Montana Tech Orediggers release 2024 Football Schedule

The following is a release from the Montana Tech Sports Information Department:

BUTTE, Mont.- Montana Tech Football has released the 2024 schedule, and the season will start with a bang.

Three-time NAIA National Champion Georgetown, (Ky.) will be in Butte, Montana to kick off the 2024 season on Thursday, August 29^th to battle the Orediggers in the annual Copper Game.

Georgetown has made 23 appearances in the NAIA Playoffs, the last coming a year ago when they advanced to the semifinals and fell to Northwestern (Iowa) 35-10. Georgetown prides itself on running the football, and stout defense, a few things the Frontier Conference knows something about. This will be the first meeting between the Orediggers and Tigers.

Week 2- The Orediggers will go from the new to the very familiar for their second game of the year, as they will travel to Helena to battle the Saints of Carroll College on September 7^th. The teams split a year ago, with Carroll taking the non-conference game in Butte on August 31^st, and the Orediggers winning in the season finale in Helena. The rivals will meet twice again this season, this first meeting (the 129^th overall) is a non-conference game.

Montana Tech will have a bye week, on Saturday, Sept. 14^th.

Week 4 will see the Orediggers on the road to LaGrande, Oregon, and a date with the Mountaineers of Eastern Oregon University. The Diggs have won the last two meetings between the teams, 4 of the last 5, and 8 out of the last 10.

Week 5 will again see the Diggs on the road, this time to Caldwell, to face the College of Idaho. The Yotes finished the regular season with a 6-2 conference mark, tied with the Orediggers for second place. Since restarting their football program and joining the Frontier Conference in 2014 every single game between the Orediggers and Yotes has been electric, and this one promises to follow that trend.

Week 6 will see the Orediggers return to Alumni for Homecoming and a battle with the Raiders of Southern Oregon University. Montana Tech won the lone conference meeting a year ago, 31-21 in Ashland. The Diggs have won the last six meetings between the programs and lead the overall series 11-7, dating back to 2007.

Week 7, the Orediggers will be in Dillon to take on the Bulldogs of Montana Western. Last season Western got the win in Butte 38-28, and the programs split their two games in 2022, with each winning on the road. The new wrinkle in this rivalry is, that this season will be the first on the new Montana Western turf, and facility being built on campus.

Week 8- Last season was the first season since 1997 that Oredigger football played two opponents that they had never met before, this season will make it back-to-back seasons that we see new teams, week 1 against Georgetown, and week 8 against Simpson University. Simpson is located in Redding, California, and are just starting getting their football program started. The 2024 season will be their first full schedule, as they only played a pair of scrimmages last season.  In their inaugural season, they have several games against Frontier Conference opponents. This will also be Montana Tech’s Hall of Fame Game.

Week 9- The Battlin’ Bears of Rocky Mountain College will be in Butte for a week 9 battle on Oct 26^th.  Last season the Bears won in Billings 28-21. In 2022 they played twice, and the teams split with each winning on the road. Montana Tech has won 3 of the last 5, and 6 of the last 10. The last 10 games between the programs have all been one-score games.

Week 10 will see the Orediggers back on the road, or more accurately on the plane, to Glendale, Arizona to take on the Firestorm of Arizona Christian. ACU joined the Frontier Conference as a football-playing member a year ago and went 1-7 in conference play. The Orediggers took round one 40-31 a year ago in Butte.

Week 11- November 9^th the Orediggers will be back on Bob Green Field to host the Lights of MSU-Northern. Montana Tech has won the last 12 meetings between the teams. Northern’s last win was in 2014 (37-34), and their last win in Butte was in 2011 (23-12).

Week 12- Montana Tech will celebrate Senior Day, as they host the Saints of Carroll College for their Frontier Conference regular-season finale.  Get out your calendar and circle November 16^th vigorously, as you won't want to miss this one. In the regular season finale a year ago, Montana Tech went into Helena and took down the Saints 23-17, knocking Carroll out of the playoffs, and propelling the Diggs into the first round of the NAIA playoffs.

The Orediggers look to build on the successful 2023 season, where they finished 7-4 overall, and 6-2 in Frontier Conference play, they also hosted an NAIA playoff game for the first time since 2016.

Football Season Tickets will be available soon.