2004 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game

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2004 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship
I-AA National Championship Game
James Madison Dukes Montana Grizzlies
(12–2)(12–2)
Atlantic 10 Big Sky
3121
Head coach: 
Mickey Matthews 		Head coach: 
Bobby Hauck
TSN Seed
8—
TSN Seed
7—
1234Total
James Madison01014731
Montana7014021
DateDecember 17, 2004
Season 2004
Stadium Finley Stadium
Location Chattanooga, Tennessee
Referee G. Hartleb [1]
Attendance16,771 [2]
United States TV coverage
Network ESPN2
NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship
 < 2003 2005 > 

The 2004 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game was a postseason college football game between the James Madison Dukes and the Montana Grizzlies. The game was played on December 17, 2004, at Finley Stadium, home field of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. The culminating game of the 2004 NCAA Division I-AA football season, it was won by James Madison, 31–21.

Contents

Teams

The participants of the Championship Game were the finalists of the 2004 I-AA Playoffs, which began with a 16-team bracket.

James Madison Dukes

James Madison finished their regular season with a 9–2 record (7–1 in conference). One of their losses was to West Virginia of Division I-A. The Dukes, unseeded in the tournament, defeated Lehigh, second-seed Furman, and third-seed William & Mary to reach the final. This was the first appearance for James Madison in a Division I-AA championship game.

Montana Grizzlies

Montana finished their regular season with a 9–2 record (6–1 in conference). The Grizzlies, also unseeded in the tournament, defeated Northwestern State, New Hampshire, and Sam Houston State to reach the final. This was the fifth appearance for Montana in a Division I-AA championship game; they had won in 1995 and 2001, and lost in 1996 and 2000.

Game summary

Scoring summary

Scoring summary
QuarterTime Drive TeamScoring informationScore
Plays Yards TOP JMUMONT
110:0811714:52MONTJefferson Heidelberger 3-yard touchdown reception from Craig Ochs, Dan Carpenter kick good07
28:5414746:27JMU28-yard field goal by David Rabil37
20:1613715:05JMUMaurice Fenner 1-yard touchdown run, Rabil kick good107
311:586803:02JMU Justin Rascati 11-yard touchdown run, Rabil kick good177
38:519753:01MONTLevander Segars 17-yard touchdown reception from Ochs, Carpenter kick good1714
37:293290:24MONTWillie Walden 8-yard touchdown reception from Ochs, Carpenter kick good1721
33:259723:57JMUFenner 1-yard touchdown run, Rabil kick good2421
48:0016807:05JMURascati 6-yard touchdown run, Rabil kick good3121
"TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football.3121

[1] [2] [3] [4]

Game statistics

1234Total
Dukes01014731
Grizzlies7014021
Montana running back Lex Hilliard Lex Hilliard2.jpg
Montana running back Lex Hilliard
StatisticsJMUMONT
First downs3221
Plays–yards79–44661–415
Rushes–yards61–31423–44
Passing yards132371
Passing: comp–att–int13–18–029–38–1
Time of possession36:1323:47
TeamCategoryPlayerStatistics
James MadisonPassing Justin Rascati 13–18, 132 yds
RushingMaurice Fenner29 car, 164 yds, 2 TD
ReceivingTom Ridley3 rec, 32 yds
MontanaPassing Craig Ochs 29–38, 371 yds, 3 TD, 1 INT
Rushing Lex Hilliard 12 car, 26 yds
ReceivingJon Talmage6 rec, 84 yds

[1] [2]

References

  1. 1 2 3 "James Madison vs Montana". ncaa.org. December 17, 2004. Retrieved February 1, 2019.
  2. 1 2 3 "Dukes 31, Grizzlies 21 (box score)". Great Falls Tribune . Great Falls, Montana. December 18, 2004. p. 7S. Retrieved January 31, 2019– via newspapers.com.
  3. ↑ Hartlaub, Ron (December 18, 2004). "Dukes". The News Leader . Staunton, Virginia. p. B5. Retrieved February 1, 2019– via newspapers.com.
  4. ↑ Geise, George (December 18, 2004). "Griz: Penalties hurt Montana". Great Falls Tribune . Great Falls, Montana. p. 6S. Retrieved February 1, 2019– via newspapers.com.

Further reading

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