MISSOULA — Washington Grizzly Stadium is usually considered the mecca of FCS football, but next week it’s Concert City, USA.
Over a period of 10 days, four major events will take place in the UM stadium, starting with three concerts and, of course, culminating in the first home game of the Grizzly football team.
“This concert series is like a football game, only larger than life, you could say,” said Eric Taber, communications director for UM Athletics.
That couldn’t be truer. Starting Thursday, Washington’s Grizzly Stadium will welcome returning Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Pearl Jam to kick off a crazy 10-date arena tour.
Country star Tyler Childers will follow shortly after on Saturday, and that will be the prelude to Pink’s big performance expected next Wednesday. To complete this run, the Griz football team’s opening game is scheduled for Saturday, August 31.
“This is in line with UM President Seth Bodnar’s mission to ensure we make the most of the facilities and entertainment center we have with the Grizzly Athletics, the stadium and the Adams Center,” said Kent Haslam, Montana’s athletic director.
And there is a strategy behind it too.
While this is a challenging task and a huge burden, building the base stage for three shows instead of just one will limit costs to the university, allowing UM to generate increased revenue by hosting these three additional events.
“The stadium has proven itself to be a place where great artists can perform and get the revenue they want to get and also spend some time in Western Montana,” Haslam said. “Having three stadiums is a lot, that will do a lot for the people who work behind the scenes, but only having to set up the stage once and then host three concerts is really much more financially viable for a stadium of this size.”
“It’s really a 24/7 process,” Taber added. “And as soon as the Pearl Jam concert is over, they start unloading. And then Tyler Childers comes from her performance at The Gorge (in Washington) the next day, and they start packing up. And then luckily it’s a couple of days until the Pink concert, because that’s going to be a big move in.”
From a logistical point of view, to call it complicated is a drastic understatement.
The floor installation began on August 15th and crews have been working around the clock to set up since then. Pearl Jam is bringing 25 tour trucks for Thursday’s show. Childers will follow with a slightly smaller load of 15 trucks and 10 buses for Saturday’s event.
Then Pink, who is bringing 35 trucks and 19 buses and using more than 20 spaces in the Adams Center to prepare for the expected theatrical and monumental event in the stadium, will have to do even more.
After that, it’s just two days until the Griz’ first game of the season, when UM welcomes Missouri State to town at 7 p.m. One of the reasons the game kicks off at night is to allow plenty of time for football game preparation.
200 to 300 people will sell beer at these events, and about 150 to 200 security guards will be employed, in addition to the hundreds who will help set up the facility. Although no official cost has been announced, the school hopes to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars by hosting the events.
Haslam noted that money from Pearl Jam’s 2018 show helped pay for and build a new football field for the Grizzlies.
That money will come from all sorts of negotiable areas, from facility rentals to beer sales, concessions, parking, tickets and more.
The other hurdle was the ability to obtain everything the artists needed.
“It’s just huge crowds,” Taber said. “You know, for a football game, we have three buses and a truck. So when we have 35 trucks on campus, it’s difficult for the Grizzly Athletics to figure out where they’re going to park, when they’re going to arrive, how they’re going to arrive, what route they’re going to take, how long it takes them to unload and load, things like that.”
Not to mention the fringe benefits that accrue to UM, from the people who are drawn to the campus and seeing what it has to offer, to the excitement it all brings to campus life now that students are moving back in for the 2024-25 academic year.
“It’s a great thing. It’s fun for our students, it’s fun for the community and it brings people to town,” said Dave Kuntz, director of strategic communications for the University of Montana. “But secondly, it really helps the university from a financial standpoint to be able to build a stage after the three big shows have taken place and then go back to normal operations after that.”
UM will use a new security system, just like the one used at the FCS National Championship in Frisco, Texas, to speed up the process of getting people in. The school will also implement this during football season.
Parking is limited. UM recommends that visitors walk to the venue or use public transportation. Campus Drive was closed to through traffic on August 20.
And thanks to the new indoor training facility and playing fields on South Campus, athletic teams, especially football, can continue to prepare for the upcoming season while everything is in full swing.
“Our primary business, for lack of a better word, is an athletic department, and sporting events, volleyball, soccer and then football are certainly our biggest sources of revenue,” Haslam said. “So we can’t put those things at risk.”
It’s going to be a wild week and a half in Missoula, as Washington Grizzly Stadium serves as the entertainment center and caps off the summer with a bang.
“One of the things that makes UM really special is our vibrancy,” Kuntz said. “We’re a campus here that’s tucked between the mountains and the river and all the outdoor spaces, but we’re also the cultural capital of Montana, and being able to host three shows and three different shows really gives all of our students, regardless of their musical style, the opportunity to be a part of the shows.”
“This city is in for a big party and we’re just super happy to be a part of it,” Taber said. “Honestly, we want the university to be part of the community. Hosting these great events and providing entertainment opportunities for the community is just a great experience for everyone, especially at Grizzly Athletics because that’s what we do. We host a community.”
