# 1984 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game

The 1984 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game was a postseason college football game between the Montana State Bobcats and the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs. The game was played on December 15, 1984, at Johnson Hagood Stadium in Charleston, South Carolina. The culminating game of the 1984 NCAA Division I-AA football season, it was won by Montana State, 19–6.
The championship game was televised on the Satellite Program Network (SPN), as the NCAA paid SPN to broadcast some playoff contests following a Supreme Court ruling (NCAA v. Board of Regents of the University of Oklahoma) that halted the NCAA's practice of negotiating television contracts for its members.

## Teams

The participants of the Championship Game were the finalists of the 1984 I-AA Playoffs, which began with a 12-team bracket.

### Montana State Bobcats

Montana State finished their regular season with a 9–2 record (6–1 in conference); two wins came over Division II opponents (Mesa State and Portland State) and one win came over a Division I-A program (Fresno State). Tied for second in the final NCAA I-AA in-house poll and seeded third in the tournament, the Bobcats received a first-round bye then defeated Arkansas State and second-seed Rhode Island to reach the final. This was the first appearance for Montana State in a Division I-AA championship game.

### Louisiana Tech Bulldogs

Louisiana Tech finished their regular season with a 7–4 record (5–1 in conference); three of their losses were to Division I-A programs (Southwestern Louisiana, Southern Miss, and Ole Miss). Ranked ninth in the final NCAA I-AA in-house poll and unseeded in the tournament, the Bulldogs defeated Mississippi Valley State, top-seed Alcorn State, and Middle Tennessee State to reach the final. This was also the first appearance for Louisiana Tech in a Division I-AA championship game.

## Game summary
### Scoring summary

Scoring summary :
| Quarter | Time | Drive | Drive | Drive | Team | Scoring information | Score | Score |
| Quarter | Time | Plays | Yards | TOP | Team | Scoring information | La. Tech | MSU |
| 1 | 11:59 | 6 | 15 | 1:01 | MSU | 33-yard field goal by Mark Carter | 0 | 3 |
| 1 | | 4 | 31 | 0:41 | MSU | Joe Bignell 17-yard touchdown reception from Kelly Bradley, Carter kick no good (wide left) | 0 | 9 |
| 2 | 4:54 | 5 | 80 | 2:10 | MSU | Bignell 33-yard touchdown reception from Bradley, Carter kick good | 0 | 16 |
| 2 | 0:06 | | | | MSU | 48-yard field goal by Carter | 0 | 19 |
| 4 | 0:48 | | | | La. Tech | Michael Sherman 10-yard touchdown reception from Kyle Gandy, 2-point pass incomplete | 6 | 19 |
| "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | 6 | 19 |

### Game statistics

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Bulldogs | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 6 |
| Bobcats | 9 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 19 |
| Statistics | La. Tech | MSU |
| First downs | 19 | 20 |
| Plays–yards | 74–262 | 82–340 |
| Rushes–yards | 36–(-25) | 25–6 |
| Passing yards | 287 | 334 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 24–38–4 | 32–57–1 |
| Time of possession | 29:51 | 30:08 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Louisiana Tech | Passing | Kyle Gandy | 24–38, 287 yds, 1 TD, 4 INT |
| Louisiana Tech | Rushing | Gerry Jones | 4 car, 16 yds |
| Louisiana Tech | Receiving | Michael Sherman | 4 rec, 77 yds, 1 TD |
| Montana State | Passing | Kelly Bradley | 32–57, 334 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT |
| Montana State | Rushing | Jesse Jones | 4 car, 13 yds |
| Montana State | Receiving | Joe Bignell | 10 rec, 130 yds, 2 TD |