Swogger selects Montana for his final season of football
Former Washington State quarterback Josh Swogger has decided to transfer to Montana for his senior season.
“In the end it made the most sense to be at Montana,” Swogger said from his home in Ohio, having selected the Grizzlies ahead of Eastern Washington and Youngstown State. “You could have pretty much flipped a coin between them because they’re all great places and they all have a chance to be in the playoffs.”
But Swogger said playing for Montana held the greatest appeal because of a combination of reasons. His wife, Angie, is finishing her degree at WSU this spring and will remain in Pullman, making a return to Ohio for his final college football season more difficult. And while the offense at Eastern Washington is somewhat similar to the one the Cougars run, Swogger said he admired Montana’s run-pass mix.
“I’m not a guy who needs to throw it 40, 45, 50 times a game,” he said. “The offense that they run is just the right balance between the two and gives me the right opportunity to do what I need to do this next year and hopefully have a shot to go to the playoffs and compete for a national championship.”
Throw in Montana’s recent run of success – including Division I-AA playoff appearances in every season dating back to 1993 – and the 6-foot-5, 247-pounder felt Missoula would be the best place to showcase his ability in what could amount to a one-year audition for professional teams.
“Montana’s a premier place in I-AA,” Swogger said. “I watched a little bit of film and they’re very blue-collar out there and that’s what I like about them. It seems like they bring their lunch pails to the field every day and they just work and get after it. That’s something that really excited me and something that reminded me of home because I’m from a blue-collar town.”
Swogger visited Montana’s campus the second weekend of December and chose to go there this past weekend after going home for the holidays and visiting Youngstown State, where some of his high school friends play.
WSU head coach Bill Doba and quarterbacks coach Timm Rosenbach helped Swogger in his search, and their touting of Swogger’s leadership abilities apparently helped convince Montana that Swogger would be an ideal fit. Without a single start to his name, Swogger was elected a captain as a sophomore for the Cougars.
But after spending the second half of that year injured, Swogger lost out to Alex Brink in fall camp before the 2005 season and threw just 18 passes all year.
“I respect them for that,” Swogger said. “They made a decision and stuck with it. They didn’t look back. I’m just excited to get a fresh start and get a chance to prove myself.”
And those fans nearby who wish to see him play once more will get their chance – the Grizzlies visit Eastern Washington on Oct. 7, 2006.
“Coach (Paul) Wulff (of EWU),” Swogger said, “reminded me of that.”
“WSU linebacker Greg Trent was named to The Sporting News Freshman All-America second team and linebacker Fevaea’I Ahmu was a third-team choice. Additionally, both were selected to The Sporting News Pac-10 All-Freshman team.
Trent, who started five of the 11 games in which he played, was second on the team with 69 tackles, three for a loss, and also had one sack and a fumble recovery. Ahmu started all 11 games and had 26 tackles, 2.5 for loss, and .5 sacks.