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Nevada football coach begs for fan support.
The Nevada football team will host defending FCS champion Montana State on Saturday in Reno. Head coach Jeff Choate is begging for fan support.
He is plenty familiar with the Bobcats having coached at the program for five years. Choate knows the fanbase will travel. He does not want to have his stadium taken over.
The Wolf Pack will be tested despite Montana State’s status as an FCS program. Choate refuses to be outnumbered.
Nevada faces an FCS football powerhouse.
Montana State is ranked No. 1 in the FCS polls after a quick 2-0 start. They’ve made light work of their first two opponents, outscoring Butler and Utah Tech 105-24.
It’s continued a string of recent dominance that dates back six years. The Bobcats are 72-16 over their last 88 games. They’ve made each of the last two FCS national championship games.
That success is reflected in the point spread. Montana State actually enters as a 5.5-point road favorite. Nevada is not expected to win the game, according to Vegas.
Jeff Choate knows the opposing program. He knows the fans will travel for the chance to witness a win over an FBS opponent. The head coach does not want Mackay Stadium to be taken over.
The Wolf Pack, too, are coming off a convincing win in their season opener having knocked off Western Kentucky 49-14. They’ll have a chance to improve to 2-0 before gearing up for conference play.
There has been some controversy surrounding the upcoming matchup given Choate’s ties to Montana State. Earlier this week, he claimed that his former rival, Montana, bailed on the opportunity to play in Reno.
The Grizzlies’ athletic director responded by posting a private email conversation to expose Choate’s supposed lies.
Scheduling drama aside, Nevada will pay Montana State $400,000 for the game. Choate wants to avoid a worst-case scenario.
Jeff Choate urges fans to support.
“Let’s make damn sure that they are not outnumbering us. We don’t need to turn this into a Montana State home game, we need this to be our advantage at Mackay Stadium.”
Jeff Choate’s message to Wolf Pack fans ahead of Saturday’s game against Montana State pic.twitter.com/8SVAfbGSK9
— Shannon Kelly (@shannonkelly_tv) September 9, 2026
“Let’s make sure that they are not outnumbering us,” he said in his weekly presser. “We don’t need to turn this into a Montana State home game. We need this to be our advantage at Mackay Stadium.”
Nevada has struggled with attendance in recent years. Mackay Stadium holds 30,000 fans. Last year, the Wolf Pack ranked 10th in the Mountain West with an average showing of 17,875. That was up more than 580 fans from the year prior.
While attendance has increased in each of the last two seasons, it is still an issue. A little over 19,000 fans showed for the opener against Western Kentucky. The stadium was less than two-thirds full.
Jeff Choate knows that there will be butts in seats on Saturday. He’s begging fans to ensure the majority are rooting for the home team.