BILLINGS — The Brawl of the Wild is the biggest weekend in sports for the Treasure State, but what’s the allegiance for Montana's biggest city? Cats or Griz? Which way does Billings lean?
It’s one of the oldest rivalries in college football, and one that’s always split the state in two.
"Cats' fans are kind of obnoxious. They’re kind of like, we’re the best. We’re awesome, and they’re not," said one Billings Griz fan at the downtown Montana Brewing Co. Thursday.
"You got to be a Griz fan in this town. Bobcats, you can go back to Bozeman," said another Griz fan at the bar next door, Hooligan's, next Thursday.
But what’s not clear is whether Billings bleeds blue and gold or Grizzly maroon. So, MTN set out across Billings to try and find out.
"Cats for sure. Billings is 100% a Cat town," said one Cats fan.
Added another: "Oh, it's for sure a Cat town. There’s no doubt about that. With the strong ag background and good eastern Montana roots, it has to be a Cat town."
Every table at every sports bar seemed to have a different take.
Without a clear answer, MTN stopped by Universal Athletics, where manager David Bronson gave the breakdown on merchandise sales ahead of the big game.
"More Cats' stuff so far. Cats about 80/20 to be honest with you. We’ve been selling a lot of Cat stuff the last couple days. Not that much Griz, but I think it’ll change as we get closer, definitely, but the early start. It’s been Cats," Bronson said Thursday.
A Cat town? A Griz town? After a day of searching for answers, Montana Brewing Company manager Mandy Easton summed up the most accurate conclusion.
"Honestly, it literally is 50/50. Literally, I think even just with my coworkers here, it really is half and half," said Easton.
Split down the middle, much like how the state will be on Saturday.
