2021 Montana State Bobcats football | |
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Conference | Big Sky Conference |
Ranking | |
STATS | No. 2 |
FCS Coaches | No. 2 |
Record | 12–3 (7–1 Big Sky) |
Head coach |
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Offensive coordinator | Taylor Housewright (1st season) |
Defensive coordinator | Freddie Banks (1st season) |
Home stadium | Bobcat Stadium |
Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Team | W | L | W | L | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 10 Sacramento State $^ | 8 | – | 0 | 9 | – | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 2 Montana State ^ | 7 | – | 1 | 11 | – | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 7 Eastern Washington ^ | 6 | – | 2 | 10 | – | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 6 Montana ^ | 6 | – | 2 | 10 | – | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 17 UC Davis ^ | 5 | – | 3 | 8 | – | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Weber State | 5 | – | 3 | 6 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Northern Arizona | 4 | – | 4 | 5 | – | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Portland State | 4 | – | 4 | 5 | – | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Idaho | 3 | – | 5 | 4 | – | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Northern Colorado | 2 | – | 6 | 3 | – | 8 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Cal Poly | 1 | – | 7 | 2 | – | 9 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Idaho State | 1 | – | 7 | 1 | – | 10 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Southern Utah | 0 | – | 8 | 1 | – | 10 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The 2021 Montana State Bobcats football team represented Montana State University in the Big Sky Conference during the 2021 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by first-year head coach Brent Vigen, the Bobcats played home games on campus at Bobcat Stadium in Bozeman, Montana.
Montana State finished the regular season at 9–2 (7–1 in Big Sky, second), losing only to Wyoming (FBS, Mountain West) and rival Montana.[1] Seeded eighth in the FCS postseason, they received a first-round bye, then defeated UT Martin, #1 Sam Houston, and South Dakota State. MSU advanced to the championship game in Texas on January 8, 2022, but fell 38–10 to #3 North Dakota State.[2]
Preseason
On July 26, 2021, during the virtual Big Sky Kickoff, the Bobcats were predicted to finish fourth in the Big Sky by both the coaches and media.[3]
Predicted finish | Team | Votes (1st place) |
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1 | Weber State | (7) |
2 | Montana | (3) |
3 | Eastern Washington | (2) |
4 | Montana State | (1) |
5 | Sacramento State | (1) |
6 | UC Davis | |
7 | Northern Arizona | |
8 | Idaho | |
9 | Idaho State | |
10 | Portland State | |
11 | Southern Utah | |
12 | Cal Poly | |
13 | Northern Colorado |
Predicted finish | Team | Votes (1st place) |
---|---|---|
1 | Weber State | (14) |
2 | Montana | (4) |
3 | Eastern Washington | (3) |
4 | Montana State | (3) |
5 | Sacramento State | |
6 | UC Davis | |
7 | Northern Arizona | |
8 | Idaho | |
9 | Idaho State | |
10 | Portland State | |
11 | Southern Utah | |
12 | Northern Colroado | |
13 | Cal Poly |
Preseason All–Big Sky team
The Bobcats had two players selected to the preseason all-Big Sky team.
Offense Taylor Tuiasosopo – OL |
Defense Troy Andersen – OLB |
Schedule
Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
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September 4 | 2:00 p.m. | at Wyoming* | No. 12 | ESPN+ | L 16–19 | 30,007 | |
September 11 | 6:00 p.m. | Drake* | No. 11 | SWX | W 45–7 | 19,797 | |
September 18 | 1:00 p.m. | San Diego* | No. 13 |
| SWX | W 52–10 | 19,107 |
September 25 | 3:05 p.m. | at Portland State | No. 13 | ESPN+ | W 30–17 | 4,095 | |
October 2 | 1:05 p.m. | Northern Colorado | No. 11 |
| SWX | W 40–7 | 20,127 |
October 9 | 2:00 p.m. | Cal Poly![]() | No. 10 |
| RTNW | W 45–7 | 19,847 |
October 15 | 8:00 p.m. | at No. 19 Weber State | No. 9 | ESPNU | W 13–7 | 6,323 | |
October 23 | 1:00 p.m. | Idaho State | No. 8 |
| SWX | W 27–9 | 19,297 |
November 6 | 2:00 p.m. | at No. 5 Eastern Washington | No. 4 | SWX | W 23–20 | 6,981 | |
November 13 | 1:00 p.m. | Idaho | No. 3 |
| SWX | W 20–13 | 19,447 |
November 20 | 12:00 p.m. | at No. 7 Montana | No. 3 | RTNW | L 10–29 | 26,856 | |
December 4 | 2:00 p.m. | No. 16 UT Martin* | No. 7 |
| ESPN+ | W 26–7 | 15,237 |
December 11 | 6:30 p.m. | at No. 1 Sam Houston* | No. 7 |
| ESPN+ | W 42–19 | 7,565 |
December 18 | 12:00 p.m. | No. 11 South Dakota State* | No. 7 |
| ESPN2 | W 31–17 | 20,457 |
January 8, 2022 | 10:00 a.m. | vs. No. 3 North Dakota State* | No. 7 | ESPN2 | L 10–38 | 18,942 | |
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Roster
2021 Montana State Bobcats football team roster | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Players | Coaches | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Offense
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Defense
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Special teams
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Game summaries
At Wyoming
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
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No. 12 Bobcats | 7 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 16 |
Cowboys | 0 | 3 | 0 | 16 | 19 |
Drake
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
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Bulldogs | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
No. 11 Bobcats | 9 | 15 | 7 | 14 | 45 |
San Diego
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
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Toreros | 0 | 0 | 7 | 3 | 10 |
No. 13 Bobcats | 21 | 14 | 10 | 7 | 52 |
At Portland State
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
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No. 13 Bobcats | 3 | 6 | 14 | 7 | 30 |
Vikings | 10 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 17 |
Northern Colorado
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
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Bears | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
No. 11 Bobcats | 17 | 10 | 13 | 0 | 40 |
Cal Poly
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
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Mustangs | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 |
No. 10 Bobcats | 7 | 28 | 7 | 3 | 45 |
At No. 19 Weber State
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
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No. 9 Bobcats | 7 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 13 |
No. 19 Wildcats | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
Idaho State
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
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Bengals | 3 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 9 |
No. 8 Bobcats | 0 | 10 | 3 | 14 | 27 |
At Eastern Washington
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
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No. 4 Bobcats | 7 | 9 | 0 | 7 | 23 |
No. 5 Eagles | 13 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 20 |
Idaho
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
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Vandals | 0 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 13 |
No. 3 Bobcats | 7 | 6 | 0 | 7 | 20 |
At No. 7 Montana
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
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No. 3 Bobcats | 3 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 10 |
No. 7 Grizzlies | 10 | 6 | 10 | 3 | 29 |
Ranking movements
Week | ||||||||||||||
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Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | Final |
STATS FCS | 12 | 11 | 13 | 13 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 7 | 2 |
Coaches | 11 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 12 | 11 | 9 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 3 (1) | 9 | 2 |
References
- ↑ Connelly, Bill (January 7, 2022). "FCS national championship game: Breaking down Montana State-North Dakota State". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 8, 2022.
- ↑ "North Dakota State football continues dominant FCS run, wins ninth championship in 11 seasons". ESPN.com. January 8, 2022. Retrieved January 8, 2022.
- ↑ "Bobcats Land Andersen, Tuiasosopo on Preseason All-Big Sky Team, While Coaches, Media Pick MSU Fourth in Preseason Polls". July 26, 2021. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
- ↑ "2021 Football Schedule". Montana State University Athletics. Retrieved April 24, 2022.