1978 Montana State Bobcats football team

American college football season

1978 Montana State Bobcats football
Conference	Big Sky Conference
Record	8–2 (4–2 Big Sky)
Head coach	Sonny Lubick (1st season)
Home stadium	Sales Stadium
Seasons← 1977 1979 →

1978 Big Sky Conference football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
No. 7 Northern Arizona $	6	–	0	–	0	8	–	2	–	0
No. T–9 Montana State	4	–	2	–	0	8	–	2	–	0
Montana	4	–	2	–	0	5	–	6	–	0
Boise State	3	–	3	–	0	7	–	4	–	0
Weber State	2	–	4	–	0	4	–	7	–	0
Idaho	2	–	4	–	0	2	–	9	–	0
Idaho State	0	–	6	–	0	2	–	9	–	0

$ – Conference champion Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA AP Poll

The 1978 Montana State Bobcats football team was an American football team that represented Montana State University in the Big Sky Conference during the 1978 NCAA Division I-AA football season. In their first season under head coach Sonny Lubick, the Bobcats compiled an 8–2 record (4–2 against Big Sky opponents) and tied for second place in the Big Sky.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result	Attendance
September 9	at North Dakota*		Memorial Stadium Fargo, ND	W 21–13	11,700
September 16	North Dakota State*		Sales Stadium Bozeman, MT	W 28–18	7,650
September 23	Texas A&I*	No. 6	Sales Stadium Bozeman, MT	W 42–21
September 30	No. 3 Boise State	No. 6	Sales Stadium Bozeman, MT	W 31–29	12,850
October 7	at Weber State	No. 2	Wildcat Stadium Ogden, UT	W 21–14	7,891
October 14	Idaho State	No. 2	Sales Stadium Bozeman, MT	W 23–12	13,650
October 21	at Idaho	No. 1	Kibbie Dome Moscow, ID	W 57–21	9,000
October 28	Northern Arizona	No. 1	Sales Stadium Bozeman, MT	L 22–43
November 4	at Montana	No. T–5	Sales Stadium Bozeman, MT (rivalry)	L 8–24	13,044
November 11	at Fresno State*		Ratcliffe Stadium Fresno, CA	W 35–14	7,258
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from Associated Press Poll released prior to the game

"Bobcat Record Book" (PDF). Montana State University. 2018. p. 59. Retrieved September 30, 2021.
"Cats win 21–13 behind Dennehy". The Montana Standard. September 10, 1978. Retrieved September 9, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
"Bobcats belt North Dakota St". Great Falls Tribune. September 17, 1978. Retrieved October 5, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
"Bobcats bury Javelinas in 4th quarter". The Corpus Christi Caller-Times. September 24, 1978. Retrieved September 9, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
"Montana State shocks Boise". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. October 1, 1978. p. 3B.
"Bobcats defeat Weber State". The Spokesman-Review. October 8, 1978. Retrieved September 9, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
"MSU remains unbeaten". The Montana Standard. October 15, 1978. Retrieved September 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
"Dennehy's arm carries Bobcats". The Billings Gazette. October 22, 1978. Retrieved September 9, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
"Northern Arizona stuns undefeated Montana State". The Times-News. October 29, 1978. Retrieved September 9, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
Warren Wintrode (November 5, 1978). "Grizzlies ambush Bobcats, 24-8". The Montana Standard. p. 7 – via Newspapers.com.
"MSU romps 35–14". The Independent-Record. November 12, 1978. Retrieved September 9, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.

v t e Montana State Bobcats football
Venues	Gatton Field (1930–1971) Van Winkle Stadium (1972) Bobcat Stadium (1973–present)
Bowls & rivalries	Bowl games Montana
Culture & lore	Spirit of the West Marching Band
People	Head coaches NFL draftees
Seasons	1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906–1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942–1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
National championship seasons in bold