1984 Montana State Bobcats football team

1984 Montana State Bobcats football
NCAA Division I-AA champion
Big Sky champion
ConferenceBig Sky Conference
Ranking
APNo. 2
Record12–2 (6–1 Big Sky)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorBill Diedrick (1st season)
Defensive coordinatorSteve Carson (1st season)
Home stadiumReno H. Sales Stadium
1984 Big Sky Conference football standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 2 Montana State $^ 6 – 1 – 0 12 – 2 – 0
Nevada 5 – 2 – 0 7 – 4 – 0
Boise State 4 – 3 – 0 6 – 5 – 0
Idaho 4 – 3 – 0 6 – 5 – 0
Idaho State 4 – 3 – 0 5 – 6 – 0
Weber State 3 – 4 – 0 5 – 6 – 0
Northern Arizona 2 – 5 – 0 4 – 6 – 0
Montana 0 – 7 – 0 2 – 8 – 1
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant
Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA Poll

The 1984 Montana State Bobcats football team represented the Montana State University (MSU) in the 1984 NCAA Division I-AA football season. The team was led by Dave Arnold in his second season as a head coach. The Bobcats played their home games at Reno H. Sales Stadium.

After going 1–10 the previous season and finishing last in the Big Sky, the Bobcats had one of the biggest turnarounds in all of college football in 1984, finishing the regular season with an overall record of 9–2, including a 35–31 win over Division I-A Fresno State, and won the Big Sky title. The Bobcats received a bid to the Division I-AA playoffs, defeating Arkansas State and Rhode Island en route to the I-AA Championship Game. In the championship game, Montana State defeated Louisiana Tech 19–6 for the program's first I-AA national title, and first national title since the 1976 team won the NCAA Division II national championship.[1] This would be the Bobcats' last national championship win until 2025.[2]

Schedule

DateOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendanceSource
September 8Mesa State*
W 30–14[3]
September 15at Eastern Washington*
L 16–21[4]
September 22at Idaho
W 34–2811,600[5]
September 29No. 18 Idaho State
  • Reno H. Sales Stadium
  • Bozeman, MT
L 6–2211,117[6]
October 6at Weber State
W 48–09,680[7]
October 13Nevada
  • Reno H. Sales Stadium
  • Bozeman, MT
W 44–41 4OT6,317[8]
October 20Portland State*
  • Reno H. Sales Stadium
  • Bozeman, MT
W 45–2210,797[9]
October 27No. 8 Boise State
  • Reno H. Sales Stadium
  • Bozeman, MT
W 22–188,387[10]
November 3at MontanaNo. 15
W 34–2412,500[11]
November 10Northern ArizonaNo. 10
  • Reno H. Sales Stadium
  • Bozeman, MT
W 41–39,357[12]
November 17at Fresno State*No. 6
W 35–3124,088[13]
December 1No. 10 Arkansas State*No. 2
W 31–1412,037[14]
December 8No. 2 Rhode Island*No. 2
  • Reno H. Sales Stadium
  • Bozeman, MT (NCAA Division I-AA Semifinal)
W 32–2012,697[15]
December 15vs. No. 9 Louisiana Tech*No. 2
SPNW 19–69,125[16]

[17][18]

Game summaries

Mesa State

See also: Mesa State Mavericks football
1 2 3 4 Total
Mavericks 7 0 0 7 14
Bobcats 20 0 7 3 30

Vs. No. 9 Louisiana Tech (Division I-AA Championship Game)

See also: 1984 Louisiana Tech Bulldogs football team and 1984 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game
1 2 3 4 Total
No. 9 Bulldogs 0 0 0 6 6
No. 2 Bobcats 9 10 0 0 19

Roster

1984 Montana State Bobcats football team roster
Players Coaches
Offense
Pos. # Name Class
TE 86 Joe Bignell Sr
QB 12 Kelly Bradley So
FB 39 Jesse Jones Jr
RB  4 Tim Clements Jr
 C 55 Robb Fellows Sr
G 73 Bruce Randall Jr
G 60 Todd Vasey So
OT 74 Don Leake So
OT 66 Bill Schmidt Sr
WR  2 Tom White Jr
WR  89 Brent Bateman Sr
TE  24 Tom Malhum Sr
WR  18 Kelly Davis So
WR  44 Darin Dietrich Jr
RB  33 David Pandt Jr
FB  25 Eric Miller Jr
FB  30 Toby Petty Jr
Defense
Pos. # Name Class
NG 59 Lonnie Burt Sr
DT 71 Troy Timmer Sr
DT 91 Pat "Tex" Sikora Jr
DE 68 Mark Fellows Sr
CAT 27 Clete Linebarger Jr
LB 42 Kirk Timmer So
LB 99 Greg Wilkes Sr
FS 29 Doug Kimball Jr
SS 47 Joe Roberts Sr
CB 17 Derek Abell So
CB 35 Rodney Holland Sr
DT  58 Tom Jacobs Fr
LB;ST  26 John Kitna Jr
CB  43 William Johnson Sr
FS  9 Tyler Winter So
SS;ST  22 Steve King So
Special teams
Pos. # Name Class
P  3 Dirk Nelson Sr
K  1 Mark Carter Sr


Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
  • Steve Carson (DC)
  • Bill Diedrick (OC)
  • J. G. Aegerter (OLB)
  • Mike Kramer (ILB)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • Injured
  • Redshirt

References

  1. ^ "Dennehy leads Montana State's bowl win". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. Associated Press. December 12, 1976. p. D1.
  2. ^ "Montana State tops Illinois State in wild FCS title game". ESPN. January 5, 2026. Retrieved January 8, 2026.
  3. ^ "Mavericks run afoul of a feisty Bobcat". The Daily Sentinel. September 9, 1984. Retrieved November 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ "Eastern Washington wins 7th straight". Tri-City Herald. September 16, 1984. Retrieved November 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "Bobcats shock Idaho". Great Falls Tribune. September 23, 1984. Retrieved November 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "ISU defense slams shut on Bobcats". The Times-News. September 30, 1984. Retrieved November 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ "Cats whitewash Weber, 48–0". The Missoulian. October 7, 1984. Retrieved November 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "Montana State goes 4 OT's to stop UNR". Lewiston Morning Tribune. Idaho. Associated Press. October 14, 1984. p. 3D.
  9. ^ "PSU crushed 45–22". Corvallis Gazette-Times. October 21, 1984. Retrieved November 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "Bobcats nip Boise". The Montana Standard. October 28, 1984. Retrieved November 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "Montana State moves into first". Lewiston Morning Tribune. Idaho. Associated Press. November 4, 1984. p. 5C.
  12. ^ "Montana State wraps up Big Sky crown". Lewiston Morning Tribune. Idaho. Associated Press. November 11, 1984. p. 5C.
  13. ^ "Montana State rallies past Fresno State". Lewiston Morning Tribune. Idaho. Associated Press. November 18, 1984. p. 5C.
  14. ^ "Bobcats: Advance by scalping Indians". The Montana Standard. December 2, 1984. Retrieved October 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ "Interception return sparks Montana State past R.I." The Shreveport Times. December 9, 1984. Retrieved November 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ "How about them Cats!". The Billings Gazette. December 16, 1984. Retrieved July 2, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ^ "Montana State yearly results". College Football Data Warehouse. Archived from the original on July 27, 2014. Retrieved August 11, 2014.
  18. ^ "Division I-AA Top 20". Reading Eagle. Pennsylvania. Associated Press. November 21, 1984. p. 22.
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