2008 NCAA Division I FCS football season

2008 NCAA Division I FCS season
Logo for the 2008 NCAA Division I Football Championship Game
Duration	August 28 – November 22
Playoff
Duration	November 29 – December 19
Championship site	Finley Stadium, Chattanooga, TN
Champion	Richmond Spiders^[1]
Payton Award	Armanti Edwards^[2]
Buchanan Award	Greg Peach^[3]
Division I FCS football season
«2007 2009»

The 2008 NCAA Division I FCS football season, part of the college football season, began on August 28, 2008 and concluded on December 19, 2008 in Chattanooga, Tennessee at the 2008 NCAA Division I National Football Championship game, where the Richmond Spiders defeated the Montana Grizzlies to win the NCAA Division I Football Championship.

Rule changes for 2008

The NCAA football rules committee made several rule changes for 2008, and includes the following:^[4]^[5]

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.

In addition to the rules changes, this was the first season in which a standard provision of NCAA rules allowed FCS teams to schedule 12 regular-season games (not counting conference championship games). In years when the period starting with the Thursday before Labor Day and ending with the final Saturday in November contains 14 Saturdays, FCS programs may play 12 games instead of the regular 11.

Conference and program changes

The Gateway Football Conference changed its name to its now-current name, Missouri Valley Football Conference.
Following the 2007 season, the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference was forced to drop its football sponsorship after La Salle dropped its program. The two remaining teams, Iona and Marist, were forced to become independents. Iona would eventually drop its own program at the end of the 2008 season.

School	2007 Conference	2008 Conference
Bryant	Northeast-10 (D-II)	FCS Independent
Campbell	New Program	Pioneer
Duquesne	MAAC	Northeast
Iona	MAAC	FCS Independent
La Salle	MAAC	Dropped Program
Marist	MAAC	FCS Independent
North Dakota State	Great West	Missouri Valley
Presbyterian	D-II Independent	Big South
Samford	Ohio Valley	Southern
South Dakota State	Great West	Missouri Valley
Stony Brook	FCS Independent	Big South

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 non-scholarship)

Conference standings

2008 Big Sky football standings
	Conf				Overall
Team		W		L		W		L
#2 Montana $^		7	–	1		14	–	2
#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 FCS Poll

2008 Big South football standings
	Conf				Overall
Team		W		L		W		L
#14 Liberty $		5	–	0		10	–	2
Stony Brook		3	–	2		5	–	6
Charleston Southern		3	–	2		7	–	5
Gardner–Webb		2	–	3		5	–	6
Coastal Carolina		1	–	4		6	–	6
VMI		1	–	4		4	–	7

$ – Conference champion Rankings from The Sports Network FCS Poll

2008 CAA football standings
	Conf				Overall
Team		W		L		W		L
North
#8 New Hampshire x^		6	–	2		10	–	3
#18 Maine ^		5	–	3		8	–	5
UMass		4	–	4		7	–	5
Hofstra		2	–	6		4	–	8
Rhode Island		1	–	7		3	–	9
Northeastern		1	–	7		2	–	10
South
#3 James Madison x$^		8	–	0		12	–	2
#6 Villanova ^		7	–	1		10	–	3
#1 Richmond ^		6	–	2		13	–	3
#20 William & Mary		5	–	3		7	–	4
Delaware		2	–	6		4	–	8
Towson		1	–	7		3	–	9

x – Division champion/co-champions ^ – FCS playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network FCS Poll

2008 Great West football standings
	Conf				Overall
Team		W		L		W		L
#10 Cal Poly $^		3	–	0		8	–	3
UC Davis		2	–	1		5	–	7
North Dakota		1	–	2		6	–	4
South Dakota		1	–	2		6	–	5
Southern Utah		1	–	3		4	–	7

$ – Conference champion ^ – FCS playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network FCS Poll

2008 Ivy League football standings
	Conf				Overall
Team		W		L		W		L
#15 Harvard +		6	–	1		9	–	1
Brown +		6	–	1		7	–	3
Penn		5	–	2		6	–	4
Yale		4	–	3		6	–	4
Princeton		3	–	4		4	–	6
Cornell		2	–	5		4	–	6
Columbia		2	–	5		2	–	8
Dartmouth		0	–	7		0	–	10

+ – Conference co-champions The Ivy League does not participate in the FCS Playoffs Rankings from The Sports Network FCS Poll

2008 MEAC football standings
	Conf				Overall
Team		W		L		W		L
South Carolina State $^		8	–	0		10	–	2
Florida A&M		5	–	3		9	–	3
Bethune-Cookman		5	–	3		8	–	3
Hampton		5	–	3		6	–	5
Delaware State		5	–	3		5	–	6
Morgan State		4	–	4		6	–	6
Norfolk State		3	–	5		5	–	7
North Carolina A&T		1	–	7		3	–	9
Winston-Salem State*		0	–	0		3	–	8
Howard		0	–	8		1	–	10

$ – Conference champion ^ – FCS playoff participant * Not eligible for conference championship Rankings from AP Poll

2008 Missouri Valley Football Conference standings
	Conf				Overall
Team		W		L		W		L
#4 Northern Iowa $^		7	–	1		12	–	3
#11 Southern Illinois ^		7	–	1		9	–	3
South Dakota State		6	–	2		7	–	5
Western Illinois		4	–	4		6	–	5
North Dakota State		4	–	4		6	–	5
Missouri State		3	–	5		4	–	7
Youngstown State		3	–	5		4	–	8
Illinois State		2	–	6		3	–	8
Indiana State		0	–	8		0	–	12

$ – Conference champion ^ – FCS playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network FCS Poll

2008 NEC football standings
	Conf				Overall
Team		W		L		W		L
Albany $		7	–	0		9	–	3
Monmouth		6	–	1		7	–	5
Sacred Heart		4	–	3		8	–	3
Central Connecticut State		4	–	3		7	–	4
Robert Morris		4	–	3		5	–	6
Duquesne		2	–	5		3	–	7
Wagner		1	–	6		3	–	8
Saint Francis		0	–	7		0	–	11

$ – Conference champion ^ – FCS playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network FCS Poll

2008 Ohio Valley football standings
	Conf				Overall
Team		W		L		W		L
#19 Eastern Kentucky $^		7	–	1		8	–	4
Jacksonville State		6	–	2		8	–	3
Tennessee-Martin		6	–	2		8	–	4
Tennessee State		5	–	3		8	–	4
Murray State		4	–	4		5	–	7
Eastern Illinois		3	–	5		5	–	7
Southeast Missouri State		2	–	6		4	–	8
Austin Peay		2	–	6		2	–	9
Tennessee Tech		1	–	7		3	–	9

$ – Conference champion ^ – FCS playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network FCS Poll

2008 Patriot League football standings
	Conf				Overall
Team		W		L		W		L
#16 Colgate $^		5	–	0		9	–	3
Holy Cross		5	–	1		7	–	4
Lehigh		4	–	2		5	–	6
Lafayette		3	–	3		7	–	4
Bucknell		2	–	4		5	–	6
Fordham		1	–	5		5	–	6
Georgetown		0	–	5		2	–	8

$ – Conference champion ^ – FCS playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network FCS Poll

2008 Pioneer Football League standings
	Conf				Overall
Team		W		L		W		L
Jacksonville $		7	–	1		9	–	4
San Diego		6	–	2		9	–	2
Dayton		6	–	2		9	–	3
Butler		4	–	4		6	–	5
Drake		4	–	4		6	–	5
Morehead State		4	–	4		6	–	6
Davidson		3	–	5		4	–	7
Valparaiso		2	–	6		3	–	8
Campbell		0	–	8		1	–	10

$ – Conference champion ^ – FCS playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network FCS Poll

2008 Southern Conference football standings
	Conf				Overall
Team		W		L		W		L
#5 Appalachian State $^		8	–	0		11	–	3
#9 Wofford ^		7	–	1		9	–	3
#17 Elon		6	–	2		8	–	4
Furman		4	–	4		7	–	5
Samford		4	–	4		6	–	5
Georgia Southern		4	–	4		6	–	5
The Citadel		2	–	6		4	–	8
Western Carolina		1	–	7		3	–	9
Chattanooga		0	–	8		1	–	11

$ – Conference champion ^ – FCS playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network FCS Poll

2008 Southland Conference football standings
	Conf				Overall
Team		W		L		W		L
#12 Central Arkansas $		6	–	1		10	–	2
Texas State ^		5	–	2		8	–	5
McNeese State		4	–	3		7	–	3
Northwestern State		4	–	3		7	–	5
Nicholls State		3	–	4		3	–	6
Southeastern Louisiana		2	–	5		5	–	7
Sam Houston State		2	–	5		4	–	6
Stephen F. Austin		2	–	5		4	–	8

$ – Conference champion ^ – FCS playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network FCS Poll

2008 SWAC football standings
	Conf				Overall
Team		W		L		W		L
East
Jackson State x		6	–	1		7	–	5
Alabama A&M		4	–	3		5	–	7
Alabama State		2	–	5		3	–	8
Mississippi Valley State		1	–	6		3	–	8
Alcorn State		1	–	6		2	–	10
West
Grambling State x$		7	–	0		11	–	2
Prairie View A&M		6	–	1		9	–	1
Southern		5	–	2		6	–	5
Arkansas–Pine Bluff		2	–	5		3	–	9
Texas Southern		1	–	6		4	–	8
Championship: Grambling State 41, Jackson State 9 December 13, 2008
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions

Template:2008 Division I FCS independent football standings

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	Liberty Flames	10–2
15	Harvard Crimson	9–1
16	Colgate Raiders	9–3
17	Elon Phoenix	8–4
18	Maine Black Bears	8–5
19	Eastern Kentucky Colonels	8–4
20	William & Mary Tribe	7–4
21	McNeese State Cowboys	7–4
22	Texas State Bobcats	8–5
23	Jacksonville State Gamecocks	8–3
24	Grambling State Tigers	11–2
25	Prairie View A&M Panthers	9–1

References

↑ Associated Press (2008-12-19). "Richmond cruises to first football title". ESPN. Retrieved 2008-12-20.
↑ "Armanti Edwards wins 2008 Walter Payton Award". The Sports Network. Archived from the original on 2011-04-04. Retrieved 2008-12-20.
↑ "Greg Peach captures 2008 Buck Buchanan Award". The Sports Network. 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. Archived from the original on 23 December 2008. Retrieved 20 December 2008.
↑ Olin Buchanan (2008-02-13). "More new timing rules among NCAA proposal". Rivals. Archived from the original on 15 February 2008. Retrieved 2008-02-13.
↑ "2008 Playoff Bracket". NCAA. Archived from the original on 27 November 2008. Retrieved 2008-12-24.
↑ Associated Press (2008-12-13). "Grambling St. 41, Jackson St. 9". ESPN. Retrieved 2008-12-20.
↑ Associated Press (2008-12-06). "Albany, N.Y. 28, Jacksonville 0". ESPN. Retrieved 2008-12-20.
↑ "Final Sports Network's 2008 FCS College Football Poll". The Sports Network. Archived from the original on 2011-05-25. Retrieved 2009-03-01.

NCAA 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/NCAA	1906 1907 1908 1909 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
NCAA University Division/ Division I	1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 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 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
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 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
NCAA Division II	1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 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 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
NCAA Division III	1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 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 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017

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