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INDIANAPOLIS – Week 1 of the college football season will send the Butler Bulldogs to #14 Montana to face the Grizzlies. The first-ever meeting between the two programs will kick-off at 2 PM Eastern and will stream live on ESPN+.
 
GameDay
Date: Saturday, September 2
Time: 2:00 PM (EST)
Location: Missoula, Mont. / Washington-Grizzly Stadium
Live Stats: GoGriz.com (Statbroadcast)
Watch: ESPN+
 
Bulldog Bits
- Butler was picked fifth in the 2023 Pioneer Football League Preseason Coaches' Poll after a vote from head coaches. They were picked 10th last year, but finished fourth in the standings with a 5-3 record.
- Mike Uremovich guided Butler to seven wins in his first season as head coach helping BU reach their highest win total since the 2013 season (9).
- QB Bret Bushka and K/P Luka Zurak represent Butler on the 2023 Preseason All-PFL Team.
- 2022 PFL Offensive Player of the Year Bret Bushka threw for 2,377 yards last year, the eighth-most in Butler program history.
- Bushka ranks eighth all-time at Butler in career passing yards (4,135). He needs 427 yards to pass Curt Roy (79-83) for seventh.
- Bushka was one of 35 FCS players to make the Preseason Watch List for the Walter Payton Award.
- 2022 PFL Special Teams Player of the Year Luka Zurak has the best career punting average in Butler Football history (40.8).
- Zurak is on the Preseason Watch List for the 2023 FCS Punter of the Year Award.
- Butler added 35 newcomers to the 2023 roster, including transfers from Ball State, Brown, Cornell, Eastern Illinois, Eastern Kentucky, Harvard, Valparaiso and Yale.
 
2023 PFL Schedule – Week 1
West Virginia State at Morehead State - 6:00 PM
Valparaiso at Youngstown State - 7:30 PM
San Diego at Cal Poly - 12:05 PM
Marist at Georgetown - 12:30 PM
Dayton at Illinois State - 1:00 PM
Davidson at VMI - 1:30 PM
Butler at Montana - 2:00 PM
Black Hills State at St. Thomas - 2:00 PM
Drake at North Dakota - 4:00 PM
Presbyterian at Murray State - 6:00 PM
St. Thomas (Fla.) at Stetson - 6:00 PM
 
SCOUTING #14 MONTANA: The Griz enter 2023 looking to improve on their 8-5 record a year ago, where narrow losses to ranked teams on the road led to Montana finishing sixth in the Big Sky standings. Media members around the league picked Montana to finish third in this year's title race while coaches picked the Griz to finish sixth in the Big Sky standings. UM returns seven all-conference players and 15 starters, including the entire starting offensive line. The Griz will have a new QB under center this season distributing the ball to wide receiver Junior Bergen, tight end Cole Grossman and running backs Isiah Childs and Nick Ostmo. The defense suffered key losses, but tackle Alex Gubner returns to bring pressure up the middle.
 
Bergen has been named to the Athlon Sports Preseason FCS All-America team as a punt returner. Montana is ranked No. 14 in the Stats Perform FCS Preseason Top 25 Poll. The Griz have put together 36 winning seasons over the past 37 years.
 
ALL-TIME SERIES: The game on Saturday is the first-ever meeting between Butler and Montana. Fans can watch the game on ESPN+.
 
Montana has not lost a season opener since 2014 when they fell 17-12 at Wyoming. The last time they faced a PFL opponent on opening weekend was in 2017 vs. Valpo (W, 45-23).
 
A YEAR AGO: Butler won their 2022 season opener against St. Thomas (Fla.) 31-26. The Bulldogs scored 28 second half points to erase an 11-point halftime deficit and find the win column in Coach Uremovich's BU debut.
 
2022 marked the first Butler win in a season opener since 2018. Bushka led the charge with 309 passing yards and four touchdowns.
 
Butler Named FedEx Ground FCS National Team of the Week (10/10): FCS Senior Editor Craig Haley (Stats Perform/The Analyst) recognized Butler as the FedEx Ground FCS National Team of the Week last year in October. The Bulldogs defeated Dayton 31-0 in Week 6 of the regular season.
 
The Bulldogs posted their first shutout win since 2010, ended a seven-game losing streak against Dayton and halted the Flyers' NCAA record streak of scoring points in 501 consecutive games on Oct. 8, 2022.
 
THE LAST TIME: Bret Bushka topped 300 passing yards two times last year. The last time he threw for 300+ yards was Oct. 8, 2022 vs. Dayton. Bushka is also responsible for Butler's last 100-yard rushing performance. He gained 102 yards at Davidson on just six carries (Oct. 1, 2022).
 
Luke Wooten is the last Bulldog to top 100 receiving yards in a single-game. He had 147 yards in a win at San Diego. Wooten is also the last BU receiver to have multiple touchdowns in the same game (Nov. 19).
 
COMMITMENT TO EXCELLENCE: The Bulldogs scored points on 36 of their 37 trips to the red zone last season (97.3%). Their only failed attempt came Week 4 at Davidson.
 
Butler led the PFL and FCS in red zone offense last year.
 
10 BULLDOGS NAMED TO PHIL STEELE'S PRESEASON ALL-PFL TEAMS: 10 members of the Butler football program were placed on Phil Steele's Preseason All-PFL Teams. Bret Bushka, Cameron Heald, Luke Wooten, Adam Dolan and Joey Suchy represent the Bulldog offense while Will Mason, Jack Belskis, and Austin Korba were selected as defensive players. Rounding out the group was kicker/punter Luka Zurak and kick returner Joey Audia.
 
NEW YEAR, NEW ROLES: Mike Uremovich announced changes to the coaching staff for the 2023 season. Jeff Knowles is now the assistant head coach, Alex Barr is the offensive coordinator, Sean Chase is the run-game coordinator, Ray Holmes is the pass-game coordinator and Adam Siwicki is the recruiting coordinator.
 
Uremovich and Knowles coached together at the University of Saint Francis, North Carolina State, Northern Illinois and Temple before arriving at Butler.
 
OFFSEASON UPDATES: QB Paul Romanowski entered the Butler Athletics Hall of Fame in 2023. Romanowski led the Bulldogs to a 9-2 record, a conference championship, and an appearance in the NCAA Division II playoffs in 1991. He was the Conference Player of the Year that season.
 
10-year old Colton Gist is the newest member of the Butler football program. The Bulldogs worked with Team IMPACT to officially sign Gist to the roster.
 
The PFL's Presidents Council named Greg Walter the league's second commissioner, effective August 1. Patty Viverito will remain an advisor to the PFL after serving as commissioner since the league's founding in 1993.
 
It's the 40-year anniversary of the 1983 Butler team that went 9-1-1 under the direction of Head Coach Bill Sylvester and reached the NCAA Division II Playoffs. This team won the Heartland Collegiate Conference Championship and had John Carwile recognized as the HCC Offensive Lineman of the Year. Eric Chapman was the HCC Back of the Year.
 
PFL'S 31ST CAMPAIGN: The 2023 season marks the 31st year for the Pioneer Football League – the nation's only non-scholarship, football-only NCAA Football Championship Subdivision conference. The league will feature 11 teams – tied for most in league history – each playing an eight-game schedule to determine the league champion and recipient of the automatic bid to the 2023 NCAA FCS Championship.
 
WEALTH OF EXPERIENCE RETURNS ACROSS THE PFL: Eighty-six student-athletes recognized on the 2022 All-PFL Teams and honorable mention lists return for the 2023 season, including 12 returning First Team All-PFL selections and 15 returning Second Team All-PFL honorees.
 
UP NEXT: Butler will host Taylor in the 2023 home opener on Saturday, Sept. 9. Kick-off is scheduled for 1 PM.
 
Butler hosted Taylor last year and recorded a 45-10 victory at the Sellick Bowl. Six different Bulldogs scored a touchdown against the Trojans, including LB Adam Sturtz who returned an interception 75-yards for a score in the third quarter.