1996 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game

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.[4] 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.

This article is about the Division I-AA (now FCS) championship game. For the Division I-A (now FBS) championship game, see 1996 Fiesta Bowl.
1996 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship
I-AA National Championship Game
Montana Grizzlies Marshall Thundering Herd
(14–0) (14–0)
Big Sky SoCon
29 49
Head coach: 
Mick Dennehy		 Head coach: 
Bob Pruett
TSNSeed
21
TSNSeed
12
1234 Total
Montana 06023 29
Marshall 1491610 49
DateDecember 21, 1996
Season1996
StadiumMarshall University Stadium
LocationHuntington, West Virginia
FavoriteMarshall by 6.5[1]
RefereeChuck Feevey[2]
Attendance30,052[3]
United States TV coverage
NetworkESPN
AnnouncersBrad Nessler (play-by-play) and Gary Danielson (analyst)

Teams

The participants of the Championship Game were the finalists of the 1996 I-AA Playoffs, which began with a 16-team bracket.[5] The location of the title game, Marshall University Stadium, was determined before the playoffs started.[6]

Montana Grizzlies
Main article: 1996 Montana Grizzlies football team

Montana finished their regular season with a 14–0 record (8–0 in conference).[7] 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
Main article: 1996 Marshall Thundering Herd football team

Marshall also finished their regular season with a 14–0 record (8–0 in conference).[8] 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
Scoring summary
Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score
Plays Yards TOP MONT MAR
1 9:13 MAR Randy Moss 19-yard touchdown reception from Eric Kresser, Tim Openlander kick good 0 7
1 2:09 MAR Doug Chapman 61-yard touchdown run, Openlander kick good 0 14
2 14:08 MAR Moss 70-yard touchdown reception from Kresser, Openlander kick no good (blocked) 0 20
2 8:14 MAR 20-yard field goal by Openlander 0 23
2 5:05 MONT 40-yard field goal by Andy Larson 3 23
2 0:15 MONT 27-yard field goal by Larson 6 23
3 14:05 MAR Moss 54-yard touchdown reception from Kresser, Openlander kick good 6 30
3 5:03 MAR Chapman 9-yard touchdown run, Openlander kick good 6 37
3 3:34 MAR Safety: intentional grounding in the end zone by Montana QB Brian Ah Yat 6 39
4 14:51 MAR Moss 28-yard touchdown reception from Kresser, Openlander kick good 6 46
4 10:52 MONT Joe Douglass 28-yard touchdown reception from Ah Yat, 2-point pass good (Dallas Neil from Ah Yat) 14 46
4 7:09 MONT Josh Branen 2-yard touchdown run, 2-point pass good (Douglass from Ah Yat) 22 46
4 4:18 MAR 37-yard field goal by Openlander 22 49
4 2:09 MONT Josh Paffhausen 18-yard touchdown reception from Ah Yat, Larson kick good 29 49
"TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. 29 49

[9]

Game statistics
1 2 3 4 Total
No. 1 Grizzlies 0 6 0 23 29
No. 2 Thundering Herd 14 9 16 10 49
Marshall wide receiver Randy Moss
StatisticsMONTMAR
First downs3121
Plays–yards90–43064–541
Rushes–yards35–9536–217
Passing yards335324
Passing: Comp–Att–Int36–55–118–28–0
Time of possession31:1328:47
TeamCategoryPlayerStatistics
MontanaPassingBrian Ah Yat36–55, 335 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT
RushingJosh Branen19 car, 101 yds, 1 TD
ReceivingJoe Douglass13 rec, 117 yds, 1 TD
MarshallPassingEric Kresser18–28, 324 yds, 4 TD
RushingErik Thomas20 car, 114 yds
ReceivingRandy Moss9 rec, 220 yds, 4 TD

[3]

References
  1. "Latest Line". Sun-Sentinel. Fort Lauderdale, Florida. December 21, 1996. p. 9C. Retrieved April 13, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
  2. Briggeman, Kim (December 22, 1996). "UM falls 49-29 to Marshall". Billings Gazette. p. 1B. Retrieved March 6, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
  3. "Football vs Marshall". gogriz.com. December 21, 1996. Retrieved March 5, 2019.
  4. Rothschild, Richard (December 22, 1996). "Marshall Routs Montana to Capture NCAA I-AA Title". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved March 5, 2019.
  5. "Division I-AA tournament". The News Journal. Wilmington, Delaware. November 25, 1996. p. B7. Retrieved February 9, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
  6. "Griz No. 2 in latest I-AA poll". Great Falls Tribune. Great Falls, Montana. November 12, 1996. p. 1C. Retrieved April 17, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
  7. "Montana Grizzlies 1996 Schedule". cfbinfo.com. Retrieved March 5, 2019.
  8. "Marshall Thundering Herd 1996 Schedule". cfbinfo.com. Retrieved March 5, 2019.
  9. "Marshall 49, Montana 29 (box score)". Billings Gazette. December 22, 1996. p. 3B. Retrieved March 6, 2019 – via newspapers.com.

Further reading
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