Lucas Gebhart

Sports Editor

Skyline Sports reported last week that ISU offensive coordinator Matt Troxel is heading to Montana where he will take an offensive assistant position.

Troxel will join the staff of Bob Stitt, who will enter his third season at the helm for the Griz this fall.

The move means ISU will be looking for a new offensive coordinator and quarterbacks’ coach as Troxel leaves the program after five seasons of work.

Troxel was promoted to offensive coordinator by head coach Mike Kramer last offseason after Sheldon Cross left the program to coach high school in his home state of Washington.

Prior to the promotion, Troxel coached the offensive line, wide receivers and special teams.

Before coming to ISU, Troxel was a graduate assistant at Idaho and Montana, joining the ISU coaching staff in 2012, where he was on staff as former ISU quarterback Justin Arias rewrote the ISU record book in 2014 as the Bengals went 8-4.

Troxel was also on staff when current New Orleans Saints tight end Josh Hill was in his senior season at ISU.

Hill caught 15 passes for 149 yards and one touchdown in nine games for the Saints in 2016.

Under Troxel’s supervision, the Bengal offense managed 366 yards and 24 point per game, both good for last in the Big Sky.

ISU finished 6th in the conference in passing offense and last in rushing.

Troxel is a 2009 Montana graduate where he played from 2004 to 2007, winning a Big Sky Conference championship all four years while advancing to the FCS semifinals in 2006.

Montana has not renewed outside receivers’ coach and passing game coordinator Nolan Swett’s contract, opening a position for Troxel to return to his alma mater.

Skyline Sports reported that Troxel was in Missoula Jan. 11 for an interview.

Troxel will join a Montana team that went 6-5 last season, a disappointing year by Montana standards, as the Griz missed the playoffs for the first time since 2012.