By Bill Foley

Dylan Snyder is hoping the Grizzlies’ loss will be the Bobcats’ gain.

The Butte High senior announced today that he has verbally committed to play football at Montana State.

The commitment comes after Snyder proved to be one of Butte High’s best players on both sides of the ball for the Bulldogs in 2021. Snyder was a dominant receiver and defensive end for the Bulldogs, helping Butte High secure a first-round bye in the Class AA playoffs.

A target of several Frontier Conference teams, Snyder said his decision came down to Montana or Montana State.

“I was talking to the Griz for a while,” he said. “I was going to their game-day visits for a while, and then they kind of just ghosted me.”

A visit to the MSU facilities and with the coaching staff sold Snyder on the Bobcats.

“The Cats started talking to me, and I really like their facility,” Snyder said. “Their coaching staff is awesome.”

I would like to announce my commitment to Montana State!! Thank you to all my friends,family, and coaches for helping me along the way. @bvigen @CoachUdy @CoachBobbyDaly @CoachWeeseMSU #TrueBlue22 #GoCatsGo pic.twitter.com/JtVLCJtjQ8

— Dylan Snyder (@DylanSn08246172) November 24, 2021

Snyder called the coaches at MSU to let them know of his commitment to walk onto the team early this week. He waited until he was getting ready for Butte High’s Coronation Dance to announce it on Twitter.

“I waited until today to post it on Twitter because they were making me a graphic,” Snyder said.

Snyder said he believes the Bobcats will use him as a receiver. The 6-foot-3, 190-pound Snyder caught 37 passes for 571 yards and seven touchdowns in nine games. Three times he went over the century mark in receiving yards.

On the other side of the ball, Snyder racked up 38 total tackles to go along with a team-leading five sacks and eight quarterback hurries.

“I think they’re playing me at receiver which is good,” Snyder said. “I like playing receiver. But I like defense, too.”

Snyder is also a threat on special teams. He returned a kickoff 88 yards for a touchdown in Butte High’s win at Kalispell Flathead.

The commitment comes after Snyder had a big season for Butte High in track last spring. He tied for second by clearing 6 feet in the high jump, but placed sixth on jumps, at the Class AA State meet in Missoula. He also took fifth in the long jump with a leap of 20 feet, 9 ½ inches.

Snyder’s bests in track & field marks include a 6-2 high jump, a 21-2 long jump and an 11.49-second time in the 100 meters.

The speed and jumping ability were on full display during the football season as Snyder often went up high to pull down spectacular catches.

The commitment comes two years, 8 months and seven days after Snyder thought his sports career was over.

While playing in a basketball tournament on St. Patrick’s Day in Dillon, Snyder severely broke his lower leg.

“I went up to block a shot and when I landed, it just broke,” Snyder said.

Snyder spent the 2019 Butte High football season filming games. He said he did not think he would play again.

“No, I honestly didn’t,” said Snyder, who said he will major in business or nutrition science at MSU. “I thought I was done with sports. I had a bunch of nerve damage.”

He returned to the football field for his junior season and caught 15 passes for 158 yards in the COVID-shortened season. He also registered seven total tackles and two sacks.

As a senior, he really took off.

The injury has some lingering affects to this day, but Snyder said it does not slow him down.

“There’s still some pain here and there,” he said, “but that’s about it.”

The commitment comes after Snyder, the son of Jason and Lisa, grew up a “huge Griz fan.”

Now, he is hoping his former favorite team will some day regret they day they stopped talking to him.

“I sure hope so,” Snyder said. “That’s the plan.”