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.
| 2008 Montana Grizzlies football | |
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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 |
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| Offensive coordinator | Rob Phenicie (6th season) |
| Defensive coordinator | Kraig Paulson (5th season) |
| Home stadium | Washington–Grizzly Stadium (Capacity: 25,217) |
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 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 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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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 edit
| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 6 | 7:00 pm | at No. 11 Cal Poly* | No. 5 | KPAX | W 30–28 | 10,035 | |
| September 13 | 1:00 pm | Southern Utah* | No. 4 | KPAX | W 46–10 | 25,056 | |
| September 20 | 1:00 pm | UC Davis* | No. 4 |
| KPAX | W 29–24 | 25,209 |
| September 27 | 1:00 pm | Central Washington* | No. 3 |
| KPAX | W 38–35 | 25,326 |
| October 4 | 1:00 pm | at Weber State | No. 2 | KPAX | L 28–45 | 3,753 | |
| October 11 | 3:00 pm | at No. 23 Eastern Washington | No. 12 | KPAX | W 19–3 | 10,830 | |
| October 18 | 1:00 pm | Sacramento State | No. 8 |
| KPAX | W 43–7 | 25,486 |
| October 25 | 12:00 pm | at Northern Colorado | No. 8 | KPAX | W 41–20 | 3,709 | |
| November 1 | 12:00 pm | No. 19 Northern Arizona | No. 6 |
| KPAX | W 45–10 | 24,003 |
| November 8 | 2:00 pm | at Portland State | No. 5 | KPAX | W 29–12 | 12,071 | |
| November 15 | 12:00 pm | Idaho State | No. 5 |
| KPAX | W 29–10 | 23,527 |
| November 22 | 12:00 pm | Montana State | No. 5 |
| KPAX | W 35–3 | 25,629 |
| November 29 | 12:00 pm | No. 23 Texas State* | No. 5 |
| KPAX | W 31–13 | 19,489 |
| December 6 | 12:00 pm | No. 10 Weber State* | No. 5 |
| ESPNGP | W 24–13 | 21,583 |
| December 12 | 6:00 pm | at No. 1 James Madison* | No. 5 |
| ESPN2 | W 35–27 | 15,976 |
| December 19 | 6:00 pm | vs. No. 7 Richmond* | No. 5 | ESPN2 | L 7–24 | 17,823 | |
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