Checking in on Coach Mick Durham

A nice article on former Montana St. head man Mick Durham, who is the new head coach of the Alaska-Fairbanks Nanooks. Kinda cool to read about his comparison of the rivalry between Alaska-Fairbanks and Alaska-Anchorange compared with Montana/Montana St.

Q. Do you have any sense how the Nanooks-Seawolves (Alaska-Anchorage) rivalry stacks up against Cat-Griz?

A. In the interview, they told me that if I can beat Anchorage, I can basically own the town. I visualized back and I told them, ‘My first two years coaching at Montana State, Montana won back-to-back Big Sky championships for like the first time in 15 years.' That was Stew Morrill and Blaine Taylor and it happened to be my first two years. I started 0-4. I told them I came from a state that has a rivalry. The only difference with Fairbanks and Anchorage is that they're Division II. They're the only two schools in the state. I really talked a lot about my Montana experience and getting Montana kids there and getting Alaska kids here.

Durham coached the Bobcats from 1990-2006, winning 123 Big Sky games and 246 games overall. We wish him the best of luck up in the Great North.