The trip from Missouri State to Montana (No. 3) is also a family reunion for Petrinos
Nick Petrino didn’t spend his formative years in Montana like his famous football fan father did, but for Missouri State’s young offensive coordinator, the Big Sky State holds significant meaning.
He often visited his relatives – some with extensive coaching careers of their own – and played one season as quarterback for NAIA Montana State-Northern under uncle Mark Sampson in 2008 before joining his father, Bobby Petrino, at Arkansas.
Bobby and his brother, former Idaho head coach Paul Petrino, were both option-style quarterbacks for their late father, Bobby Petrino Sr., at NAIA power college Carroll College in Helena — the small but picturesque capital of Montana — where several other cousins and in-laws had successful playing careers.
Nick’s cousin Kyle Sampson is the 39-year-old head coach at Montana Tech. He played quarterback as a freshman at the University of Montana before going on to an NAIA All-American career of his own. Her cousin Mike Petrino was previously the head coach of the Montana women’s basketball team.
“There’s going to be a lot of family there for this game. I haven’t been there in a couple years, so it’ll be nice to go back,” said Petrino, who won two Kentucky state championships in 2005 and 2006 when Bobby led Louisville. “I’ll see my grandmother. Unfortunately, my paternal grandparents are both passed away, but I have a lot of cousins and uncles there. It’ll be fun to go back. It’ll be a good game. Great atmosphere.”
It is one of the loudest and most crowded events in the Football Championship Subdivision each year, a tradition that has continued for decades at the 25,000-seat Washington Grizzly Stadium.
The Kentuckian native who married Nick Petrino’s sister Katie — second-year head coach at Missouri State Ryan Beard — simulated crowd noise at practice this week.
Beard, who served as defensive coordinator under Bobby Petrino during the 63-year-old’s most recent tenure at Missouri State, is looking forward to the cross-country trip.
“It’s going to be a lot of fun,” said Beard, who took over at age 34 when the elder Petrino left after the 2022 season. Petrino has since returned to Arkansas. “We took a trip there a couple of years ago. Just breathtakingly beautiful. God created a masterpiece there. Our guys are going to really enjoy playing there. It’s right on a mountain front, just picturesque, and they have a damn good football team, and we’ve got to be ready to go.”
Missouri State defensive coordinator LD Scott is also very familiar with the situation, having married another member of the Petrino family, Kelsey. He is tasked with preparing for a Montana team that has yet to name a true star quarterback and will likely use a two-quarterback system on Saturday. Both were backups for their respective teams a year ago, according to the Daily Citizen’s scouting report on the Grizzlies.
Many Montana connections in Missouri State’s squad
Aside from the Missouri State coaching staff’s family ties to Big Sky Country, three of its players also know Montana quite well.
Missouri State nickelbacker Dylan Simmons, who started six games for the Bears in 2023 and may contribute even more this fall, played two seasons in a limited capacity for Montana before transferring.
Iverson Young, a three-star running back from the Dallas area, played two games for Montana’s state runner-up team as a freshman last season but was able to keep his redshirt. He is now at Missouri State.
Missouri State junior long snapper Landon Molen played at Great Falls (Montana) High School under Nick Petrino’s uncle, Mark Sampson.
Can Missouri State buck the trend?
Historically, Missouri State has not fared well against the upper echelons of the Football Championship Subdivision.
The Bears have an overall record of 1-34 against teams ranked in the top five of the I-AA/FCS poll. The Bears’ lone win came in 1996 against a McNeese State team ranked No. 3 the previous season. Missouri State won the game 12-7 and McNeese State finished with a season record of 3-8.
For Missouri State’s game on Saturday against Montana, which finished third in the preseason, betting website FanDuel published odds that have Montana as the favorite by 15.5 points.
