Briefs: Diede commits to Army

Maverick Diede, a senior-to-be at Glacier High School, announced on Tuesday that he has committed to play football for the United States Military Academy for 2026-27.

Diede’s post on Twitter/X simply stated, “Committed!!!!” along with the hashtags #GoArmy and #BeatNavy. 

Listed at 6-foot-4 and 280 pounds last fall, Diede has started on Glacier teams that advanced to the last two State AA championships. Last fall he was first-team All-State at defensive tackle and second-team All-State at offensive tackle. The college recruiting website Rivals.com noted that he was recruited as an interior offensive lineman, and his commitment came on May 15. 

Diede would join former Glacier standout Jake Rendina in West Point, New York. 

Rendina, a fullback, rushed for 104 yards on 29 carries last season, with one touchdown for the 12-2 Black Knights. 

Reynolds, Monty, 2 teams elected to Grizzlies’ Hall  

The University of Montana athletic department announced its Grizzly Sports Hall of Fame Class of 2025 on Monday, honoring the careers of legendary coach Mike Montgomery, football great Chase Reynolds and two of the most successful teams in school history.  

The 2005-06 Montana Grizzlies men’s basketball team, the last Big Sky Conference team to win an NCAA Tournament game, was selected along with the 1987-88 Lady Griz basketball team that went 28-2 with a 26-game winning streak. 

Montgomery, one of the founders of UM’s renowned basketball coaching tree, guided the Griz from 1987-86 and won a then-school record 155 games. “Monty” went on to coach at Stanford (going 393-167 with an appearance in the 1998 Final Four) and Cal (130-73). He also coached the Golden State Warriors. 

Reynolds holds UM’s career records for rushing touchdowns (52) and total TDs (59). The Drummond native’s 4,067 career rushing yards rank second in school history; he starred on the 2008-09 teams that made back-to-back FCS title games and played four seasons in the NFL. 

Broncs’ Dan Moe top assistant

The Montana Coaches Association announced its 2024-25 Assistant Coaches of tey Year, and they are Dan Moe of Frenchtown and Chris Napierala of Great Falls. 

Moe is a 47-year veteran in the Montana coaching ranks as a head and an assistant coach, divided between Plentywood (18 years) and Frenchtown (29 years). As an assistant he has spent 28 years coaching football, 11 in boys’ basketball, nine in girls’ basketball and 34 in track and field. He has helped teams accumulate nine conference/district championships, four divisional and 10 top-4 state finishes, including three state championships. 

Napierala has been an assistant track and field coach at Great Falls High for 16 years, specializing in the jumps. From 2017-2024 the Bison have had at least one state placer, including the triple jump champion in 2023-24 and the long jump champ in 2024.