GREAT FALLS — University of Montana representatives stopped in Great Falls on Tuesday as part of the annual Grizzly Scholarship Association spring tour.
Hundreds of Grizzly fans and boosters gathered in the Mansfield Convention Center at the Great Falls Civic Center to meet with Griz coaches and enjoy a barbecue dinner, split-the-pot and both live and silent auctions.
University of Montana director of athletics Kent Haslam said that although one objective of the spring tour is to raise money for UM athletics, it’s also about saying thanks to Griz fans.
“For people who make the drive from Great Falls on Saturdays and come over the pass and cheer on our football program and come to a lot of basketball games, as well, it’s a chance for us to get out and to thank people,” Haslam said.
The tour started last Friday in Bigfork before stopping in Lewistown on Monday.
Griz coaches on the tour include head football coach Bobby Hauck, head men’s basketball coach Travis DeCuire, head women’s basketball coach Shannon Schweyen, head soccer coach Chris Citowicki and assistant track and field coach Paul Reneau.
For longtime coaches like Hauck, who’s in his second stint at the football helm, the tour is a way to reconnect with old friends.
“It’s always fun to get out around the state. I think that some don’t necessarily enjoy it, but I really do. I’ve got friends in every town in Montana,” Hauck said.
For Hauck, the tour is a way to “get out and socialize and see some old pals.”
The tour continues Wednesday in Cut Bank and will stop in Fort Benton on Thursday. It will conclude in Missoula on June 7.
