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Football Announces 2008 Schedule
March 11, 2008
ORONO, Maine - An expanded 12-game schedule, including six home games and a season-opening showdown at Iowa, highlight the 2008 University of Maine football schedule which was released on Tuesday. The schedule is also highlighted with five games against teams who made the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision playoffs last season, including two at home, James Madison (Sept. 27) and New Hampshire (Nov. 22). The season is extended to 12 games this year due to 14 Saturdays falling on the calendar between the first permissible playing date (Saturday, Aug. 30) to the last permissible playing date (Saturday, Nov. 22) of the regular season. The season kicks off on Aug. 30, when the Black Bears travel to Iowa City to face Iowa out of the Big Ten Conference. The game marks the fifth-straight season the Black Bears will face a Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) opponent. Maine is 1-5 all-time against FBS schools, including a 9-7 win over SEC-foe Mississippi State in 2004. Iowa is led by head coach Kirk Ferentz, who also served as the head coach at Maine from 1990-92. The game will be held at Kinnick Stadium on the Iowa campus, and has a seating capacity of 70,585 -- the second largest stadium Maine will have played in during its 117 seasons of intercollegiate football. The Black Bears take to the road the following week (Sept. 6), to face Monmouth in West Long Branch, N.J. Maine defeated the Hawks in last year's season opener (21-14) in Alfond Stadium. Following the two-game road swing, Maine returns to Alfond Stadium for its 2008 home opener on Sept. 13, as the Black Bears will play host to Stony Brook. Maine will be looking to avenge last season's 30-23 double-overtime loss to the Seawolves.
Following Stony Brook, Maine will face three-straight opponents from the CAA South Division over the following four weeks. The Black Bears return to the road on Sept. 20, when they travel to Richmond to face the Spiders. Richmond won the CAA South Division title last season and advanced to the semifinals of the FCS playoffs. Maine and Richmond will be meeting for the 21st time in the series' history, with the teams splitting the previous 20 meetings at 10 wins apiece. The Black Bears and Spiders last met during the 2005 season, as Richmond pulled out a 26-21 win in Alfond Stadium.
Maine returns home the following week on Sept. 27, to play host to James Madison, which advanced to the FCS playoffs last season. The Black Bears and Dukes will be meeting for the 12th time overall with JMU owning a 7-4 advantage in the series. The teams will be meeting for the first time since 2005 when James Madison pulled out a 38-2 victory in Harrisonburg, Va. After a bye week on Oct. 4, Maine hits the road again for a meeting with Delaware on Oct. 11, in Newark. The Blue Hens advanced all the way for the FCS title game last season before falling to three-time champion Appalachian State. The game versus Delaware marks the fourth time in the last five seasons Maine will face a team which competed in the FCS national championship game the previous season. Maine and Delaware will be meeting for the 28th time with the Blue Hens holding a 21-6 advantage in the series. However, the Black Bears downed the Blue Hens in the series' last meeting in 2005 (25-15). Maine returns home for three-straight dates at Alfond Stadium. The homestand begins on Oct. 18 versus Hofstra, followed by an Oct. 25 date against Northeastern, and concludes with a Nov. 1 contest versus Iona. Hofstra leads the all-time series with Maine by a count of 10-6, including a 38-13 win last season. The Black Bears have won four straight over Northeastern, including a 20-14 come-from-behind win in Boston last season, and leads the all-time series by a count of 23-16. Maine and Iona have never met before, as the Gaels will be the 89th different opponent the Black Bears have faced in program history. A pair of road games follow, including at Massachusetts in Amherst (Nov. 8) and at Rhode Island in Kingston (Nov. 15). UMass leads the series with Maine by a count of 40-13-1, including a 38-7 win in Orono last season. Maine leads the all-time series with URI by a count of 49-34-3, including a 35-0 win in Alfond Stadium last year. The Black Bears will conclude the 2008 season on Nov. 22, when they play host to border-rival New Hampshire. The game will be played for the Brice-Cowell Musket, and it will be the 10th-straight year both teams will face each other to conclude the regular season. UNH leads the series, 46-43-8, and has won five straight over the Black Bears. 2008 MAINE BLACK BEAR FOOTBALL SCHEDULE Date...Opponent...Site...Time Aug. 30...at Iowa...Iowa City, Iowa...TBA Sept. 6...at Monmouth...West Long Branch, N.J....TBA Sept. 13...STONY BROOK...Orono, Maine...6 p.m. Sept. 20...at Richmond*...Richmond, Va....TBA Sept. 27...JAMES MADISON*...Orono, Maine...6 p.m. Oct. 4...**OPEN DATE** Oct. 11...at Delaware*...Newark, Del....6 p.m. Oct. 18...HOFSTRA*...Orono, Maine...3 p.m. Oct. 25...NORTHEASTERN* (Homecoming)...Orono, Maine...12 p.m. Nov. 1...IONA...Orono, Maine...12 p.m. Nov. 8...at Massachusetts*...Amherst, Mass....TBA Nov. 15...at Rhode Island*...Kingston, R.I....TBA Nov. 22...NEW HAMPSHIRE*...Orono, Maine...12 p.m. Home games in ALL CAPS // *-Denotes CAA contest // Schedule as of March 11, 2008 // Dates and times are subject to change 2008 MAINE FOOTBALL TICKET INFORMATION Season Tickets Adult...$78 Youth/Senior...$54 Faculty/Staff...$42 Family Pack...$232 (includes 2 adult and 3 youth season tickets) Single Game Adult...$16 Youth/Senior...$10 Groups of 20+...$5 (when ordered in advance) For more information, or to purchase tickets, please call the Maine Athletic Ticket Office at (207) 581-BEAR or toll-free at (800) 756-TEAM. Fans can also purchase tickets online at www.GoBlackBears.com(.) |
