2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season

2008 NCAA Division I FBS season

Florida Gators celebrating after winning the 2009 BCS Championship Game
Number of teams 119 full members, 1 transitional[1]
Duration August 28 – December 6
Preseason AP #1 Georgia Bulldogs
Post-season
Duration December 20, 2008 – January 31, 2009
Bowl games 37 (34 team-competitive and 3 all-star games)
Heisman Trophy Sam Bradford, Oklahoma QB
Bowl Championship Series
2009 BCS Championship Game
Site Dolphin Stadium,
Miami Gardens, Florida
Winner Florida Gators
Division I FBS football seasons
← 2007
2009 →

The 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season, or the college football season, began on August 28, 2008,[2] progressing through the regular season and bowl season, and (aside from all-star exhibition games that followed) concluded with the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) National Championship Game in Miami Gardens, Florida on January 8, 2009, where the #2 Florida Gators, defeated the #1 Oklahoma Sooners, 24–14, of which the teams were determined by the BCS Ranking.[3] The Gators were declared national champions by the BCS and most major polls.

Rule changes

The NCAA football rules committee made several rule changes for 2008, and includes the following:[4][5]

Conference and program changes

One team upgraded from Division I-AA, thus increasing the number of Division I-A schools from 119 to 120.

School 2007 Conference 2008 Conference
Western Kentucky Hilltoppers FCS Independent FBS Independent

Key matchups and upsets

Date Visitor Home Significance
August 30 Appalachian State 13 #7 LSU 41 For the first time in history, the defending champions of Division I FBS and FCS face off.[6]
September 6 #8 West Virginia 3 East Carolina 24 With an upset over West Virginia at home and a victory over Virginia Tech the week before in Charlotte, East Carolina vaulted into the Top 25 rankings for the first time since 1999, and set a Conference USA record for being the first team to beat three top 25 teams consecutively (#24 Boise State, #17 Virginia Tech, and #8 West Virginia.)[7]
September 13 #5 Ohio State 3 #1 USC 35 Southern California wins the most anticipated matchup of the early 2008 schedule for its eighth straight victory over a Big Ten opponent.[8]
September 25 #1 USC 21 Oregon State 27 Unranked Oregon State defeated the Trojans for the third time in the Trojans' last four visits to Corvallis.[9]
September 27 Ole Miss 31 #4 Florida 30 Ole Miss posted its 600th win and first win over a Top 5 team since 1977 when the Rebels defeated Florida. Three of the last six times Florida has lost to an unranked team it has been to Ole Miss. The loss to Ole Miss was the only loss by Florida in the 2008 regular season.;[10] USA Today;[11] OleMissSports.com[12]
October 4 #13 Auburn 13 #19 Vanderbilt 14 In the first ever visit of ESPN's College Gameday in Nashville, the Commodores defeat the higher-ranked Tigers after a missed extra point by Auburn. The next week, Vanderbilt received its highest ranking ever at #13.[13]
October 11 #5 Texas 45 #1 Oklahoma 35 Texas defeats the #1 team in the nation and wins the highest scoring Red River Rivalry ever.[14]
October 16 #9 BYU 7 TCU 32 The Cougars entered with the nation's longest winning streak at 16 games, but the Horned Frogs also score their biggest win ever over a Top 10 team.[15][16]
October 25 #3 Penn State 13* #9 Ohio State 6 Penn State defeats Ohio State on a game ending interception, winning their first game in Ohio Stadium since joining the Big Ten in 1993.[17]
November 1 #1 Texas 33 #7 Texas Tech 39 Texas Tech upsets #1 Texas on a last-second TD pass from Graham Harrell to Michael Crabtree and takes the top spot in the Big 12 South.[18]
November 6 #12 TCU 10 #8 Utah 13 In the second of three key Mountain West games with BCS implications, the Horned Frogs jump to a 10–0 first-quarter lead, but the Utes remained unbeaten with their BCS hopes alive, scoring the winning TD on a pass from Brian Johnson to Freddie Brown with 47 seconds left.[19][20]
November 8 Iowa 24 #3 Penn State 23 Iowa kicker Daniel Murray makes a last-second field goal for the win. Joe Paterno loses for the first time in 2008.[21]
November 8 #1 Alabama 27 #15 LSU 21 (OT) In what was known as "Saban Bowl II", the Crimson Tide defeat LSU in Tiger Stadium. With the win, Alabama was SEC West Division Champions.
November 22 #15 Michigan State 18 #8 Penn State 49* The Nittany Lions win their 800th game in school history, the Big Ten championship, and a trip to the Rose Bowl.[22]
November 22 #14 BYU 24 #7 Utah 48 In The Holy War, Utah scores 21 unanswered fourth-quarter points to win the Mountain West championship, complete an unbeaten 12–0 season, and secure its second trip to a BCS bowl.[23][24]
November 22 #2 Texas Tech 21 #5 Oklahoma 65 Oklahoma ended the Red Raiders' hopes of a national championship appearance a year after Texas Tech did the same to Oklahoma.[25][26]
November 28 Fresno State 10 #9 Boise State 61 Boise State scored 51 unanswered points to cap off their third undefeated regular season in the past five years and sixth WAC championship in seven years.[27]
November 29 #18 Georgia Tech 45 #11 Georgia 42 #11 Georgia hosted #18 Georgia Tech in Athens for what looked to be Georgia's 8th win in a row in the storied rivalry, Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate. However, after trailing 28–12 at halftime, Georgia Tech sprung out of the locker room erupting for 33 points in the second half, beating Georgia 26–0 in the third quarter alone. This kept Georgia Tech's streak of 8 wins in a row from 1946–1954 as the longest in the series.
December 5 #12 Ball State 24 Buffalo 42 12-0 Ball State tried to complete their first undefeated season in fifty-nine years in the MAC Championship Game, but Buffalo was able to capitalize on the Cardinals' mistakes to earn their first ever conference championship and secure a bid in the International Bowl, fifty years after turning down their only previous bowl invitation to protest segregation at the game's site.[28][29][30]
December 6 #1 Alabama 20 #2 Florida 31 First conference championship game ever to feature both the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the AP Poll.[31] Alabama entered the SEC Championship Game as the only BCS-conference team to finish the regular season undefeated.

Most watched regular season games in 2008

Rank Date Matchup Channel Viewers
1 December 6, 4:00 ET #2 Florida vs. #1 Alabama CBS, SEC Championship 15.061 Million
2 November 1, 8:00 ET #1 Texas vs. #7 Texas Tech ESPN on ABC 12.204 Million
3 September 13, 8:00 ET #5 Ohio State vs. #1 USC ESPN on ABC 11.800 Million
4 November 22, 8:00 ET #2 Texas Tech vs. #5 Oklahoma ESPN on ABC 10.742 Million
5 October 25, 8:00 ET #3 Penn State vs. #9 Ohio State ESPN on ABC 10.367 Million
6 November 29, 8:00 ET #3 Oklahoma vs. #12 Oklahoma State ESPN on ABC 9.525 Million
7 December 6, 8:00 ET #20 Missouri vs. #2 Oklahoma ESPN on ABC, Big 12 Championship 8.762 Million
8 November 8, 8:00 ET #9 Oklahoma State vs. #2 Texas Tech, #21 California vs #7 USC Regional ESPN on ABC 8.483 Million
9 November 8, 3:30 ET #1 Alabama vs. #16 LSU CBS 8.137 Million
10 October 11, 12:00 ET #5 Texas vs. #1 Oklahoma ESPN on ABC 7.726 Million

[32]

Conference standings

2008 ACC football standings
Conf     Overall
Team   W   L         W   L  
Atlantic Division
Boston College xy   5 – 3         9 – 5  
#21 Florida State x   5 – 3         9 – 4  
Maryland   4 – 4         8 – 5  
Wake Forest   4 – 4         8 – 5  
Clemson   4 – 4         7 – 6  
NC State   4 – 4         6 – 7  
Coastal Division
#15 Virginia Tech xy$   5 – 3         10 – 4  
#22 Georgia Tech x   5 – 3         9 – 4  
North Carolina   0 – 4         0 – 5  
Miami   4 – 4         7 – 6  
Virginia   3 – 5         5 – 7  
Duke   1 – 7         4 – 8  
Championship: Virginia Tech 30, Boston College 12
  • $ – BCS representative as conference champion
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
  • y – Championship game participant
  • North Carolina vacated 8 wins, including 4 ACC wins
Rankings from AP Poll
2008 Big East football standings
Conf     Overall
Team   W   L         W   L  
#17 Cincinnati $   6 – 1         11 – 3  
Pittsburgh   5 – 2         9 – 4  
#23 West Virginia   5 – 2         9 – 4  
Rutgers   5 – 2         8 – 5  
Connecticut   3 – 4         8 – 5  
South Florida   2 – 5         8 – 5  
Louisville   1 – 6         5 – 7  
Syracuse   1 – 6         3 – 9  
  • $ – BCS representative as conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll
2008 Big Ten football standings
Conf     Overall
Team   W   L         W   L  
#8 Penn State $+   7 – 1         11 – 2  
#9 Ohio State %+   7 – 1         10 – 3  
#24 Michigan State   6 – 2         9 – 4  
Northwestern   5 – 3         9 – 4  
#20 Iowa   5 – 3         9 – 4  
Wisconsin   3 – 5         7 – 6  
Minnesota   3 – 5         7 – 6  
Illinois   3 – 5         5 – 7  
Purdue   2 – 6         4 – 8  
Michigan   2 – 6         3 – 9  
Indiana   1 – 7         3 – 9  
  • $ – BCS representative as conference champion
  • % – BCS at-large representative
  • + – Conference co-champions
Rankings from AP Poll
2008 Big 12 football standings
Conf     Overall
Team   W   L         W   L  
Northern Division
#19 Missouri xy   5 – 3         10 – 4  
Nebraska x   5 – 3         9 – 4  
Kansas   4 – 4         8 – 5  
Colorado   2 – 6         5 – 7  
Kansas State   2 – 6         5 – 7  
Iowa State   0 – 8         2 – 10  
Southern Division
#5 Oklahoma xy$   7 – 1         12 – 2  
#4 Texas x%   7 – 1         12 – 1  
#12 Texas Tech x   7 – 1         11 – 2  
#16 Oklahoma State   5 – 3         9 – 4  
Baylor   2 – 6         4 – 8  
Texas A&M   2 – 6         4 – 8  
Championship: Oklahoma 62, Missouri 21
  • $ – BCS representative as conference champion
  • % – BCS at-large representative
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
  • y – Championship game participant
Rankings from AP Poll
2008 Conference USA football standings
Conf     Overall
Team   W   L         W   L  
East Division
East Carolina x$   6 – 2         9 – 5  
Memphis   4 – 4         6 – 7  
Southern Miss   4 – 4         7 – 6  
UAB   3 – 5         4 – 8  
UCF   3 – 5         4 – 8  
Marshall   3 – 5         4 – 8  
West Division
Tulsa xy   7 – 1         11 – 3  
Rice x   7 – 1         10 – 3  
Houston   6 – 2         8 – 5  
UTEP   4 – 4         5 – 7  
Tulane   1 – 7         2 – 10  
SMU   0 – 8         1 – 11  
Championship: East Carolina 27, Tulsa 24
  • $ – Conference champion
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
  • y – Championship game participant
Rankings from AP Poll
2008 Mid-American Conference football standings
Conf     Overall
Team   W   L         W   L  
East Division
Buffalo x$   5 – 3         8 – 6  
Bowling Green   4 – 4         6 – 6  
Temple   4 – 4         5 – 7  
Ohio   3 – 5         4 – 8  
Akron   3 – 5         5 – 7  
Kent State   3 – 5         4 – 8  
Miami   1 – 7         2 – 10  
West Division
Ball State x   8 – 0         12 – 2  
Central Michigan   6 – 2         8 – 5  
Western Michigan   6 – 2         9 – 4  
Northern Illinois   5 – 3         6 – 7  
Toledo   2 – 6         3 – 9  
Eastern Michigan   2 – 6         3 – 9  
Championship: Buffalo 42, Ball State 24
  • $ – Conference champion
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
Rankings from AP Poll
2008 Mountain West football standings
Conf     Overall
Team   W   L         W   L  
#2 Utah $   8 – 0         13 – 0  
#7 TCU   7 – 1         11 – 2  
#25 BYU   6 – 2         10 – 3  
Air Force   5 – 3         8 – 5  
Colorado State   4 – 4         7 – 6  
UNLV   2 – 6         5 – 7  
New Mexico   2 – 6         4 – 8  
Wyoming   1 – 7         4 – 8  
San Diego State   1 – 7         2 – 10  
  • $ – Conference champion and BCS representative as top non-AQ school to meet automatic qualification criteria
Rankings from AP Poll
2008 Pacific-10 football standings
Conf     Overall
Team   W   L         W   L  
#3 USC $   8 – 1         12 – 1  
#10 Oregon   7 – 2         10 – 3  
#19 Oregon State   7 – 2         9 – 4  
California   6 – 3         9 – 4  
Arizona   5 – 4         8 – 5  
Arizona State   4 – 5         5 – 7  
Stanford   4 – 5         5 – 7  
UCLA   3 – 6         4 – 8  
Washington State   1 – 8         2 – 11  
Washington   0 – 9         0 – 12  
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll
2008 SEC football standings
Conf     Overall
Team   W   L         W   L  
Eastern Division
#1 Florida x$#   7 – 1         13 – 1  
#13 Georgia   6 – 2         10 – 3  
Vanderbilt   4 – 4         7 – 6  
South Carolina   4 – 4         7 – 6  
Tennessee   3 – 5         5 – 7  
Kentucky   2 – 6         7 – 6  
Western Division
#6 Alabama x%   8 – 0         12 – 2  
#14 Ole Miss   5 – 3         9 – 4  
LSU   3 – 5         8 – 5  
Arkansas   2 – 6         5 – 7  
Auburn   2 – 6         5 – 7  
Mississippi State   2 – 6         4 – 8  
Championship: Florida 31, Alabama 20
  • # – BCS National Champion
  • $ – BCS representative as conference champion
  • % – BCS at-large representative
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
Rankings from AP Poll
2008 Sun Belt football standings
Conf     Overall
Team   W   L         W   L  
Troy $   6 – 1         8 – 5  
Louisiana–Lafayette   5 – 2         6 – 6  
Florida Atlantic   4 – 3         7 – 6  
Arkansas State   4 – 3         6 – 6  
FIU   3 – 4         5 – 7  
Middle Tennessee   3 – 4         5 – 7  
Louisiana–Monroe   3 – 4         4 – 8  
North Texas   0 – 7         1 – 11  
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll
2008 WAC football standings
Conf     Overall
Team   W   L         W   L  
#11 Boise State $   8 – 0         12 – 1  
Louisiana Tech   5 – 3         8 – 5  
Nevada   5 – 3         7 – 6  
Hawaii   5 – 3         7 – 7  
Fresno State   4 – 4         7 – 6  
San Jose State   4 – 4         6 – 6  
Utah State   3 – 5         3 – 9  
New Mexico State   1 – 7         3 – 9  
Idaho   1 – 7         2 – 10  
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll
2008 Division I FBS independents football records
Conf     Overall
Team   W   L         W   L  
Navy   –         8 – 5  
Notre Dame   –         7 – 6  
Army   –         3 – 9  
WKU   –         2 – 10  
Rankings from AP Poll

Conference champions

Championship games

Date Conference Result Site TV
December 5 MAC Buffalo 42, #12 Ball State 24 Ford Field
Detroit, Michigan 		ESPN2
December 6 Conference USA East Carolina 27, Tulsa 24 Skelly Field at H. A. Chapman Stadium
Tulsa, Oklahoma 		ESPN2
December 6 ACC Virginia Tech 30, #18 Boston College 12 Raymond James Stadium
Tampa, Florida 		ABC
December 6 SEC #2 Florida 31, #1 Alabama 20 Georgia Dome
Atlanta, Georgia 		CBS
December 6 Big 12 #4 Oklahoma 62, #19 Missouri 21 Arrowhead Stadium
Kansas City, Missouri 		ABC

Other champions

Conference Champion
Big EastCincinnati
Big Ten Penn State*
Mountain WestUtah
Pac-10 USC
Sun Belt Troy
WACBoise State

Bowl games

If a conference does not have enough eligible teams to fill all of its contracted bowl slots, and an affected bowl does not have a contingency agreement with another conference (e.g., the Poinsettia Bowl, which has a contract with the WAC to take one of its teams if the Pac-10 does not have enough eligible teams), the bowl "left out" can select an at-large team. By NCAA rule, an at-large bowl slot must be filled by a team with at least 7 wins, if available. Two new bowl games were added for the 2008–09 post-season: the EagleBank Bowl, which was played at RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C., and the magicJack St. Petersburg Bowl in the titular Florida city at Tropicana Field.

Bowl Championship Series

Ten teams played in the five BCS bowls. The top two teams in the final BCS ranking played in the BCS National Championship Game. The champions of the six BCS conferences who are not in the top two are given automatic berths into other BCS bowls. Unless playing in the championship game, the champions of the Big Ten and Pac-10 play in the Rose Bowl, the ACC champion in the Orange Bowl, the SEC champion in the Sugar Bowl and the Big 12 champion in the Fiesta Bowl. The Big East champion can play in any open BCS bowl games.

After the completion of the regular season and conference championship games, seven teams had secured BCS berths: Big Ten champion Penn State, Big East champion Cincinnati, ACC champion Virginia Tech, SEC champion Florida, Big 12 champion Oklahoma, Pac-10 champion USC, and Mountain West champion Utah, as the highest-ranked non-BCS conference champion. With Oklahoma and Florida being selected to play in the championship, Texas and Alabama were selected to assume their conference's spots in the Fiesta and Sugar Bowls. Cincinnati was selected for the Orange Bowl and Utah for the Sugar Bowl, with the remaining at-large spot awarded to Ohio State for the Fiesta Bowl. Ohio State was selected despite being ranked behind #9 Boise State at #10. #7 Texas Tech did not receive an at-large selection, as they were ineligible with the Big 12 already being awarded two BCS slots.

Bowl Game Date Visitor Home Score TV
Rose Bowl Game presented by citi (Pasadena, CA) January 1[3] #5 USC #8 Penn State[33]38–24 ABC
FedEx Orange Bowl (Miami Gardens, FL) January 1[3] #12 Cincinnati #19 Virginia Tech[34]7–20 FOX
Allstate Sugar Bowl (New Orleans, LA) January 2[3] #6 Utah #4 Alabama31–17 FOX
Tostitos Fiesta Bowl (Glendale, AZ) January 5[3] #10 Ohio State #3 Texas 21–24 FOX
FedEx BCS National Championship Game
(Miami Gardens, FL)		 January 8[3] #2 Florida #1 Oklahoma 24–14 FOX

Other bowl games

Bowl Game Date Visitor Home Score TV
EagleBank Bowl (Washington, D.C.) December 20 Wake Forest Navy 29–19 ESPN
New Mexico Bowl (Albuquerque, NM) December 20 Colorado State Fresno State 40–35 ESPN
magicJack St. Petersburg Bowl (St. Petersburg, FL) December 20 Memphis South Florida14–41 ESPN2
Pioneer Las Vegas Bowl (Las Vegas, NV) December 20 #16 BYU Arizona21–31 ESPN
R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl (New Orleans, LA) December 21 Southern Mississippi Troy 30–27 ESPN
SDCCU Poinsettia Bowl (San Diego, CA) December 23 #9 Boise State #11 TCU 16–17 ESPN
Sheraton Hawaiʻi Bowl (ʻAiea, HI) December 24 Hawaiʻi Notre Dame21–49 ESPN
Motor City Bowl (Detroit, MI) December 26 Florida Atlantic Central Michigan 24–21 ESPN
Meineke Car Care Bowl (Charlotte, NC) December 27 West Virginia North Carolina 31–30 ESPN
Champs Sports Bowl (Orlando, FL) December 27 Wisconsin[35] Florida State 13–42 ESPN
Emerald Bowl (San Francisco, CA) December 27 Miami (FL) California 17–24 ESPN
Independence Bowl (Shreveport, LA) December 28 Northern Illinois Louisiana Tech 10–17 ESPN
Papajohns.com Bowl (Birmingham, AL) December 29 NC State Rutgers 23–29 ESPN2
Valero Alamo Bowl (San Antonio, TX) December 29 #21 Missouri #23 Northwestern 30–23 (OT) ESPN
Roady's Truck Stops Humanitarian Bowl (Boise, ID) December 30 Maryland Nevada 42–35 ESPN2
Texas Bowl (Houston, TX) December 30 Rice Western Michigan 38–14 NFL Network
Pacific Life Holiday Bowl (San Diego, CA) December 30 #13 Oklahoma State #17 Oregon31–42 ESPN
Bell Helicopters Armed Forces Bowl (Fort Worth, TX) December 31 Houston Air Force 34–28 ESPN
Brut Sun Bowl (El Paso, TX) December 31 Oregon State #20 Pittsburgh[36] 3–0 CBS
Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl (Nashville, TN) December 31 #24 Boston College Vanderbilt 14–16 ESPN
Insight Bowl (Tempe, AZ) December 31 Kansas[37] Minnesota[38] 42–21 NFL
Chick-fil-A Bowl (Atlanta, GA) December 31 LSU #14 Georgia Tech 38–3 ESPN
Outback Bowl (Tampa, FL) January 1 South Carolina Iowa 10–31 ESPN
Konica Minolta Gator Bowl (Jacksonville, FL) January 1 Nebraska Clemson 26–21 CBS
Capital One Bowl (Orlando, FL) January 1 #15 Georgia #18 Michigan State 24–12 ABC
Cotton Bowl Classic (Dallas, TX) January 2 #25 Ole Miss #7 Texas Tech 47–34 FOX
AutoZone Liberty Bowl (Memphis, TN) January 2 Kentucky East Carolina 25–19 ESPN
International Bowl (Toronto, ON, Canada) January 3 Buffalo Connecticut 20–38 ESPN2
GMAC Bowl (Mobile, AL) January 6 Tulsa #22 Ball State 45–13 ESPN

Winners are bold

Bowl Challenge Cup standings

Conference Wins Losses Pct.
Pac-10 5 0 1.000
SEC 6 2 .750
Big East 4 2 .667
C-USA 4 2 .667
MWC 3 2 .600
Big 12 4 3 .571
Sun Belt * 1 1 .500
ACC 4 6 .400
WAC 1 4 .200
Big Ten 1 6 .143
MAC 0 5 .000

* Does not meet minimum game requirement of three teams needed for a conference to be eligible.

Awards and honors

Heisman Trophy voting

The Heisman Trophy is given to the year's most outstanding player.

Other major award winners

Top Player

Award Winner
Walter Camp Award Colt McCoy, Texas
Griffin Award Colt McCoy, Texas
Maxwell Award Tim Tebow, Florida

Coaching

Award Winner
The Home Depot Coach of the Year Award Nick Saban, Alabama[39]
Associated Press Coach of the Year Nick Saban, Alabama
Paul "Bear" Bryant Award (head coach) Kyle Whittingham, Utah
Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year Award Nick Saban, Alabama[40]
Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year Nick Saban, Alabama[41]
Walter Camp Coach of the Year (head coach) Nick Saban, Alabama
Broyles Award (assistant coach) Kevin Wilson, Oklahoma

Offense

Award Winner
Dave Rimington Trophy (Center) A. Q. Shipley, Penn State
Davey O'Brien Award (Quarterback) Sam Bradford, Oklahoma
Doak Walker Award (Running Back) Shonn Greene, Iowa
Fred Biletnikoff Award (Wide Receiver) Michael Crabtree, Texas Tech
John Mackey Award (Tight End) Chase Coffman, Missouri
Johnny Unitas Award (Sr. Quarterback) Graham Harrell, Texas Tech
Manning Award (quarterback) Tim Tebow, Florida

Defense

Award Winner
Bronko Nagurski Trophy (Defensive Player) Brian Orakpo, Texas
Chuck Bednarik Award (Defensive Player) Rey Maualuga, USC
Dick Butkus Award (Linebacker) Aaron Curry, Wake Forest
Lott Trophy (defensive impact) James Laurinaitis, Ohio State
Jim Thorpe Award (Defensive Back) Malcolm Jenkins, Ohio State
Ted Hendricks Award (defensive end) Brian Orakpo, Texas

Lineman

Award Winner
Outland Trophy (interior lineman) Andre Smith, Alabama
Lombardi Award (Top Lineman) Brian Orakpo, Texas

Special Teams

Award Winner
Ray Guy Award (punter) Matt Fodge, Oklahoma State
Lou Groza Award (placekicker) Graham Gano, Florida State

Other

Award Winner
Draddy Trophy ("Academic Heisman") Alex Mack, California
Wuerffel Trophy (humanitarian-athlete) Tim Tebow, Florida[42]

All-Americans

2008 Consensus All-America Team
Special teams
Position Name Height Weight (lbs.) Class Hometown Team
Kicker Louie Sakoda 5'9" 175 Sr. San Jose, California Utah
Punter Kevin Huber 6'1" 214 Sr. Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati
RS Brandon James 5'7" 186 Jr. St. Augustine, Florida Florida
RS Jeremy Maclin 6'0" 198 Jr. Kirkwood, Missouri Missouri

Statistical leaders

Coaching changes

Pre-season

Pre-season
School 2008 coach 2007 coach
Arkansas Bobby Petrino Houston Nutt
Baylor Art Briles Guy Morriss
Georgia Tech Paul Johnson Chan Gailey
Hawaiʻi Greg McMackin June Jones
Houston Kevin Sumlin Art Briles
Michigan Rich Rodriguez Lloyd Carr
Mississippi Houston Nutt Ed Orgeron
Navy Ken Niumatalolo Paul Johnson
Nebraska Bo Pelini Bill Callahan
Northern Illinois Jerry Kill Joe Novak
SMU June Jones Phil Bennett
Southern Mississippi Larry Fedora Jeff Bower
Texas A&M Mike Sherman Dennis Franchione
UCLA Rick Neuheisel Karl Dorrell

In-season

In-season
School Interim Coach Former Coach
Clemson Dabo Swinney Tommy Bowden

End of season

End of season
School Outgoing coach Reason Replacement
Army Stan Brock Fired Rich Ellerson
Auburn Tommy Tuberville Resigned Gene Chizik[43]
Ball State Brady Hoke[44] Hired as head coach at San Diego State Stan Parrish
Boston College Jeff Jagodzinski Fired Frank Spaziani
Bowling Green Gregg Brandon Fired Dave Clawson
Eastern Michigan Jeff Genyk Fired Ron English[45]
Iowa State Gene Chizik Hired as head coach at Auburn Paul Rhoads[46]
Kansas State Ron Prince Fired[47] Bill Snyder[48]
Miami (OH) Shane Montgomery Resigned Mike Haywood
Mississippi State Sylvester Croom Resigned Dan Mullen
New Mexico Rocky Long Resigned Mike Locksley[49]
New Mexico State Hal Mumme Fired DeWayne Walker
Oregon Mike Bellotti Resigned to become Oregon athletic director[50] Chip Kelly[50]
Purdue Joe Tiller Retired[51] Danny Hope[51]
San Diego State Chuck Long Fired Brady Hoke[44]
Syracuse Greg Robinson Fired Doug Marrone[52]
Tennessee Phillip Fulmer Fired Lane Kiffin[53]
Toledo Tom Amstutz Resigned Tim Beckman
Utah State Brent Guy Fired Gary Andersen
Washington Tyrone Willingham Fired Steve Sarkisian[54]
Wyoming Joe Glenn Fired Dave Christensen[55]

Final rankings

Rank Associated Press USA TODAY/AFCA*
1 Florida Florida
2 Utah Southern California
3 Southern California Texas
4 Texas Utah≠
5 Oklahoma Oklahoma
6 Alabama Alabama
7 Texas Christian Texas Christian
8 Penn State Penn State
9 Ohio State Oregon
10 Oregon Georgia
11 Boise State Ohio State
12 Texas Tech Texas Tech
13 Georgia Boise State
14 Mississippi Virginia Tech
15 Virginia Tech Mississippi
16 Oklahoma State Missouri
17 Cincinnati Cincinnati
18 Oregon State Oklahoma State
19 Missouri Oregon State
20 Iowa Iowa
21 Florida State Brigham Young
22 Georgia Tech Georgia Tech
23 West Virginia Florida State
24 Michigan State Michigan State
25 Brigham Young California

* - The AFCA requires that their voters make the winner of the BCS Championship at the number one position in the final poll.
≠ - Kyle Whittingham, head coach of Utah, broke the agreement and voted his team number one on his ballot.

See also

Notes and references

  1. ↑ Western Kentucky University was in a 2-year process of transition to FBS status in 2008 (completed in 2009), and, therefore, some sources list the total for 2008 as 119.
  2. ↑ "NCAA Football Schedules Week 1". CBS Sportsline. Archived from the original on 25 August 2007. Retrieved 2007-08-20.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Future BCS Schedules". BCSFootball.org. Fox Sports. Archived from the original on 2007-10-24. Retrieved 2007-10-29.
  4. ↑ "NCAA Football Rules Committee Proposes Rules to Enhance Student-Athlete Safety and Encourage Consistent Pace of Play" (Press release). Archived from the original on December 23, 2008. Retrieved 23 December 2008.
  5. ↑ "More new timing rules among NCAA proposal". Retrieved 23 December 2008.
  6. ↑ ESPN
  7. ↑ "East Carolina controls West Virginia from start to finish". ESPN.com. 2008-09-06. Archived from the original on 2010-01-17. Retrieved 2008-11-23.
  8. ↑ Ohio State Buckeyes vs. USC Trojans - Recap - September 13, 2008 - ESPN
  9. ↑ USC Trojans vs. Oregon State Beavers - Recap - September 25, 2008 - ESPN
  10. ↑ Ole Miss Rebels vs. Florida Gators - Recap - September 27, 2008 - ESPN
  11. ↑ USA Today:Another stunner: Ole Miss topples No. 4 Florida 31-30
  12. ↑ http://www.olemisssports.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=12816&SPID=738&DB_OEM_ID=2600&ATCLID=1621919
  13. ↑ Auburn Tigers vs. Vanderbilt Commodores - Recap - October 04, 2008 - ESPN
  14. ↑ Texas Longhorns vs. Oklahoma Sooners - Recap - October 11, 2008 - ESPN
  15. ↑ "Showdown near as unbeaten BYU takes on 6-1 TCU". ESPN.com. 2008-10-16. Archived from the original on 29 October 2008. Retrieved 2008-11-07.
  16. ↑ "TCU ends BYU's BCS hopes, win streak, and undefeated season". ESPN.com. Associated Press. 2008-10-16. Archived from the original on 2 November 2008. Retrieved 2008-11-07.
  17. ↑ Penn State Nittany Lions vs. Ohio State Buckeyes - Recap - October 25, 2008 - ESPN
  18. ↑ Texas Longhorns vs. Texas Tech Red Raiders - Box Score - November 01, 2008 - ESPN
  19. ↑ "Utes-Horned Frogs meet with MWC title, BCS hopes at stake". ESPN.com. 2008-11-07. Retrieved 2008-11-07.
  20. ↑ "Johnson TD pass with 47 seconds left lifts Utah past TCU". ESPN.com. Associated Press. 2008-11-07. Archived from the original on 11 December 2008. Retrieved 2008-11-07.
  21. ↑ "Nittany Lions Lose First on Last Second Field Goal at Iowa - BAD". CBS Interactive. Retrieved 15 October 2014.
  22. ↑ "No. 7 Nittany Lions Defeat Spartans to Claim Big Ten Title, BCS Bid". CBS Interactive. Retrieved 15 October 2014.
  23. ↑ "Stakes even higher than usual for Utah against BYU". ESPN.com. 2008-11-22. Archived from the original on 4 December 2008. Retrieved 2008-11-23.
  24. ↑ "Seventh-ranked Utes tackle defending champions to win conference title". ESPN.com. Associated Press. 2008-11-22. Retrieved 2008-11-23.
  25. ↑ "Red Raiders, Sooners battle for Big 12 South title". ESPN.com. 2008-11-22. Archived from the original on 5 December 2008. Retrieved 2008-11-23.
  26. ↑ "Oklahoma's message soundly delivered with destruction of Texas Tech". ESPN.com. Associated Press. 2008-11-22. Archived from the original on 5 December 2008. Retrieved 2008-11-23.
  27. ↑ "No. 9 Boise State scores 48 second-half points to blow away Fresno State". ESPN.com. 2008-11-28. Archived from the original on 2 December 2008. Retrieved 2008-12-05.
  28. ↑ Eric Neel (2008-11-19). "All Or Nothing". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on 2010-04-18. Retrieved 2008-12-05.
  29. ↑ "Cardinals, Bulls lay it on the line in MAC title game". ESPN.com. 2008-12-05. Archived from the original on 8 December 2008. Retrieved 23 December 2008.
  30. ↑ "Four fumbles doom No. 12 Ball State in MAC finale". ESPN.com. 2008-12-05. Archived from the original on 9 December 2008. Retrieved 23 December 2008.
  31. ↑ "Football Bowl Subdivision Records" (PDF). NCAA. Retrieved 15 October 2014.
  32. ↑ "NCAA Football Season Review". Retrieved 12 October 2011.
  33. ↑ "Penn State Rose Bowl Bound". Yahoo!. Retrieved 2008-11-23.
  34. ↑ "Virginia Tech takes down BC,headed down to Orange Bowl again". Associated Press. Archived from the original on 8 December 2008. Retrieved 2008-12-05.
  35. ↑ http://www.uwbadgers.com/sport_news/fb/headlines/story.html?sportid=111&storyid=16009
  36. ↑ PittsburghPanthers.com - University of Pittsburgh Official Athletic Site - Football
  37. ↑ KU headed to Insight Bowl
  38. ↑ Gophers, Jayhawks to meet in Insight Bowl Archived December 25, 2008, at the Wayback Machine.
  39. ↑ UA's Saban Named Home Depot Coach of the Year
  40. ↑ "Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year". Retrieved 30 December 2008.
  41. ↑ "ALABAMA'S SABAN WINS 2008 EDDIE ROBINSON AWARD". Retrieved 7 January 2009.
  42. ↑ UF's Tim Tebow is 2008 Wuerffel Trophy Winner Archived December 14, 2008, at the Wayback Machine.
  43. ↑ Iowa State's Chizik to Take Over at Auburn
  44. 1 2 "San Diego State to hire Ball State's Hoke, source says". ESPN.com. 2008-12-15. Archived from the original on 17 December 2008. Retrieved 2008-12-15.
  45. ↑ "English to be announced as EMU coach". ESPN.com. 2008-12-15. Archived from the original on 8 January 2009. Retrieved 2008-12-20.
  46. ↑ Source: Rhoads to be named new ISU football coach
  47. ↑ "Ron Prince Will Not Return for 2009" (Press release). Kansas State University Athletic Department. 2008-11-05. Archived from the original on December 11, 2008. Retrieved 2008-11-27.
  48. ↑ "Bill Snyder Named Head Football Coach" (Press release). Kansas State University Athletic Department. 2008-11-24. Archived from the original on December 3, 2008. Retrieved 2008-11-27.
  49. ↑ "Mike Locksley - New Mexico's 29th Head Football Coach". - Lobos Football. - (c/o CBS Interactive). - December 9, 2008.
  50. 1 2 "Kelly succeeds Bellotti as Ducks coach". ESPN.com. Associated Press. 2009-03-13. Archived from the original on 17 March 2009. Retrieved 2009-03-15.
  51. 1 2 "Plenty Of Reasons For Hope" (Press release). Purdue University Athletics Department. 2008-01-11. Archived from the original on 8 December 2008. Retrieved 2008-11-27.
  52. ↑ Doug Marrone in Syracuse Friday; will be named head coach
  53. ↑ Kiffin introduced as Vol's 21st coach » Abilene Reporter-News Archived December 8, 2008, at the Wayback Machine.
  54. ↑ Sources: USC offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian gets Washington job - ESPN
  55. ↑ MU’s Christensen accepts Wyoming job Archived December 2, 2008, at the Wayback Machine.
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