1996 Cal State Northridge Matadors football team

1996 Cal State Northridge Matadors football
Conference	Big Sky Conference
Record	7–4 (4–3 Big Sky)
Head coach	Dave Baldwin (2nd season)
Defensive coordinator	Ron Ponciano (2nd season)
Home stadium	North Campus Stadium
Seasons ←  1995 1997  →

1996 Big Sky Conference football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
No. 2 Montana $^		7	–	0					14	–	1
No. 6 Northern Arizona ^		6	–	1					9	–	3
Cal State Northridge		4	–	3					7	–	4
Weber State		4	–	3					7	–	4
Eastern Washington		3	–	4					6	–	5
Montana State		3	–	4					6	–	5
Idaho State		1	–	6					4	–	7
Sacramento State		0	–	7					1	–	10
Portland State		0	–	0					3	–	8
$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Portland State games did not count in conference standings Rankings from The Sports Network poll

The 1996 Cal State Northridge Matadors football team represented California State University, Northridge as a member of the Big Sky Conference during the 1996 NCAA Division I-AA football season. Cal State Northridge and Sacramento State competed for the first time in the Big Sky Conference in 1996. Both teams has been members of the American West Conference (AWC), which folded after the 1995 season. Led by Dave Baldwin in his second and final season as head coach, Cal State Northridge compiled an overall record of 7–4 with a mark of 4–3 in conference play, tying for third place in the Big Sky. Two of the Matador's conference wins came against ranked opponents, Weber State and Eastern Washington. The team outscored its opponents 407 to 313 for the season. The Matadors played home games at North Campus Stadium in Northridge, California.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 7	at Utah State *	Romney Stadium Logan, UT	L 27–57	20,210	[1]
September 14	No. 16 (D-II) UC Davis *	North Campus Stadium Northridge, CA	W 56–31	4,264	[2]
September 21	at New Mexico State *	Aggie Memorial Stadium Las Cruces, NM	W 33–0	12,259	[3]
September 28	at No. 13 Northern Arizona	Walkup Skydome Flagstaff, AZ	L 14–32	9,028	[4]
October 5	Portland State	North Campus Stadium Northridge, CA	W 46–14	3,083	[5]
October 12	at No. 21 Weber State	Wildcat Stadium Ogden, UT	W 35–28	10,503	[6]
October 19	Montana State	North Campus Stadium Northridge, CA	L 17–24	5,631	[7]
October 26	at Sacramento State	Hornet Stadium Sacramento, CA	W 52–17	4,007	[8]
November 2	No. 2 Montana	North Campus Stadium Northridge, CA	L 36–43	4,217	[9]
November 9	at Idaho State	Holt Arena Pocatello, ID	W 42–40	6,006	[10]
November 16	No. 24 Eastern Washington	North Campus Stadium Northridge, CA	W 49–27		[11]
*Non-conference game Rankings from The Sports Network Poll released prior to the game

^[12]

References

1. Jeff Fletcher (September 8, 1996). "Matadors See Positives in 57-27 Loss to Utah State". The Los Angeles Times (Valley ed.). Los Angeles, California. p. C10. Retrieved June 15, 2017– via Newspapers.com.
2. Jeff Fletcher (September 15, 1996). "Romines Takes Davis Defense for Long Ride". The Los Angeles Times (Valley ed.). Los Angeles, California. p. C10. Retrieved June 15, 2017– via Newspapers.com.
3. Jeff Fletcher (September 22, 1996). "CSUN, Flowers Blossom in Desert". The Los Angeles Times (Valley ed.). Los Angeles, California. p. C8. Retrieved June 15, 2017– via Newspapers.com.
4. Jeff Fletcher (September 29, 1996). "Matadors Save Face but Lose in Arizona". The Los Angeles Times (Valley ed.). Los Angeles, California. p. C10. Retrieved June 15, 2017– via Newspapers.com.
5. Jeff Fletcher (October 6, 1996). "No Stopping Northridge". The Los Angeles Times (Valley ed.). Los Angeles, California. p. C16. Retrieved June 15, 2017– via Newspapers.com.
6. Jeff Fletcher (October 13, 1996). "Pie in Big Sky for Northridge". The Los Angeles Times (Valley ed.). Los Angeles, California. p. C14. Retrieved June 15, 2017– via Newspapers.com.
7. Jeff Fletcher (October 20, 1996). "Matadors Suffer the Ache, 24-17". The Los Angeles Times (Valley ed.). Los Angeles, California. p. C10. Retrieved June 15, 2017– via Newspapers.com.
8. "Hornet Sports.com: Football (CS Northridge)" (PDF). Retrieved April 24, 2017.
9. Mike Hiserman (November 3, 1996). "Montana Nearly Does a Skydive". The Los Angeles Times (Valley ed.). Los Angeles, California. p. C15. Retrieved June 15, 2017– via Newspapers.com.
10. Michael Lazarus (November 10, 1996). "Idaho State Falls Short of CSUN". The Los Angeles Times (Valley ed.). Los Angeles, California. p. C12. Retrieved June 15, 2017– via Newspapers.com.
11. Jeff Fletcher (November 17, 1996). "Northridge Finishes on Big Sky High". The Los Angeles Times (Valley ed.). Los Angeles, California. p. C9. Retrieved June 15, 2017– via Newspapers.com.
12. "1996 - Cal St.-Northridge". Archived from the original on September 11, 2015. Retrieved January 21, 2017.