BOZEMAN — One area of strength for Montana State this year is in the tight end room, which is a position of great depth heading into the season.
Rocky Lencioni led the way for the tight ends in his first season playing for the Cats in 2025 with 19 catches for 206 yards and six touchdowns.
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When asked how Lencioni would describe the tight end group in one word, he paused for a while to think.
"I guess I'll just go with gritty," Lencioni said. "I think we have a lot of gritty guys in there (Rylan) Schlepp obviously just had a double ankle surgery this of season, and it's pretty cool to see him come out here and just continue to do what he's been doing for years."
Schlepp is entering his third season of play after redshirting his first two years with the Bobcats.
Montana State offensive coordinator Pete Sterbick says Schlepp and Lencioni are both stepping into leadership roles this season.
"Rylan Schlepp's a guy that's been here the longest out of those guys, so there's some leadership things that Rylan brings to the table," Sterbick said. "Rocky (is) a third year player coming in. I think he established himself last year."
Lencioni echoed this sentiment.
"I'm obviously a younger guy. I know Schlepp's been there a lot longer than me," Lencioni said. "And so I still look up to him a lot, I've learned so much from him over the years. But for me it's really just leading by example.
"I look up to the people that are doing things the right way and try to emulate that. And if I can be that for other guys, that's the way I want to go about that."
Hunter Provience transferred to N.C. State, but the Bobcats have added Bruin Fleischmann to the group, an Air Force dropdown and brother of MSU offensive lineman Titan Fleischmann.
Lencioni complimented Flesichmann's work ethic.
"You've got a guy like Bruin who's obviously hard-nosed and will just throw his face in there and go to work," Lencioni said.
Sterbick expects Fleischmann to step into a leadership role as well.
"Being the type of person he is coming from the Air Force, I think he obviously has some great leadership capabilities that we'll probably see come out as time goes by," Sterbick said. "He hasn't been here very long."
Lencioni says you can tell Fleischmann is a very experienced player.
"He's really gelled well with our room," Lencioni said. "It's not an easy thing coming into a new room and learning the lingo and the new techniques and obviously a whole new offense. I think he's doing a really good job with that."
Sterbick says there are more tight ends that the team expects to really step up this season as well.
"Carter Curnow is a guy that redshirted, but I see everything from him for being such a young guy," Sterbick said. "He's commanded a lot of respect."
Lencioni had high praise for Dillon's Curnow.
"Carter Curnow is one of the more impressive redshirt freshmen I've ever seen," Lencioni said. "I've not only gotten to know him just as a friend, but also on the field. It's just kind of a blessing to get to line up with a guy like that.
"And then all the way down the line, we've got guys like Luvens (Valcin), Carter Cocke, Luke Smith, that are going to go out there and just continue to get better and push all of us from the bottom up."
