2008 Football Team

The 2008 Wayne State football team went 9-3 and qualified for the NCAA Division II Playoffs for the first time in school history and shared the NSIC South Division title (the only one since joining the NSIC) with Minnesota State. The nine wins tied a school record for most wins in a season, matching the 1949 team (9-0), 1993 team (9-1), and last year's team (9-3). The team earned its first national ranking since 1995 (13 years) and finished the season ranked 19th in the final AFCA DII Coaches Poll and 20th in the final D2Football.com Media Poll. Coach Dan McLaughlin was named AFCA Region 5 Coach of the Year. Sixteen Wildcat players were named to the 2008 NSIC All-Conference Team with eight on the first team, four on the second team, and four honorable mention selections. Defensively, the Cats were led by Luke Hoffman (97 tackles) and Troy Pribnow (14 sacks/22 TFL, five forced fumbles). Hoffman was named to ESPN the Magazine's Academic All-American First Team. Pribnow earned Daktronics Second Team All-American honors and was named to the AFCA Division II Coaches' All-America Team. He was also named to the First Team Associated Press Little All-America Football Team and was selected to D2Football.com's All-America Team. Pribnow was also named NCAA Division II Defensive Lineman of the Year by Don Hansen's Football Gazette. Pribnow was Wayne State's first All-American in football since Brad Ottis in 15 years (1993). Wide receiver Logan Masters earned Honorable Mention honors by Don Hansen's Football Gazette and was also an Honorable Mention selection on D2Football.com's All-American Team. Masters, Hoffman, and Pribnow were all First Team All-Region selections and linebacker Ryan Reeves was a Second Team All-Region selection.