2021 Montana Grizzlies football team
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.
| 2021 Montana Grizzlies football | |
|---|---|
![]() | |
| Conference | Big Sky Conference |
| Ranking | |
| STATS | No. 6 |
| FCS Coaches | No. 6 |
| Record | 10–3 (6–2 Big Sky) |
| Head coach |
|
| Offensive coordinator | Timm Rosenbach (4th season) |
| Defensive coordinator | Kent Baer (3rd season) |
| Home stadium | Washington–Grizzly Stadium (capacity: 25,217) |
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Preseason
Polls
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]
| 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 |
| 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 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
| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 |
| 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 |
| KTMF/SWX | W 31–14 | 23,434 |
| October 16 | 1:00 p.m. | Sacramento State | No. 5 |
| 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 |
| 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 |
| December 3 | 7:00 p.m. | No. 4 Eastern Washington* | No. 5 |
| ESPN+ | W 57–41 | 24,065 |
| December 10 | 5:00 p.m. | at No. 2 James Madison* | No. 5 | ESPN2 | L 6–28 | 14,690 | |
| |||||||
Conference opponents not played this season: Idaho State, Portland State, Weber State, UC Davis
Game summaries
At No. 20 (FBS) Washington
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. 9 Grizzlies | 3 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 13 |
| No. 20 (FBS) Huskies | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
The Grizzlies upset Washington 13-7, becoming the 5th FCS team to beat a Top-25 FBS team.
Western Illinois
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leathernecks | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| No. 4 Grizzlies | 7 | 14 | 14 | 7 | 42 |
Cal Poly
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mustangs | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 |
| No. 4 Grizzlies | 15 | 3 | 21 | 0 | 39 |
At No. 6 Eastern Washington
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. 4 Grizzlies | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 28 |
| No. 6 Eagles | 7 | 3 | 0 | 24 | 34 |
Dixie State
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trailblazers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 14 |
| No. 6 Grizzlies | 0 | 3 | 14 | 14 | 31 |
Sacramento State
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hornets | 7 | 7 | 14 | 0 | 28 |
| No. 5 Grizzlies | 0 | 6 | 15 | 0 | 21 |
At Idaho
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. 11 Grizzlies | 7 | 13 | 13 | 7 | 40 |
| Vandals | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
Southern Utah
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderbirds | 0 | 3 | 13 | 3 | 19 |
| No. 11 Grizzlies | 0 | 10 | 7 | 3 | 20 |
At Northern Colorado
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. 11 Grizzlies | 14 | 7 | 14 | 0 | 35 |
| Bears | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
At Northern Arizona
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. 9 Grizzlies | 0 | 13 | 7 | 10 | 30 |
| Lumberjacks | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
No. 3 Montana State
| 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
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. 4 Eagles | 14 | 7 | 7 | 13 | 41 |
| No. 5 Grizzlies | 10 | 10 | 24 | 13 | 57 |
FCS Playoffs
No. 4 Eastern Washington–Second Round
| 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
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. 5 Grizzlies | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 6 |
| No. 3 Dukes | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 28 |
Ranking movements
| Week | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | Final |
| STATS FCS | 9 | 4 (5) | 4 (3) | 4 (2) | 4 (3) | 6 | 5 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 9 | 7 | 5 | 6 |
| Coaches | 9 | 5 (1) | 5 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 12 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 7 | 5 | 6 |
References
- "Griz picked second in preseason polls". July 26, 2021. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
- "Five Griz named to Preseason All-Big Sky Team". University of Montana. July 26, 2020. Retrieved June 28, 2020.
- "2021 Football Schedule". University of Montana Athletics. Retrieved July 25, 2021.
