Former Griz, Old Dominion Head Coach Blaine Taylor

Head Coach of the Montana Grizzlies Men's Basketball team Travis DeCuire is one win away from setting the record for most victories at UM. He can break the tie with George "Jiggs" Dahlberg against Sacramento State.

As DeCuire's on the verge of Montana immortality, I reached out to his college Head Coach in the early 90s: Blaine Taylor. Taylor was on Tuesday's Daily Drive with Ace Sauerwein.

"Travis has really good qualities," began Taylor. "And you can go back to his upbringing, sports around him and kind of a forward-thinking vision of what he could become."

Taylor shared with us a great story of when he first recruited DeCuire as a player.

"I was recruiting in Southern California. My habit was in the mornings, I'd organize my recruiting day, and I ran into Ed Peppel [DeCuire's High School coach] early in the day. He said 'What are you looking for?' and I says "We're looking to find a guard who can help us there,' and he says 'I got the guy.'"

Travis DeCuire was that guy. DeCuire was at Chaminade at the time playing in Washington, so Taylor got on the next plane after checking with Griz Head Coach at the time Stew Morrill.

"In a summer league game, there's a guy on a breakaway that tries to take off from the about the free throw line and do a 360 and it fails miserably," laughed Taylor. "And I go 'Oh no, that's him."

Taylor guffawed over the DeCuire gaff, but in the end Taylor saw enough from TD to give him a chance.

"But Travis was always a trier and he always had a tremendous amount of belief."

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I will say Griz fans have a tremendous amount of belief with this year's Montana Grizzlies. Winners of 9 in a row and sitting atop the Big Sky, DeCuire has the Griz humming.

To listen to the awesome full-length interview, click on the Daily Drive With Ace Sauerwein podcast below.