BOZEMAN — Nashville, Tennessee is 1,713 miles from Bozeman - a journey the Bobcats are preparing to make. But, it’s not just the players making the trek. “We’re getting ready to go to the national championship over in Nashville, Tennessee,” said Justin Jessop, director of equipment operations for Bobcat Athletics.
I caught up with Jessop on what you could call an especially busy day for his crew. “We are loading the truck, and we are also getting the players ready to travel,” he said.
It’s no small operation. “As far as packing, this starts within hours of our final game — right after the semifinal game against U of M,” Jessop said.
While others celebrated the win, Jessop and his crew of five immediately got to work, and they’ve been at it ever since. “To begin with we’ve got the important stuff. We’ve got our communication devices, or what we call Coach Com, in the back there,” Jessop said.
Along with medical kits, the haul includes video replay equipment, plenty of Gatorade and basically everything crucial for winning a national championship. “We’ll fill this up with athletic trainers’ gear, equipment, strength and conditioning tools — you name it. When we get to the end here, then we’ll start loading all the personal bags for players, coaches and staff,” Jessop explained.
For Jessop, it’s not just about packing a truck and checking off a list, it’s about making sure the Bobcats have what they need to win the big game. “Without Coach Com, we don’t talk. Without Game Strat, our tablet system, we don’t see replays. Why it’s so important is because if the other team has it, that’s an advantage,” he said.
There’s more going on behind the scenes than just loading a truck. The crew is hand-cleaning each helmet, washing jerseys, packing each player an FCS champion backpack and more. If you see the truck on the road to Nashville, give them a honk for all that hard work.
“The driver will pass Bobcat fans all the time. People know — they see this truck, they know what’s coming,” Jessop said.
The truck hit the road Wednesday afternoon. The Bobcats fly to Nashville on Friday at 1 p.m. The truck will be unloaded to get the team ready for the FCS Championship game.
