2016 Montana State Bobcats football team

American college football season

2016 Montana State Bobcats football

Conference	Big Sky Conference
Record	4–7 (2–6 Big Sky)
Head coach	Jeff Choate (1st season)
Offensive coordinator	Courtney Messingham (1st season)
Offensive scheme	Multiple
Defensive coordinator	Ty Gregorak (1st season)
Base defense	4–3
Home stadium	Bobcat Stadium
Seasons← 2015 2017 →

2016 Big Sky Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 4 Eastern Washington +^	8	–	0	12	–	2
No. 12 North Dakota +^	8	–	0	9	–	3
No. 25 Weber State ^	6	–	2	7	–	5
No. 24 Cal Poly ^	5	–	3	7	–	5
Southern Utah	5	–	3	6	–	5
Northern Colorado	4	–	4	6	–	5
Northern Arizona	4	–	4	5	–	6
Montana	3	–	5	6	–	5
Montana State	2	–	6	4	–	7
Portland State	2	–	6	3	–	8
UC Davis	2	–	6	3	–	8
Sacramento State	2	–	6	2	–	9
Idaho State	1	–	7	2	–	9

$ – Conference champion ^ – FCS playoff participant Rankings from STATS Poll

The 2016 Montana State Bobcats football team represented Montana State University as a member of the Big Sky Conference during the 2016 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by first-year head coach Jeff Choate, Montana State compiled an overall record of 4–7 with a mark of 2–6 in conference play, placing in a four-way tie for ninth place in the Big Sky. The Bobcats played their home games at Bobcat Stadium in Bozeman, Montana.

Athletic director search

After 14 years as athletic director, Peter Fields's contract was not to be renewed for the 2016 season. On May 2, Montana State officially introduced Kyle Brennan as the new athletic director. However, on May 10, Brennan backed out of the job citing that the job "didn't feel right". Later that same day, MSU announced that they would hire Leon Costello as the new athletic director.

Recruits

College recruiting information
Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
Chase Benson DL	Helena, MT	Helena High School	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	242 lb (110 kg)
Chase Benson DL	Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A
Balue Chapman LB	Bozeman, MT	Bozeman High School	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	189 lb (86 kg)
Balue Chapman LB	Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A
Anthony Pegues RB	Frisco, TX	Centennial High School	5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	Feb 3, 2016
Anthony Pegues RB	Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports:
Overall recruiting rankings:
‡ Refers to 40 yard dash Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height, weight and 40 time. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2016 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved April 12, 2016. "2016 Montana State Bobcats football team". 247sports.com. Retrieved April 12, 2016.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 1	7:00 pm	at Idaho*	Kibbie Dome Moscow, ID	ESPN3	L 17–20	11,987
September 10	2:05 pm	Bryant*	Bobcat Stadium Bozeman, MT	CMM	W 27–24	18,867
September 17	2:05 pm	Western Oregon*	Bobcat Stadium Bozeman, MT	CMM	W 55–0	17,577
September 24	2:05 pm	North Dakota	Bobcat Stadium Bozeman, MT	CMM	L 15–17	19,507
October 1	7:05 pm	at Sacramento State	Hornet Stadium Sacramento, CA	CMM	L 38–41	7,759
October 8	5:10 pm	Northern Arizona	Bobcat Stadium Bozeman, MT	RTNW	L 14–20	17,637
October 15	1:40 pm	at Weber State	Stewart Stadium Odgen, UT	RTNW	L 27–45	7,148
October 22	12:10 pm	No. 3 Eastern Washington	Bobcat Stadium Bozeman, MT	RTNW	L 17–41	18,087
November 5	12:05 pm	at Southern Utah	Eccles Coliseum Cedar City, UT	CMM	L 21–38	7,342
November 12	1:30 pm	UC Davis	Bobcat Stadium Bozeman, MT	RTNW	W 27–13	15,767
November 19	12:00 pm	at No. 22 Montana	Washington–Grizzly Stadium Missoula, MT (rivalry)	RTNW	W 24–17	26,182
*Non-conference game Rankings from STATS Poll released prior to the game All times are in Mountain time

Game summaries

At Idaho

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bobcats	7	3	7	0	17
Vandals	17	3	0	0	20

Bryant

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bulldogs	3	7	7	7	24
Bobcats	0	14	13	0	27

Western Oregon

	1	2	3	4	Total
Wolves	0	0	0	0	0
Bobcats	3	31	7	14	55

North Dakota

	1	2	3	4	Total
Fighting Hawks	0	7	3	7	17
Bobcats	3	3	3	6	15

At Sacramento State

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bobcats	3	21	14	0	38
Hornets	7	14	0	20	41

Northern Arizona

	1	2	3	4	Total
Lumberjacks	0	10	10	0	20
Bobcats	0	0	7	7	14

At Weber State

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bobcats	7	7	7	6	27
Wildcats	21	21	0	3	45

Eastern Washington

	1	2	3	4	Total
#3 Eagles	14	10	7	10	41
Bobcats	14	3	0	0	17

At Southern Utah

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bobcats	7	7	0	7	21
Thunderbirds	0	14	10	14	38

UC Davis

	1	2	3	4	Total
Aggies	7	6	0	0	13
Bobcats	0	17	0	10	27

At Montana

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bobcats	7	7	10	0	24
#22 Grizzlies	7	0	3	7	17

References

"Recently hired MSU athletic director no longer wants job". Bozeman Daily Chronicle. Retrieved May 11, 2016.
"After Brennan balks, Costello named athletic director at Montana State". Billings Gazette. Retrieved May 11, 2016.

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

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