MISSOULA — Long snapper has been a position of consistency for the Griz football team for nearly a decade.
The latest reliable option there has been Grayson Pibal, who has handled those duties in every game since 2022 and made the most of his time at Montana.
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"It's a pretty special thing, I first get here and have 120 dudes who are like, I'll go fishing with you, or I'll take you hunting with me," Pibal said. "Come do this with me, come do that with me. And it kind of made getting over the homesickness pretty quick."
Long snapper is an under-the-radar position in football.
Pibal's journey to picking it was one of opportunity while he was growing up in Clackamas, Ore.
"I was a Vikings fan, but I loved Brett Favre my entire life," Pibal said. "And I was like, I'd love to play quarterback, that'd be awesome. But turns out I can't throw a football 75 yards. So I found a way to get onto the field. I realized pretty quick if I wanted a shot at varsity, I had to find a way to kind of dig a niche and take it to the next level."
So Pibal tried his hand at other positions with trial and error.
"I grew up playing center and then once I got to high school, it was like there's not really room for a 6-foot, 6-foot-1, 155-pound center on any 6A team in Oregon," he laughed. "So I had to kind of figure out something else."
Pibal's high school team was loaded, and successful, and it was there he saw a path to the field and the college level.
"I played in the state championship game and we won it on a game-winning kick as a sophomore," he recalled. "And then our kicker went to Oregon State and I was like, wow, I could do that, too. I don't see why I couldn't go play in college, too. And from there, it just kind of became an obsession."
A camp at Montana after his junior year led him to Montana. Pibal fell in love with what the Griz and the state offered, and he made his way to the Treasure State.
Consistency has been key, and Pibal received second-team All-Big Sky accolades at the conclusion of the regular season.
Saturday will be his 55th game he's suited up in.
"I'm super proud of everything that I've gotten to do here," Pibal said. "But I know there's so many people that I could credit for helping me get here, so it's pretty proud of everybody who's bought in time to help me, as well."
An avid outdoorsman, Pibal also became a fly fishing guide during his time in Montana.
"I've gotten to work for quite a few people, and this past year I just totally dove into it and guided probably four or five days a week," Pibal said. "I'd lift at 6 in the morning and get out of here at 8 and go pick up clients at the Bonner gas station up there and go fishing. It's been a total package deal coming here."
Pibal is working toward his MBA, and with an engagement in hand, as well, life is shaping up for him after football.
But there's still plenty to be played, as the games are winding down with December and the playoffs now here.
"It didn't really hit me it was just like the last regular season and everything until kind of Thanksgiving," Pibal said. "It was like, wow, it's win or go home. This is it. I don't want to be done. So let's just keep winning."
