Hey there BBQ_King,
Both manufacturers make good GTX 970, as well as Gigabyte.
The overall opinion is that MSI is the cheapest and has the best power delivery. They are pretty much the same performance-wise. The MSI one does not have a backplate. It also overclocks pretty good.
I would just say get the one that is cheaper and appeals to you with its looks. Whichever you choose, the differences would be very small to have a significant impact on performance.
Hope this helps,
Captain_WD.