THE FRONT ROW with MARK NELKE: About Taco's seasoning, and the flavorful Montana State Bobcats

The defending FCS national champions are coming to Moscow on Friday, when Montana State visits the Idaho Vandals on ESPN. 

Hungry for another title, you know the Bobcats (5-0, 2-0 Big Sky, ranked No. 1 in the FCS) will bring the spice.

Perhaps they'll bring the spices as well.  

TACO DOWLER, a wide receiver, and his twin brother defensive back, Caden Dowler, are a couple of Billings kids who helped their home-state Montana State Bobcats win their first national title since 1984. 

Both are now entering their final seasons in Bozeman, and Taco parlayed his success into starting his own taco seasoning brand, named Dowler's (Google "Dowler's seasoning").  

"We just launched an all-purpose seasoning called Champions Blend," Taco said in July, at the Big Sky Football Kickoff media day in Airway Heights. "It's online, it's in retail stores, it's all throughout the Northwest right now, and hopefully do some NIL for my teammates — Caden's Cowboy Butter, Lamson's Lemon Pepper Rub (for quarterback Justin Lamson), something like that. Try to take NIL and do it the right way, and learn a little business." 

How successful? 

"The first month, we got the report back and it raised my eyebrows a little bit," Taco said. "But that just shows the support that we have in Montana. Everyone wants to buy a 10-dollar bottle of seasoning because they respect that I stayed."  

Why stay? Lots of reasons, including loyalty and legacy. 

"Legacy has no monetary value," said Taco, who caught 77 passes last year, seven for touchdowns, and returned one punt for a score. "It really doesn't, especially in Montana. Both of us grew up there, and we want to leave a legacy behind that hasn't been done before. That's really as simple as it gets. Yeah, it's tempting, there's a big dollar figure out there, and we're 18- to 22-year-old men, and some people get into that, and that's for them; maybe they have family stuff or outside factors they need money for. But, we saw it as an investment to stay in Bozeman, and continue our legacy and try to build our legacy." 

When Montana kids went back to their hometowns after winning the national title, they were celebrated. 

"If Montana State wasn't Montana State, and we didn't have the coaching staff around us, we didn't have the Bozeman community around us, we didn't have the entire state rallying behind us, it'd be pretty easy to leave, if I'm being honest," Caden added. "If Montana State didn't have the value that it has; people don't realize the value that Montana State has. Coach (Brent) Vigen, the best coach in the country by far. Coach Herrin?, the strength coach, who develops guys like no others." 

Plus, it's a big deal for Montana kids to play at Montana schools. 

Caden talked about going to camps put on by current Montana State players, attracting more than 1,000 kids who love Bobcat football. The Cat-Griz game each November is their Super Bowl. 

"Making a lot of the big plays at the end of the season is Montana kids, and that's even cooler when you go back to your hometown," Taco said. 

"If you're one of the best in Montana, you're going to play at Montana State," said Caden, last year's Big Sky Defensive Player of the Year. "It really makes a difference in that portal window, you're really thinking about it ... yeah, it's hard not to commit to something that's so great." 

And besides, as the Big Sky Conference likes to say, you can get there (the NFL) from here. One example close to home — former Montana State linebacker Ty Okada, who won a Super Bowl last season with the Seattle Seahawks. 

"Looking at opportunities somewhere else, you're also going to get a shot here," Taco said. "The NFL's going to find you. If you play well, they're going to find you. The film doesn't lie." 

AS FOR the story behind that nickname ... 

"Honestly, it's going to be a letdown," Taco said. "I don't have a great story behind it. I was like 1 or 2 maybe, and my parents have different stories, so I don't really know what they are. All I know is I'm stubborn enough, Taco stuck. McLean's my regular name. I would cry and pout and scream whenever anyone would call me McLean, so I guess I'm just super stubborn. You can take that from the stories; maybe I'm just way too stubborn." 

Added Caden: 

"I was burrito for a little bit; I must have matured a little bit faster than him," he said with a smile. 

VIGEN, IN his sixth season in Bozeman, has watched his colleagues get out of the coaching business in part because of the changing landscape, or transition into roles where they can "just coach." 

While some schools, like Idaho, have been hit hard in by the transfer portal in recent years, others, like Montana State, lost just a handful of players but kept most of its key players — like the Dowler twins, Lamson (a Stanford transfer) and running back Adam Jones (from Missoula). 

"I think we were able to do more that was positive (with NIL), but I think our guys recognized the things beyond the money; the experience," Vigen said. "That should still be of value to young men and young women in college sports. I think at Montana State we are providing a great experience for our guys, so they recognize that. They're also indebted to one another, as guys were deciding to stay, I think that affected the next guy's decision, which was very positive. I think there was a level of, we just did this, let's try to do it again, that I think brought value." 

This summer, a photo of Vigen with the Wallace High football team, which was attending Montana State's small-school football camp, surfaced online. 

Vigen said he chatted with the Wallace coaches at the camp, and wanted to learn more about the "unique" community. 

"Had a good conversation with them, and definitely thought their team competed well," Vigen said. "For them, it's stepping into different teams to compete against, which is very valuable. Getting out of their comfort zone a little bit." 

Mark Nelke is sports editor of The Press. He can be reached at 208-664-8176, Ext. 1205, or via email at [email protected]. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @CdAPressSports.