2008 Montana Grizzlies football team

2008 Montana Grizzlies football
Big Sky co-champion
FCS Championship Game, L 7–24 vs. Richmond
Conference	Big Sky Conference
Record	14–2 (7–1 Big Sky)
Head coach	Bobby Hauck (6th season)
Offensive coordinator	Rob Phenicie (6th season)
Defensive coordinator	Kraig Paulson (5th season)
Home stadium	Washington–Grizzly Stadium (Capacity: 25,217)

2008 Big Sky Conference football standings

	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
No. 2 Montana $^		7	–	1					14	–	2
No. 7 Weber State $^		7	–	1					10	–	4
Montana State		5	–	3					7	–	5
Eastern Washington		5	–	3					6	–	5
Northern Arizona		4	–	4					6	–	5
Sacramento State		3	–	5					6	–	6
Portland State		3	–	5					4	–	7
Northern Colorado		1	–	7					1	–	10
Idaho State		1	–	7					1	–	11
$ – Conference champion ^ – FCS playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network poll

The 2008 Montana Grizzlies football team represented the University of Montana during the 2008 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Montana competed as a member of the Big Sky Conference and played their home games at the Washington–Grizzly Stadium.

The Grizzlies were led by sixth-year head coach Bobby Hauck. Montana finished the regular season with an 11–1 overall record and a 7–1 record in conference play to win a share of their 11th straight Big Sky title. Montana secured a berth in the FCS playoffs where they defeated Texas State, Weber State, and James Madison in succession to advance to the championship game. There, they were defeated by Richmond, 24–7, to finish the season as the national championship runners-up.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 6	7:00 pm	at No. 11 Cal Poly*	No. 5	Alex G. Spanos Stadium San Luis Obispo, CA	KPAX	W 30–28	10,035
September 13	1:00 pm	Southern Utah*	No. 4	Washington–Grizzly Stadium Missoula, MT	KPAX	W 46–10	25,056
September 20	1:00 pm	UC Davis*	No. 4	Washington–Grizzly Stadium Missoula, MT	KPAX	W 29–24	25,209
September 27	1:00 pm	Central Washington*	No. 3	Washington–Grizzly Stadium Missoula, MT	KPAX	W 38–35	25,326
October 4	1:00 pm	at Weber State	No. 2	Stewart Stadium Ogden, UT	KPAX	L 28–45	3,753
October 11	3:00 pm	at No. 23 Eastern Washington	No. 12	Woodward Field Cheney, WA (EWU–UM Governors Cup)	KPAX	W 19–3	10,830
October 18	1:00 pm	Sacramento State	No. 8	Washington–Grizzly Stadium Missoula, MT	KPAX	W 43–7	25,486
October 25	12:00 pm	at Northern Colorado	No. 8	Nottingham Field Greeley, CO	KPAX	W 41–20	3,709
November 1	12:00 pm	No. 19 Northern Arizona	No. 6	Washington–Grizzly Stadium Missoula, MT	KPAX	W 45–10	24,003
November 8	2:00 pm	at Portland State	No. 5	PGE Park Portland, OR	KPAX	W 29–12	12,071
November 15	12:00 pm	Idaho State	No. 5	Washington–Grizzly Stadium Missoula, MT	KPAX	W 29–10	23,527
November 22	12:00 pm	Montana State	No. 5	Washington–Grizzly Stadium Missoula, MT (rivalry)	KPAX	W 35–3	25,629
November 29	12:00 pm	No. 23 Texas State*	No. 5	Washington–Grizzly Stadium Missoula, MT (NCAA Division I First Round)	KPAX	W 31–13	19,489
December 6	12:00 pm	No. 10 Weber State*	No. 5	Washington–Grizzly Stadium Missoula, MT (NCAA Division I Quarterfinal)	ESPNGP	W 24–13	21,583
December 12	6:00 pm	at No. 1 James Madison*	No. 5	Bridgeforth Stadium Harrisonburg, VA (NCAA Division I Semifinal)	ESPN2	W 35–27	15,976
December 19	6:00 pm	vs. No. 7 Richmond*	No. 5	Finley Stadium Chattanooga, TN (NCAA Division I Championship)	ESPN2	L 7–24	17,823
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from The Sports Network Poll released prior to the game All times are in Mountain time