The 2021 Montana State Bobcats football team represented

Montana State University Montana State University (MSU) is a Public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Bozeman, Montana. It is the state's largest university. MSU offers baccalaureate degrees in 60 fields, master's degrees in 6 ...

as a member of the

Big Sky Conference The Big Sky Conference (BSC) is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the NCAA's Division I with football competing in the Football Championship Subdivision. Member institutions are located in the western United States in the eigh ...

during the 2021 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Bobcats were led by first-year head coach

Brent Vigen Brent Erick Vigen (born March 19, 1975) is an American football coach and former player. Vigen is currently the head coach for the Montana State Bobcats football, Montana State Bobcats. He was previously the associate head coach and offensive coo ...

and played their home games at Bobcat Stadium in

Bozeman, Montana Bozeman is a city and the county seat of Gallatin County, Montana, United States. Located in southwest Montana, the 2020 census put Bozeman's population at 53,293, making it the fourth-largest city in Montana. It is the principal city of th ...

. The Bobcats finished their regular season with a 9–2 record (7–1 in conference), losing only to

Wyoming Wyoming () is a U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the south ...

(an FBS team) and

Montana Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbi ...

. They were seeded eighth in the FCS postseason tournament and received a first-round bye; they then defeated UT Martin,

Sam Houston State Sam Houston State University (SHSU or Sam) is a public university in Huntsville, Texas. It was founded in 1879 and is the third-oldest public college or university in Texas. It is one of the first normal schools west of the Mississippi River and ...

, and

South Dakota State South Dakota State University is a public land-grant research university in Brookings, South Dakota. Founded in 1881, it is the state's largest and most comprehensive university and the oldest continually-operating university in South Dakota. The ...

to advance to the final match of the tournament. In the championship game, the Bobcats were defeated by

North Dakota State North Dakota State University (NDSU, formally North Dakota State University of Agriculture and Applied Sciences) is a public land-grant research university in Fargo, North Dakota. It was founded as North Dakota Agricultural College in 1890 as t ...

on January 8, 2022, in

Frisco, Texas Frisco is a city in Collin and Denton counties in the U.S. state of Texas. It is part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex and about from both Dallas Love Field and Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. Its population was 200,509 at the 2 ...

Previous season

The Bobcats opted out of the 2020–21 FCS season, contested during the

COVID-19 pandemic in the United States The COVID-19 pandemic in the United States is a part of the COVID-19 pandemic, worldwide pandemic of COVID-19, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by SARS-CoV-2, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). In the Uni ...

. During the 2019 FCS season, the Bobcats finished at 11–4 overall, 6–2 in Big Sky play to finish in a three-way tie for third place. They received an at-large bid to the

FCS Playoffs The NCAA Division I Football Championship is an annual post-season college football game, played since 2006, used to determine a national champion of the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS). From 1978 to 2005, the game was k ...

where, after a first round bye, they defeated Albany in the second round and Austin Peay in the quarterfinals before losing in the semifinals to

Preseason

On July 26, 2021, during the virtual Big Sky Kickoff, the Bobcats were predicted to finish fourth in the Big Sky by both the coaches and media.

Preseason All–Big Sky team

The Bobcats had two players selected to the preseason all-Big Sky team. Offense Taylor Tuiasosopo – OL Defense

Troy Andersen Troy Andersen (born April 23, 1999) is an American football linebacker for the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Montana State where previously played quarterback, running back and fullback f ...

– OLB

Schedule

Roster

Game summaries

at Wyoming

Drake

San Diego

at Portland State

Northern Colorado

Cal Poly

at No. 19 Weber State

Idaho State

at Eastern Washington

Idaho

at No. 7 Montana

Ranking movements

References

{{2021 NCAA Division I FCS playoff navbox

Montana State Montana State University (MSU) is a public land-grant research university in Bozeman, Montana. It is the state's largest university. MSU offers baccalaureate degrees in 60 fields, master's degrees in 68 fields, and doctoral degrees in 35 fiel ...

Montana State Bobcats football seasons 2021 NCAA Division I FCS playoff participants

Montana State Bobcats football The Montana State Bobcats football program competes in the Big Sky Conference of the NCAA's Division I Football Championship Subdivision for Montana State University. The program began in 1897 and has won three national championships (1956, 197 ...