northern Arizona while Idaho has only one win this season. That win, though, was one of the stunners of the year over defending national champion Montana State two weeks back. That win shook up the top of the national rankings and put the FCS world on notice; despite the Vandals’ 1-5 mark, they are capable of landing a haymaker. Montana should know better than anyone right now, too, what happens when you don’t come fully prepared against a fellow Big Sky enemy.
If Idaho is to get it done, though, it’s going to take a concerted effort to stop the FCS’s best running back. Eli Gillman, as he has for much of his decorated UM career, is playing out of his mind in this his final season. Gillman has set new school and conference records and already has 13 touchdowns and 877 yards. Any time he touches the ball, he can take it the distance. The Vandals defense is going to have a tall order sitting in front of them with #10.
The counter for Idaho might have to come on their own offense with dynamic signal caller Joshua Wood. Wood was a huge reason why they pulled off the upset over MSU two weeks ago. His ability to extend plays with his legs is terrific and for a Montana defense that struggled facing another high-level quarterback last week in Ty Pennington, the matchup with Wood might be a daunting prospect here. Wood is the Vandals’ leading rusher with 263 yards and seven touchdowns.
Besides him, though, the rushing attack has been quite anemic. Damonte Bias and Hayden Kincheloe will need to step it up and take some pressure off of Wood if they are to have a legitimate shot of staying with the Grizzlies because Montana’s offense is going to be able to get plenty of yards and points on the other side. Quarterback Keali’i Ah Yat and receiver Brooks Davis are playing at the top of their game right now.
The Vandals are double-digit underdogs on the road in one of the most hostile environments in all of FCS football and the road to another massive upset over their eastern neighbors will be a tough one. Confidence, though, certainly won’t be lacking because of what they did two weeks ago back home in Moscow. Idaho may not be staring down the playoffs or a Big Sky title this year but if they are able to put it all together in Missoula and get this one, it would be difficult to call the 2026 a failure either.
The Vandals and the Grizzlies will battle for the Little Brown Stein on Saturday at 3:00 PM (ET). The game can be streamed on ESPN+.