2008 NCAA Division I FCS football season

2008 NCAA Division I FCS season
Regular season
Number of teams	125
Duration	August 28 – November 22
Payton Award	Armanti Edwards [1]
Buchanan Award	Greg Peach [2]
Playoff
Duration	November 29 – December 19
Championship date	December 19, 2008
Championship site	Finley Stadium Chattanooga, Tennessee
Champion	Richmond
NCAA Division I FCS football seasons
« 2007 2009 »

The 2008 NCAA Division I FCS football season, the 2008 season of college football for teams in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), began on August 28, 2008, and concluded on December 19, 2008, in Chattanooga, Tennessee, at the 2008 NCAA Division I Football Championship Game, where the Richmond Spiders defeated the Montana Grizzlies to win the NCAA Division I Football Championship. ^[3]

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 changes and new programs

• The Gateway Football Conference adopted its present-day name, Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC).
• Following the 2007 season, the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference dropped its football sponsorship.

School	2007 Conference	2008 Conference
Bryant	Northeast-10 (D-II)	FCS Independent
Campbell	New Program	Pioneer
Duquesne	MAAC	NEC
Iona		FCS Independent
La Salle		Dropped Program
Marist		FCS Independent
North Carolina Central	D-II Independent
North Dakota	North Central (D-II)	Great West (FCS)
North Dakota State	Great West	MVFC
Presbyterian	FCS Independent	Big South
Samford	Ohio Valley	SoCon
South Dakota	North Central (D-II)	Great West (FCS)
South Dakota State	Great West	MVFC
Stony Brook	FCS Independent	Big South
Western Kentucky		FBS Independent

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 (IN) 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 (IN) 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 (DE) 23, Iona 12 (Division III over Division I FCS non-scholarship)

Conference standings

2008 Big Sky Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall 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   $ – Conference champion ^ – FCS playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network poll	2008 Big South Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 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   Presbyterian   1 – 4     4 – 8   $ – Conference champion Rankings from The Sports Network poll	2008 Colonial Athletic Association football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   North Division No. 8 New Hampshire x^   6 – 2     10 – 3   No. 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 Division No. 3 James Madison x$^   8 – 0     12 – 2   No. 6 Villanova ^   7 – 1     10 – 3   No. 1 Richmond ^   6 – 2     13 – 3   No. 20 William & Mary   5 – 3     7 – 4   Delaware   2 – 6     4 – 8   Towson   1 – 7     3 – 9   $ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions ^ – FCS playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network poll
2008 Great West Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 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 poll	2008 Ivy League football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 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 Rankings from The Sports Network poll	2008 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 13 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   Howard   0 – 8     1 – 10   Winston-Salem State *   0 – 0     3 – 8   $ – Conference champion ^ – FCS playoff participant * – Ineligible for conference championship Rankings from The Sports Network poll
2008 Missouri Valley Football Conference standings v t e Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 4 Northern Iowa +^   7 – 1     12 – 3   No. 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 co-champions ^ – FCS playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network poll	2008 Northeast Conference football standings v t e 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 (PA)   0 – 7     0 – 11   $ – Conference champion	2008 Ohio Valley Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 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 poll
2008 Patriot League football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 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 poll	2008 Pioneer Football League standings v t e 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	2008 Southern Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 5 Appalachian State $^   8 – 0     11 – 3   No. 9 Wofford ^   7 – 1     9 – 3   No. 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 v t e Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 12 Central Arkansas* $   6 – 1     10 – 2   No. 22 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 * – Ineligible for postseason play due to transition from NCAA Division II Rankings from The Sports Network poll	2008 Southwestern Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   East Division Jackson State xy   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 Division Grambling State xy$   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 $ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant	2008 NCAA Division I FCS independents football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   Bryant   –     7 – 4   Savannah State   –     5 – 7   Marist   –     4 – 7   North Carolina Central   –     4 – 7   Iona   –     3 – 8

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 Division I playoff bracket

	First Round [4] 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
																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 [5]

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 [6]

Final poll standings

Standings are from The Sports Network final 2008 poll.

Rank [7]	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

Rule changes for 2008

The NCAA football rules committee made several rule changes for 2008, and includes the following: ^{[8] [9]}

• 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.

Attendances

The top 30 NCAA Division I FCS football teams by average home attendance:

#	College football team	Average attendance [10]
1	Appalachian State Mountaineers	25,161
2	Montana Grizzlies	23,923
3	Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens	21,609
4	Jackson State Tigers	21,263
5	Georgia Southern Eagles	18,168
6	North Dakota State Bison	18,032
7	Harvard Crimson	17,360
8	Southern Jaguars	16,323
9	Tennessee State Tigers	15,444
10	James Madison Dukes	15,362
11	Alabama State Hornets	15,218
12	Youngstown State Penguins	14,497
13	Florida A&M Rattlers	14,383
14	McNeese State Cowboys	13,829
15	Montana State Bobcats	13,406
16	South Carolina State Bulldogs	13,383
17	Liberty Flames	13,147
18	Massachusetts Minutemen	12,383
19	The Citadel Bulldogs	12,261
20	Northern Iowa Panthers	12,178
21	Penn Quakers	11,284
22	Jacksonville State Gamecocks	11,281
23	Texas State Bobcats	11,225
24	Grambling State Tigers	11,219
25	Yale Bulldogs	11,071
26	North Carolina A&T Aggies	10,764
27	Norfolk State Spartans	10,645
28	Illinois State Redbirds	10,591
29	Sam Houston State Bearkats	10,076
30	Furman Paladins	10,073

References

1. "Armanti Edwards wins 2008 Walter Payton Award". The Sports Network. Archived from the original on April 4, 2011. Retrieved December 20, 2008.
2. "Greg Peach captures 2008 Buck Buchanan Award". The Sports Network. Archived from the original on April 4, 2011. Retrieved December 20, 2008.
3. Associated Press (December 19, 2008). "Richmond cruises to first football title". ESPN. Archived from the original on September 26, 2012. Retrieved December 20, 2008.
4. "2008 Playoff Bracket". NCAA. Archived from the original on November 27, 2008. Retrieved December 24, 2008.
5. Associated Press (December 13, 2008). "Grambling St. 41, Jackson St. 9". ESPN. Archived from the original on September 26, 2012. Retrieved December 20, 2008.
6. Associated Press (December 6, 2008). "Albany, N.Y. 28, Jacksonville 0". ESPN. Archived from the original on July 17, 2012. Retrieved December 20, 2008.
7. "Final Sports Network's 2008 FCS College Football Poll". The Sports Network. Archived from the original on May 25, 2011. Retrieved March 1, 2009.
8. "NCAA Football Rules Committee Proposes Rules to Enhance Student-Athlete Safety and Encourage Consistent Pace of Play" (Press release). NCAA. February 13, 2008. Archived from the original on December 23, 2008. Retrieved December 20, 2008.
9. Olin Buchanan (February 13, 2008). "More new timing rules among NCAA proposal". Rivals. Archived from the original on February 15, 2008. Retrieved February 13, 2008.
10. "2008 NATIONAL COLLEGE FOOTBALL ATTENDANCE" (PDF). ncaa.org. Retrieved October 3, 2025.