With a 6-5 record overall and a 2-2, runner-up finish in the Great West Conference, head coach Chris Mussman guided the Fighting Sioux to yet another winning season at the Division I level and marked the seventh-consecutive winning season for the Sioux.

Highlighting the season was the highly-anticipated road opener against its first BCS opponent (Texas Tech) since 1976, a 31-17 home victory over then 16th-ranked Cal Poly, the opportunity to play for the team's first NCAA DI conference title, and a season finale, down-to-the-wire, one-point win over Central Arkansas.

For their efforts on the field, nine Sioux received GWC Player of the Week honors, including junior Broc Bellmore who was one of six players to be recognized more than once. Redshirt freshman Mitch Sutton was named Great West Rookie of the Year and was selected to the all-conference first team. Sutton was joined on the all-conference roster by junior Ryan Kasowski (1st), sophomore Ismael Bamba (2nd), senior Kyle Bondy (2nd), junior Ty Boyle (2nd), sophomore Dominique Hawkins (2nd), senior Brandon Hellevang (2nd), junior Kris Ankenbauer (HM), and redshirt freshman Ross Brenneman (HM).

While the on field achievements were easily recognizable, coach Mussman and his staff continually urged their student-athletes to strive for success in the classroom as well.

Four players were named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District team and two received ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America honors. Hellevang and senior Andrew Miller were selected to the Football Championship Subdivision Athletics Directors Association Academic All-Star team and both were finalists for the Ninth Annual FCS ADA postgraduate scholarship. Miller went on to become the first Fighting Sioux player to receive the award.

During his first season as the head coach of the Fighting Sioux, Mussman guided the tradition-rich program to a 6-4 record as the University of North Dakota made its NCAA Division I Football Championship debut.

The Sioux registered their first victory as a DI program on Sept. 18 when they defeated the Idaho State Bengals, 38-35, in Pocatello, Idaho. They went on to finish 2-3 against DI opponents. UND was undefeated 4-0 against non-DI schools with a records of 3-0 and 1-0 against DII and DIII, respectively.

Mussman also led North Dakota to a 1-2 record its first season as member of the Great West Conference alongside Cal Poly, South Dakota, Southern Utah, and UC Davis.

The Sioux finished at the top in several team categories, but most notably, they produced the league's most productive running back (Josh Murray) and kick returner (Dominique Hawkins).

The 2008 squad was not only recognized for their efforts on the field, but in the classroom as well. Four student-athletes were honored as academic all-Americans and league-high nine were selected to the Great West all-conference team. UND also topped the GWC as 16 players received fall all-academic honors.

Mussman became the 25th head coach in UND football history when he was introduced at a press conference on January 4, 2008, after nine seasons on the Sioux coaching staff, including the last four as assistant head coach and the last seven as offensive coordinator.

Mussman possesses nearly two decades of collegiate coaching experience. During his nine seasons as an assistant on the UND staff, the Sioux went 90-24 (.789), won a Division II national championship in 2001, won five North Central Conference titles and made five NCAA Division II postseason appearances.

In 2007, Mussman directed arguably the most explosive offensive unit in the history of Fighting Sioux football. UND set school records for total yards (5,924), total touchdowns (60) and regular season scoring average (40.7 points per game).

UND finished the 2007 season as the NCC's top-ranked offense in scoring, total offense, total first downs, 3rd-down conversions and time of possession.

Individually, senior wide receiver Weston Dressler set a UND single-season record for receiving yardage and was named a Harlon Hill Trophy finalist, while two of Mussman's offensive linemen, juniors Mitch Braegelmann and Brian Troen, garnered several postseason awards between the two of them.

Additionally, junior quarterback Danny Freund set UND regular season records for passing yards (2,573) and touchdowns (24), while sophomore running back Ryan Chappell shattered the team's single-game rushing record with 306 yards against Central Washington on Sept. 15.

Offensive prominence was a staple of Sioux football during Mussman's time of offensive coordinator. UND's offensive record books are littered with accomplishments achieved under Mussman's watch, including the top three single-season passing yardage performances, top seven completion percentage performances and seven of the top eight marks for single-season receptions. Also, six of the top 10 highest-rated passers in UND history were tutored by Mussman.

During his seven years as UND's offensive coordinator, Mussman has coached 32 All-NCC players on offense, including the two-time (2007, 2006) NCC Most Valuable Receiver in Dressler.

Since Mussman joined the UND coaching staff as offensive line coach in 1999, eight Sioux offensive linemen have earned first team all-conference honors, four have received first team All-America honors and Ben Olson (2003) and Chris Kuper (2004, 2005) were honored as the NCC's Most Valuable Offensive Linemen.

Kuper and tight end Chad Mustard, another former Mussman pupil, currently play for the NFL's Denver Broncos, while Dressler now plays for the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League.

Prior to coming to UND, Mussman spent the previous eight seasons on the staff at Minnesota State University, Mankato. In 1996 Mussman was promoted to assistant head coach and offensive coordinator at MSU after serving as the Mavericks' offensive line and tight ends coach. Under Mussman, the 1996 Mavericks led the NCC in total offense.

In addition to coaching at UND and MSU, Mussman has also served as an instructor for UND's Physical Education and Exercise Science department and MSU's Health and Human Performance department.

Mussman holds a bachelor's degree in political science from Iowa State and a master's degree in sports management from MSU. He was a four-year letterwinner and starting offensive lineman at Iowa State, serving as a team captain in 1990.

Mussman and his wife, Shelley, have two sons: Jacob (14) and Jackson (12).