American college football season
The 2021 Montana Grizzlies football team represented the University of Montana as a member of the Big Sky Conference during the 2021 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Grizzlies were led by 11th-year head coach Bobby Hauck and played their home games at Washington–Grizzly Stadium in Missoula, Montana.
Preseason[edit]
On July 26, 2021, during the virtual Big Sky Kickoff, the Grizzlies were predicted to finish second in the Big Sky by both the coaches and media.[1]
Coaches poll Predicted finish | Team | Votes (1st place) |
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 | |
Media poll 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[edit]
The Grizzlies had five players selected to the preseason all-Big Sky team.[2]
Offense Samuel Akem – WR Conlan Beaver – OT | Defense Jace Lewis – LB Robby Hauck – S | Special teams Matthew O'Donoghue – LS |
Schedule[edit]
Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
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September 4 | 6:00 p.m. | at No. 20 (FBS) Washington* | No. 9 | | P12N | W 13–7 | 64,053 |
September 11 | 6:00 p.m. | Western Illinois* | No. 4 | | KTMF/SWX | W 42–7 | 25,238 |
September 25 | 1:00 p.m. | Cal Poly | No. 4 | - Washington–Grizzly Stadium
- Missoula, MT
| KTMF/SWX | W 39–7 | 25,600 |
October 2 | 8:30 p.m. | at No. 6 Eastern Washington | No. 4 | | ESPN2 | L 28–34 | 7,944 |
October 9 | 1:00 p.m. | Dixie State* | No. 6 | - Washington–Grizzly Stadium
- Missoula, MT
| KTMF/SWX | W 31–14 | 23,434 |
October 16 | 1:00 p.m. | Sacramento State | No. 5 | - Washington–Grizzly Stadium
- Missoula, MT
| KTMF/SWX | L 21–28 | 24,305 |
October 23 | 2:00 p.m. | at Idaho | No. 11 | | KTMF/SWX | W 34–14 | 6,059 |
October 30 | 12:00 p.m. | Southern Utah | No. 11 | - Washington–Grizzly Stadium
- Missoula, MT
| RTNW | W 20–19 | 22,587 |
November 6 | 12:00 p.m. | at Northern Colorado | No. 11 | | ESPN+ | W 35–0 | 4,987 |
November 13 | 1:00 p.m. | at Northern Arizona | No. 9 | | KTMF/KULR | W 30–3 | 6,228 |
November 20 | 12:00 p.m. | No. 3 Montana State | No. 7 | | RTNW | W 29–10 | 26,856 |
| 7:00 p.m. | No. 4 Eastern Washington* | No. 5 | | ESPN+ | W 57–41 | 24,065 |
| 5:00 p.m. | at No. 2 James Madison* | No. 5 | | ESPN2 | L 6–28 | 14,690 |
|
[3]
Game summaries[edit]
At No. 20 (FBS) Washington[edit]
Montana Grizzlies vs Washington Huskies – Game summary
Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
No. 9 Grizzlies | 3 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 13 |
No. 20 (FBS) Huskies | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
at Husky Stadium • Seattle, WA
- Date: September 4, 2021
- Game time: 5:00 p.m. PDT
- Game weather: 77 °F (25 °C) Sunny
- Game attendance: 64,053
- Referee: Matthew Richards
- TV announcers (P12N): J. B. Long (play-by-play) and Max Browne (analyst)
Game information |
First Quarter - UW – Dylan Morris 1-yard run (Peyton Henry kick), 10:09. Washington 7–0. Drive: 9 plays, 78 yards, 4:45.
- MONT – Kevin Macias 26-yard field goal, 7:08. Washington 7–3. Drive: 8 plays, 66 yards, 3:01.
Second Quarter Third Quarter Fourth Quarter - MONT – Camron Humphrey 4-yard run (Kevin Macias kick), 10:35. Montana 10–7. Drive: 10 plays, 69 yards, 5:00.
- MONT – Kevin Macias 22-yard field goal, 2:54. Montana 13–7. Drive: 11 plays, 42 yards, 6:05.
| Top passers - MONT – Camron Humphrey – 12/23, 105 yards
- UW – Dylan Morris – 27/46, 226 yards, 3 int
Top rushers - MONT – Xavier Harris – 15 rushes, 70 yards
- UW – Richard Newton – 17 rushes, 62 yards
Top receivers - MONT – Mitch Roberts – 2 receptions, 29 yards
- UW – Cade Otton – 8 receptions, 82 yards
| |
The Grizzlies upset Washington 13-7, becoming the 5th FCS team to beat a Top-25 FBS team.
Western Illinois[edit]
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
Leathernecks | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
No. 4 Grizzlies | 7 | 14 | 14 | 7 | 42 |
Cal Poly[edit]
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
Mustangs | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 |
No. 4 Grizzlies | 15 | 3 | 21 | 0 | 39 |
At No. 6 Eastern Washington[edit]
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
No. 4 Grizzlies | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 28 |
No. 6 Eagles | 7 | 3 | 0 | 24 | 34 |
Dixie State[edit]
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
Trailblazers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 14 |
No. 6 Grizzlies | 0 | 3 | 14 | 14 | 31 |
Sacramento State[edit]
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
Hornets | 7 | 7 | 14 | 0 | 28 |
No. 5 Grizzlies | 0 | 6 | 15 | 0 | 21 |
At Idaho[edit]
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
No. 11 Grizzlies | 7 | 13 | 13 | 7 | 40 |
Vandals | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
Southern Utah[edit]
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
Thunderbirds | 0 | 3 | 13 | 3 | 19 |
No. 11 Grizzlies | 0 | 10 | 7 | 3 | 20 |
At Northern Colorado[edit]
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
No. 11 Grizzlies | 14 | 7 | 14 | 0 | 35 |
Bears | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
At Northern Arizona[edit]
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
No. 9 Grizzlies | 0 | 13 | 7 | 10 | 30 |
Lumberjacks | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
No. 3 Montana State[edit]
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
No. 3 Bobcats | 3 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 10 |
No. 7 Grizzlies | 10 | 6 | 10 | 3 | 29 |
No. 4 Eastern Washington[edit]
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
No. 4 Eagles | 14 | 7 | 7 | 13 | 41 |
No. 5 Grizzlies | 10 | 10 | 24 | 13 | 57 |
FCS Playoffs[edit]
No. 4 Eastern Washington–Second Round[edit]
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
No. 4 Eagles | 14 | 7 | 7 | 13 | 41 |
No. 5 Grizzlies | 10 | 10 | 24 | 13 | 57 |
At No. 3 James Madison–Quarterfinal[edit]
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
No. 5 Grizzlies | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 6 |
No. 3 Dukes | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 28 |
Ranking movements[edit]
Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
( ) = First-place votes | Week |
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Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | Final |
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STATS FCS | 9 | 4 (5) | 4 (3) | 4 (2) | 4 (3) | 6 | 5 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 9 | 7 | 5 | 6 |
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Coaches | 9 | 5 (1) | 5 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 12 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 7 | 5 | 6 |
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References[edit]
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Venues | |
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Bowls & rivalries | |
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Culture and lore | |
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People | |
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Seasons | |
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National championship seasons in bold |