2008 NCAA Division I FCS football season

The 25-second play clock was replaced by a 40-second version similar to one that was used in the NFL until 2005.
The penalty for kicking the ball out of bounds on the kickoff is increased, placing the ball at the 40-yard line, similar to the NFL.
All face-mask penalties result in a 15-yard penalty. Incidental contact with the face mask is no longer penalized.
All horse-collar tackles are now subject to a 15-yard penalty.
If a coach challenges a play and they win the challenge, they are given a second challenge to use later in the game, and each coach has a maximum of two challenges per game even if both are decided in their favor.

FCS team wins over FBS teams

August 30 – Cal Poly 29, San Diego State 27
September 6 – New Hampshire 28, Army 10

Notable upsets

August 30 – Arkansas-Monticello 21, Arkansas-Pine Bluff 0 (Division II over Division I FCS)
August 31 – Fayetteville State 33, North Carolina Central 22 (Division II over Division I FCS)
September 4 – St. Francis (IL) 21, Valparaiso 0 (NAIA over Division I FCS non-scholarship)
September 4 – Washburn 35, Missouri State 27 (Division II over Division I FCS)
September 5 – Stonehill 14, Wagner 13 (Division II over Division I FCS)
September 6 – Methodist 32, Campbell 21 (Division III over Division I FCS non-scholarship)
September 6 – UNC Pembroke 21, Davidson 9 (Division II over Division I FCS non-scholarship)
September 6 – Henderson State 34, Arkansas-Pine Bluff 0 (Division II over Division I FCS)
September 13 – Franklin 31, Butler 28 (Division III over Division I FCS non-scholarship)
September 20 – UNC Pembroke 22, Jacksonville 21 (Division II over Division I FCS non-scholarship)
September 20 – Marian 13, Valparaiso 10 (NAIA over Division I FCS non-scholarship)
October 4 – Tuskegee 34, Alabama A&M 24 (Division II over Division I FCS)
October 11 – Wesley 23, Iona 12 (Division III over Division I FCS)

Conference champions

Automatic berths

Conference	Champion	Record*
Big Sky Conference	Montana	11–0, 8-0
Colonial Athletic Association	James Madison	10–1, 8–0
Missouri Valley Football Conference	Southern Illinois	9–2, 7–1
Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference	South Carolina State	10–2, 8–0
Ohio Valley Conference	Eastern Kentucky	8–3, 7–1
Patriot League	Colgate	9–2, 5–0
Southern Conference	Appalachian State	10–2, 8–0
Southland Conference	Texas State	8–4, 5–2

Invitation

Conference	Champion	Record*
Great West Conference	Cal Poly	8–2, 3–0
Big South Conference	Liberty	10–2, 5–0
Northeast Conference	Albany	8–3, 7–0
Pioneer Football League	Jacksonville	9–3, 7–1

Abstains

Conference	Champion	Record*
Ivy League	Brown	7–3, 6–1
Southwestern Athletic Conference	Grambling State	11–2, 7–0

*Overall record, Conference record

Postseason

NCAA FCS Playoff bracket

First Round^[6] November 29 Campus Sites			Quarterfinals December 6 Campus Sites			Semifinals December 12 and December 13 Campus Sites			National Championship Game December 19 Finley Stadium Chattanooga, Tennessee

	Wofford	35
1	James Madison*	38
			1	James Madison*	31

				Villanova	27
	Colgate	28

	Villanova*	55
						1	James Madison*	27

						4	Montana	35
	Texas State	13

4	Montana*	31
			4	Montana*	24

				Weber State	13
	Weber State	49

	Cal Poly*	35
									4	Montana	7

										Richmond	24
	South Carolina State	21

2	Appalachian State*	37
			2	Appalachian State*	13

				Richmond	33
	Eastern Kentucky	10

	Richmond*	38
							Richmond	21

						3	Northern Iowa*	20
	Maine	15

3	Northern Iowa*	40
			3	Northern Iowa*	36

				New Hampshire	34
	New Hampshire	29

	Southern Illinois*	20

* Host institution

SWAC Championship Game

Date	Location	Venue	West Div. Champion	East Div. Champion	Result
December 13	Birmingham, Alabama	Legion Field	Grambling State	Jackson State	Grambling State, 41–9^[7]

Gridiron Classic

The Gridiron Classic is an annual game between the champions of the Northeast Conference and the Pioneer Football League that has been held since December 2006.

Date	Location	Venue	NEC Champion	PFL Champion	Result
December 6	Albany, New York	University Field	Albany	Jacksonville	Albany, 28–0^[8]

Final poll standings

Standings are from The Sports Network final 2008 poll.

Rank^[9]	Team	Record
1	Richmond Spiders	13–3
2	Montana Grizzlies	14–2
3	James Madison Dukes	12–2
4	Northern Iowa Panthers	12–3
5	Appalachian State Mountaineers	11–3
6	Villanova Wildcats	10–3
7	Weber State Wildcats	10–4
8	New Hampshire Wildcats	10–3
9	Wofford Terriers	9–3
10	Cal Poly Mustangs	8–3
11	Southern Illinois Salukis	9–3
12	Central Arkansas Bears	10–2
13	South Carolina State Bulldogs	10–3
14	[[{{{school}}}\|Liberty Flames]]	10–2
15	[[{{{school}}}\|Harvard Crimson]]	9–1
16	[[{{{school}}}\|Colgate Raiders]]	9–3
17	[[{{{school}}}\|Elon Phoenix]]	8–4
18	[[{{{school}}}\|Maine Black Bears]]	8–5
19	[[{{{school}}}\|Eastern Kentucky Colonels]]	8–4
20	William & Mary Tribe	7–4
21	[[{{{school}}}\|McNeese State Cowboys]]	7–4
22	[[{{{school}}}\|Texas State Bobcats]]	8–5
23	Jacksonville State Gamecocks	8–3
24	[[{{{school}}}\|Grambling State Tigers]]	11–2
25	[[{{{school}}}\|Prairie View A&M Panthers]]	9–1

Notes and references

^ Associated Press (2008-12-19). "Richmond cruises to first football title". ESPN. http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/recap?gameId=283540257. Retrieved 2008-12-20.
^ "Armanti Edwards wins 2008 Walter Payton Award". The Sports Network. http://www.sportsnetwork.com/merge/tsnform.aspx?c=sportsnetwork&page=cfoot2/misc/2008payton_edwards.htm. Retrieved 2008-12-20.
^ "Greg Peach captures 2008 Buck Buchanan Award". The Sports Network. http://www.sportsnetwork.com/merge/tsnform.aspx?c=sportsnetwork&page=cfoot2/misc/2008buchanan_peach.htm. Retrieved 2008-12-20.
^ "NCAA Football Rules Committee Proposes Rules to Enhance Student-Athlete Safety and Encourage Consistent Pace of Play" (Press release). NCAA. 2008-02-13. http://www.ncaa.org/wps/ncaa?ContentID=1182.
^ Olin Buchanan (2008-02-13). "More new timing rules among NCAA proposal". Rivals. http://collegefootball.rivals.com/content.asp?cid=774255. Retrieved 2008-02-13.
^ "2008 Playoff Bracket". NCAA. http://www.ncaa.com/auto_pdf/p_hotos/s_chools/ncaa/sports/m-footbl/auto_pdf/2008-FCSFBBracket. Retrieved 2008-12-24.
^ Associated Press (2008-12-13). "Grambling St. 41, Jackson St. 9". ESPN. http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/recap?gameId=283482755. Retrieved 2008-12-20.
^ Associated Press (2008-12-06). "Albany, N.Y. 28, Jacksonville 0". ESPN. http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/recap?gameId=283410399. Retrieved 2008-12-20.
^ "Final Sports Network's 2008 FCS College Football Poll". The Sports Network. http://www.sportsnetwork.com/merge/tsnform.aspx?c=sportsnetwork&page=cfoot2/misc/2008_poll.htm. Retrieved 2009-03-01.

External links

List of FCS Schools

NCAA college football seasons

Pre-regulation	1869 1870 1871 1872 1873 1874 1875 1876 1877 1878 1879 1880 1881 1882 1883 1884 1885 1886 1887 1888 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905

IAAUS	1906 1907 1908 1909

NCAA	1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972

NCAA Division I	1973 1974 1975 1976 1977

NCAA Division I-A/FBS	1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012

NCAA Division I-AA/FCS	1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012