1996 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game

College American football game the Division I-AA (now FCS) championship game the Division I-A (now FBS) championship game 1996 Fiesta Bowl August 2023 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship I-AA National Championship Game 1996 NCAA Division I-AA 1996 December 21 University of Montana Montana Grizzlies 14–0 Big Sky Mick Dennehy 2 1 0 6 0 23 Marshall University Marshall Thundering Herd 14–0 SoCon Bob Pruett 1 2 14 9 16 10 Marshall University Stadium Huntington, West Virginia Marshall by 6.5https://www.newspapers.com/clip/30573734/latest_line/ Latest Line Sun-Sentinel Fort Lauderdale, Florida 9C December 21, 1996 April 13, 2019 newspapers.com Chuck Feeveyhttps://www.newspapers.com/clip/29193043/um_falls_4929_to_marshall/ UM falls 49-29 to Marshall Kim Briggeman Billings Gazette 1B December 22, 1996 March 6, 2019 newspapers.com 30,052 ESPN Brad Nessler (play-by-play) and Gary Danielson (analyst) 1995 1997 The 1996 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game was a postseason college football game between the Marshall Thundering Herd and the Montana Grizzlies. The game was played on December 21, 1996, and was the last I-AA title game contested at Marshall University Stadium, now known as Joan C. Edwards Stadium, in Huntington, West Virginia. The culminating game of the 1996 NCAA Division I-AA football season, it was a rematch of the prior season's final, and was won by Marshall, 49–29.https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1996-12-22-9612220138-story.html Marshall Routs Montana to Capture NCAA I-AA Title Richard Rothschild Chicago Tribune December 22, 1996 March 5, 2019 It was also Marshall's final game in Division I-AA, now known as Division I FCS; the Herd would move to Division I-A (now Division I FBS) the following July, joining the Mid-American Conference. Teams The participants of the Championship Game were the finalists of the 1996 I-AA Playoffs, which began with a 16-team bracket.https://www.newspapers.com/clip/28199058/division_iaa_tournament/ Division I-AA tournament The News Journal Wilmington, Delaware B7 November 25, 1996 February 9, 2019 newspapers.com The location of the title game, Marshall University Stadium, was determined before the playoffs started.https://www.newspapers.com/clip/30706600/griz_no_2_in_latest_iaa_poll/ Griz No. 2 in latest I-AA poll Great Falls Tribune Great Falls, Montana 1C November 12, 1996 April 17, 2019 newspapers.com Montana Grizzlies 1996 Montana Grizzlies football team Montana finished their regular season with a 14–0 record (8–0 in conference).http://cfbinfo.com/team/montana-grizzlies/1996 Montana Grizzlies 1996 Schedule cfbinfo.com March 5, 2019 Seeded first in the playoffs, the Grizzlies defeated 16-seed Nicholls State, sixth-seed East Tennessee State, and fourth-seed Troy State to reach the final. This was the second appearance for Montana in a Division I-AA championship game, as the team was the defending champion from 1995. Marshall Thundering Herd 1996 Marshall Thundering Herd football team Marshall also finished their regular season with a 14–0 record (8–0 in conference).http://cfbinfo.com/team/marshall-thundering-herd/1996 Marshall Thundering Herd 1996 Schedule cfbinfo.com March 5, 2019 The Thundering Herd, seeded second, defeated 15-seed Delaware, tenth-seed Furman, and third-seed Northern Iowa to reach the final. This was the sixth appearance for Marshall in a Division I-AA championship game, having one prior win (1992) and four prior losses (1987, 1991, 1993, and 1995). Game summary Scoring summary MONT MAR 1 9:13 MAR RecTD Randy Moss Eric Kresser 19 good Tim Openlander 0 7 1 2:09 MAR RushTD Doug Chapman 61 good Openlander 0 14 2 14:08 MAR RecTD Moss Kresser 70 no good (blocked) Openlander 0 20 2 8:14 MAR FG 20 Openlander 0 23 2 5:05 MONT FG 40 Andy Larson 3 23 2 0:15 MONT FG 27 Larson 6 23 3 14:05 MAR RecTD Moss Kresser 54 good Openlander 6 30 3 5:03 MAR RushTD Chapman 9 good Openlander 6 37 3 3:34 MAR SafetyOther Safety: intentional grounding in the end zone by Montana QB Brian Ah Yat 6 39 4 14:51 MAR RecTD Moss Kresser 28 good Openlander 6 46 4 10:52 MONT RecTD Joe Douglass Ah Yat 28 pass good (Dallas Neil from Ah Yat) 14 46 4 7:09 MONT RushTD Josh Branen 2 pass good (Douglass from Ah Yat) 22 46 4 4:18 MAR FG 37 Openlander 22 49 4 2:09 MONT RecTD Josh Paffhausen Ah Yat 18 good Larson 29 49 29 49 https://www.newspapers.com/clip/29193256/marshall_49_montana_29_box_score/ Marshall 49, Montana 29 (box score) Billings Gazette 3B December 22, 1996 March 6, 2019 newspapers.com Game statistics No. 1 Grizzlies 0 6 0 23 No. 2 Thundering Herd 14 9 16 10 thumb|right|upright|Marshall wide receiver Randy Moss Montana Grizzlies MONT Marshall Thundering Herd MAR 31 90–430 35–95 335 36–55–1 31:13 21 64–541 36–217 324 18–28–0 28:47 Montana Grizzlies Montana Marshall Thundering Herd Marshall Brian Ah Yat 36–55, 335 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT Josh Branen 19 car, 101 yds, 1 TD Joe Douglass 13 rec, 117 yds, 1 TD Eric Kresser 18–28, 324 yds, 4 TD Erik Thomas 20 car, 114 yds Randy Moss 9 rec, 220 yds, 4 TD https://gogriz.com/boxscore.aspx?path=&id=498 Football vs Marshall December 21, 1996 gogriz.com March 5, 2019 References Further reading https://www.newspapers.com/clip/29192448/division_iaa_poll/ Division I-AA poll The Sports Network AP Billings Gazette Billings, Montana 2D November 26, 1996 March 6, 2019 newspapers.com https://www.herald-dispatch.com/sports/marshall_plane_crash/football_history/the-greatest-season/article_934ca7d6-f154-5ecb-96c0-2c07e8a63ea3.html 1996: The greatest season The Herald-Dispatch Huntington, West Virginia May 6, 2009 March 5, 2019 External links Marshall Thundering Herd 1996 football season review Vol 5 via YouTube Championship Game Category:NCAA Division I Football Championship Games Category:Marshall Thundering Herd football games Category:Montana Grizzlies football games Category:Sports competitions in Huntington, West Virginia NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game Category:American football competitions in West Virginia Category:College sports tournaments in West Virginia