2008 United States presidential election in Wisconsin
Also on the ballot were four third parties: activist and former presidential candidate Ralph Nader ran as an Independent with his running mate, President of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors Matt Gonzalez. The Libertarian Party nominated former Representative from Georgia Bob Barr for president and conservative author Wayne Allyn Root for vice president. Pastor Chuck Baldwin and attorney Darrell Castle were nominated by the right-wing Constitution Party, and the left-wing Green Party nominated former Representative from Georgia Cynthia McKinney and community organizer Rosa Clemente.


2008 United States presidential election in Wisconsin
Wisconsin was won by Democratic nominee Barack Obama by a 13.91% margin of victory. Prior to the election, all 17 news organizations considered this a state Obama would win, or otherwise considered as a safe blue state, despite the extremely close margins of victory in the previous two presidential elections. Polling throughout the state began to show a sizable and widening lead for Democrat Barack Obama of neighboring Illinois over Republican John McCain of Arizona. Obama carried Wisconsin with over 56% of the vote, significantly improving upon John Kerry's margin of victory in 2004.


2008 United States presidential election in Wisconsin
No presidential candidate has ever received more votes in Wisconsin than Obama, and he is the only candidate in the 21st century to win the state with the majority of the vote, which he would go on to do in 2012 as well. Whether measured by raw vote margin, percentage of total votes, or two-party percentage, Obama's victory remains the strongest performance for any candidate in the state since the landslide re-election of Democrat Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964. In fact, Obama carried two of three counties that voted for Barry Goldwater in that election, was the first Democrat since Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1936 to carry Waupaca County, and only the second Democratic nominee to carry that county since the Civil War.


2008 United States presidential election in Wisconsin, Campaign, Predictions
There were 16 news organizations who made state-by-state predictions of the election. Here are their last predictions before election day:


2008 United States presidential election in Wisconsin, Campaign, Polling
Pre -election polling early on showed a tight race. However, after May 18, Obama swept every single poll. Since September 21, Obama won every poll with at least 49% of the vote. The final 3 polls averaged Obama leading 53% to 40%.


2008 United States presidential election in Wisconsin, Campaign, Fundraising
John McCain raised a total of $1,728,185 in the state. Barack Obama raised $4,862,486.


2008 United States presidential election in Wisconsin, Campaign, Advertising and visits
Obama and his interest groups spent $13,586,634. McCain and his interest groups spent $9,240,899. Each ticket visited the state 7 times.


2008 United States presidential election in Wisconsin, Analysis
Having voted for the Democratic presidential nominees by wide margins in 1988, 1992, and 1996, but extremely narrow margins in 2000 and 2004, Wisconsin was originally considered to be a swing state in 2008. However, Obama took a wide lead in the polls in Wisconsin in the final weeks before the election and many pundits and news organizations labeled the state as a safe blue state.


2008 United States presidential election in Wisconsin, Analysis
Obama won Wisconsin by a comfortable 13.91% margin of victory. Obama carried the heavily Democratic cities of Milwaukee and Madison by large margins, winning above two-thirds of the vote, along with some traditionally Republican cities like Green Bay and Appleton. In Dane County, he won almost 73% of the vote, and carried 67.3% in Milwaukee County. This was consistent with Obama's pattern of strong performances in the states bordering Illinois. Obama's best performance, at 86.81%, was in the small county of Menominee, which is 87% Native American.


2008 United States presidential election in Wisconsin, Analysis
The state's Republican base essentially melted; John McCain only carried 13 of the state's 72 counties, a devastating defeat. McCain did best in the Milwaukee suburbs like Waukesha and Ozaukee counties, with his best performance in Washington County where he received 64.14% of the vote. He only won five counties in the Northern part of the state, all of which by rather narrow margins. Wisconsin would not vote for a Republican candidate for president until it voted for Donald Trump in 2016, though it would flip back to the Democratic column in 2020 with Joe Biden back on the ballot.


2008 United States presidential election in Wisconsin, Analysis
As of the 2020 presidential election, this is the last election in which the counties of Barron, Brown, Burnett, Calumet, Chippewa, Clark, Iron, Jefferson, Kewaunee, Langlade, Manitowoc, Marathon, Marinette, Monroe, Oconto, Oneida, Outagamie, Pierce, Rusk, Shawano, Washburn, Waupaca, Waushara, and Wood voted for the Democratic presidential nominee.


2008 United States presidential election in Wisconsin, Results breakdown, By county, Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic
Barack Obama flipped 32 counties that voted for George W. Bush in 2004.


2008 United States presidential election in Wisconsin, Results breakdown, By congressional district
Barack Obama swept the state, carrying seven of the state's eight congressional districts, including two districts held by Republicans. Three of these districts – the 1st, 6th, and 8th – Obama flipped from the 2004 election. McCain only won the 5th district, a portion of the Milwaukee suburbs.


2008 United States presidential election in Wisconsin, Electors
Technically the voters of Wisconsin cast their ballots for electors: representatives to the Electoral College. Wisconsin is allocated 10 electors because it has 8 congressional districts and 2 senators. All candidates who appear on the ballot or qualify to receive write-in votes must submit a list of 10 electors, who pledge to vote for their candidate and his or her running mate. Whoever wins the majority of votes in the state is awarded all 10 electoral votes. Their chosen electors then vote for president and vice president. Although electors are pledged to their candidate and running mate, they are not obligated to vote for them. An elector who votes for someone other than his or her candidate is known as a faithless elector.


2008 United States presidential election in Wisconsin, Electors
The electors of each state and the District of Columbia met on December 15, 2008, to cast their votes for president and vice president. The Electoral College itself never meets as one body. Instead the electors from each state and the District of Columbia met in their respective capitols.


2008 United States presidential election in Wisconsin, Electors
The following were the members of the Electoral College from the state. All 10 were pledged to Barack Obama and Joe Biden:


2008 United States presidential election in Wyoming
The 2008 United States presidential election in Wyoming took place on November 4, 2008, and was part of the 2008 United States presidential election. Voters chose three representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.


2008 United States presidential election in Wyoming
Wyoming was won by Republican nominee John McCain by a 32.2% margin of victory. Prior to the election, all 17 news organizations considered this a state McCain would win, or otherwise considered as a safe red state. Polling in the state gave a hefty and large lead to Republican John McCain over Democrat Barack Obama. Because of Wyoming's status as a safe red state, none of the major party candidates campaigned in the state. Despite McCain's landslide victory, Obama did do significantly better than John Kerry in 2004 and even won one more county than Kerry. This is the most recent election in which the Democratic candidate received more than 30% of the vote in Wyoming. Obama's 82,868 votes is the most received by a Democratic presidential candidate in the state's history.


2008 United States presidential election in Wyoming, Campaign, Predictions
There were 16 news organizations who made state-by-state predictions of the election. Here are their last predictions before election day:


2008 United States presidential election in Wyoming, Campaign, Polling
McCain won every single pre-election poll, and each by a double-digit margin of victory. The final 3 polls average McCain leading with 58% to 35%.


2008 United States presidential election in Wyoming, Campaign, Fundraising
John McCain raised a total of $447,757 in the state. Barack Obama raised $723,033.


2008 United States presidential election in Wyoming, Campaign, Advertising and visits
Because Wyoming is a strong red state, not much advertising went into the state. Obama didn't spend anything while the Republican National Committee spent $2,518. Neither campaign visited the state.


2008 United States presidential election in Wyoming, Analysis
Located in the Inner Mountain West, Wyoming was home to then-incumbent Vice President Dick Cheney. It is one of the most reliably Republican states in the nation—and by some measures, the most Republican. Its demographics are a perfect fit for the Republican Party. It is the least populated state in the nation (even less than the District of Columbia), has no major metropolitan areas, and is heavily rural and White/Caucasian. Voters in the state tend to be very conservative on both social and fiscal issues. No Democratic presidential nominee has won Wyoming since Lyndon B. Johnson in his landslide election in 1964--one of only eight times the state has voted Democrat in a presidential election.


2008 United States presidential election in Wyoming, Analysis
Republicans have several structural advantages in the state. Large chunks of Wyoming are located in out-of-state television markets—most notably Denver and Salt Lake City. This forces statewide candidates to advertise in areas where most of their audience can't vote for them. Additionally, 60 percent of the state's registered voters are Republicans while only 25 percent are Democrats—one of the largest discrepancies in the nation.


2008 United States presidential election in Wyoming, Analysis
The 2008 election was no different. The state was called for McCain as soon as the polls closed, and gave McCain his second largest margin of victory in 2008. McCain carried Laramie County, the most populous county that contains the state capital and largest city of Cheyenne, with 58.98 percent of the vote as well as every other county throughout the state often by more than two-to-one margins but two.


2008 United States presidential election in Wyoming, Analysis
Obama greatly improved upon Kerry's performance in Teton County, the most affluent county in Wyoming that includes the Jackson Hole prime ski resort and tourism attractions such as Yellowstone National Park and Grand Teton National Park, carrying the county with 60.67% of the vote. Obama also won Albany County, due in large part to the presence of the University of Wyoming at Laramie and the tremendous excitement that his campaign fueled among younger voters and college students. The county would return to its Republican roots in 2012 and 2016, but flipped to Obama's former running mate Joe Biden in 2020, the only county to do so.


2008 United States presidential election in Wyoming, Analysis
With 64.78% of the popular vote, Wyoming would prove to be McCain's second strongest state in the 2008 election after Oklahoma.


2008 United States presidential election in Wyoming, Analysis
During the same election, incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Mike Enzi was reelected in a landslide victory over Democrat Chris Rothfuss, a professor of political science at the University of Wyoming. Enzi received 75.63% of the vote while Rothfuss took in 24.26%. For the state's other U.S. Senate seat's special election, incumbent Republican John Barrasso was also elected in a landslide with 73.35% of the vote over Democratic attorney Nick Carter of Gillette who received 26.53%. The state's sole seat in the United States House of Representatives was also up for grabs, with incumbent Republican U.S. Representative Barbara Cubin retiring.


2008 United States presidential election in Wyoming, Analysis
Former State Treasurer Cynthia Lummis, a Republican, defeated Democrat Gary Trauner and Libertarian W. David Herbert for the at-large seat. Lummis received 52.62% of the vote to Trauner's 42.81% and Herbert's 4.42%. Democrats did have success at the state level, however, as they picked up two seats in the Wyoming House of Representatives.


2008 United States presidential election in Wyoming, Results breakdown, By congressional district
Due to the state's low population, only one congressional district is allocated. This district is called the At-Large district, because it covers the entire state, and thus is equivalent to the statewide election results.


2008 United States presidential election in Wyoming, Electors
Technically the voters of Wyoming cast their ballots for electors: representatives to the Electoral College. Wyoming is allocated 3 electors because it has 1 congressional districts and 2 senators. All candidates who appear on the ballot or qualify to receive write-in votes must submit a list of 3 electors, who pledge to vote for their candidate and his or her running mate. Whoever wins the majority of votes in the state is awarded all 3 electoral votes. Their chosen electors then vote for president and vice president. Although electors are pledged to their candidate and running mate, they are not obligated to vote for them. An elector who votes for someone other than his or her candidate is known as a faithless elector.


2008 United States presidential election in Wyoming, Electors
The electors of each state and the District of Columbia met on December 15, 2008, to cast their votes for president and vice president. The Electoral College itself never meets as one body. Instead the electors from each state and the District of Columbia met in their respective capitols.


2008 United States presidential election in Wyoming, Electors
The following were the members of the Electoral College from the state. All 3 were pledged to John McCain and Sarah Palin:


2008 United States presidential election in the District of Columbia
The 2008 United States presidential election in the District of Columbia took place on November 4, 2008, and was part of the 2008 United States presidential election. In D.C., voters chose three representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president. Prior to the election, the nation's capital was considered to be a certain lock for Obama. Washington D.C. is fiercely Democratic and has voted for the Democratic candidate in every presidential election by large margins since 1964.


2008 United States presidential election in the District of Columbia
The District of Columbia went to Democrat Barack Obama by a margin of 210,403 votes out of 225,224 votes cast, about 92% of the total vote. Obama's margin was wider than John Kerry's in 2004, when Kerry won the District of Columbia by a margin of about 80%.


2008 United States presidential election in the District of Columbia, Results
Bob Barr was certified as a write-in in the District of Columbia, but votes for him weren't counted. Litigation is ongoing to have the votes counted.


2008 United States presidential election in the District of Columbia, Electors
Technically the voters of D.C. cast their ballots for electors: representatives to the Electoral College. D.C. is allocated 3 electors. All candidates who appear on the ballot or qualify to receive write-in votes must submit a list of 3 electors, who pledge to vote for their candidate and his or her running mate. Whoever wins the majority of votes in the state is awarded all 3 electoral votes. Their chosen electors then vote for president and vice president. Although electors are pledged to their candidate and running mate, they are not obligated to vote for them. An elector who votes for someone other than his or her candidate is known as a faithless elector.


2008 United States presidential election in the District of Columbia, Electors
The electors of each state and the District of Columbia met on December 15, 2008, to cast their votes for president and vice president. The Electoral College itself never meets as one body. Instead the electors from each state and the District of Columbia met in their respective capitols.


2008 United States presidential election in the District of Columbia, Electors
The following were the members of the Electoral College from the state. All 3 were pledged to Barack Obama and Joe Biden:


2008 United States rugby union tour of Japan
The 2008 United States rugby union tour of Japan was a series of matches played in November 2008 in Japan by United States national rugby union team.


2008 United States salmonellosis outbreak
The 2008 United States salmonellosis outbreak  was an outbreak of salmonellosis across multiple  U.S. states due to Salmonella enterica serovar Saintpaul. Over the course of the outbreak, 1442 cases were identified across 43 U.S. states, the District of Columbia, and Canada. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) investigation determined that jalapeño peppers imported from Mexico as well as Serrano peppers were major sources of the outbreak. Tomatoes may have been a source as well. The outbreak lasted from April to August, 2008.


2008 United States salmonellosis outbreak, Outbreak
From April 10 to August 31, 2008, Salmonella enterica serovar Saintpaul caused at least 1442 cases of salmonellosis in 43 U.S. states, the District of Columbia, and Canada. New Mexico and Texas had the greatest prevalence of disease with over 20 cases per million residents. The greatest number of reported cases occurred in Texas (559 reported cases), New Mexico (115), Illinois (120), and Arizona (59). Other significantly impacted states included Georgia (42 cases), New York (41), Maryland (39), Oklahoma (38), Massachusetts (31), and Virginia (31). Five cases were reported in residents of Canada, four of whom appeared to have been infected after traveling to the United States. The outbreak resulted in at least 286 hospitalizations, and may have contributed to 2 deaths.


2008 United States salmonellosis outbreak, Contamination Source
In May, 2008 the CDC, New Mexico Department of Health, Texas Department of Health, and the Indian Health Service conducted a case-control study to identify foods associated with the disease outbreak. They found that salmonellosis was significantly associated with consuming raw tomatoes, but not with consuming salsa, guacamole, or any other food item. In June, a cluster of 33 cases associated with a restaurant-chain in Texas prompted the CDC and Texas Dept. of Health to conduct a second case-control study. Here they found illness to be significantly associated only with consuming a salsa containing canned tomatoes and raw jalapeño peppers, but not raw tomatoes.


2008 United States salmonellosis outbreak, Contamination Source
As other clusters of illness were identified, case-control studies were again performed to investigate the outbreak source. A multi-state case-control study in late June, 2008 associated illness with consumption of pico de gallo, corn tortillas, or fresh salsa. Another in Minnesota around the same time found that only raw jalapeño peppers were associated with illness. Additionally, in Colorado, the outbreak strain was isolated from jalapeño peppers in the home of a man who had recently been ill.


2008 United States salmonellosis outbreak, Contamination Source
At this point, tomatoes and jalapeño peppers were considered the most likely source of the outbreak, however a similar study conducted by the North Carolina Division of Public Health found that illness in a cluster of 13 cases was associated with consumption of a guacamole which did not contain jalapeño peppers, but instead contained serrano peppers.


2008 United States salmonellosis outbreak, Contamination Source
In July, 2008 the CDC isolated the outbreak strain of Salmonella from jalapeño peppers at a distributor that distributed to restaurants associated with the outbreak, and found that the peppers had likely been imported from a farm in Tamaulipas, Mexico. Later that month, the outbreak strain was isolated from serrano peppers from another farm in Tamaulipas. The outbreak strain could not be isolated from tomato samples from either of these farms, or any distributor that the CDC investigated.


2008 United States salmonellosis outbreak, Contamination Source
From all of this, the CDC concluded that the major sources of contamination were jalapeño peppers and serrano peppers, while tomatoes may have been an additional source early in the outbreak.


2008 United States salmonellosis outbreak, Contamination Source
The Mexican Agriculture Ministry had contested the findings of the CDC, claiming that the CDC samples were invalid as they were taken after the harvest.


2008 United States salmonellosis outbreak, Response
On June 3, in response to early case-control studies, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued an advisory recommending that consumers in New Mexico and Texas avoid eating some types of raw tomatoes. On June 7, they expanded this advisory to include consumers nationwide. On July 9, the FDA issued a similar nationwide advisory not to consume raw jalapeño peppers. On July 30, this recommendation was narrowed to peppers grown or packed in Mexico.


2008 United States salmonellosis outbreak, Response
In response to the outbreak and the FDA and CDC investigations, some distributors recalled affected produce items. On July 19, Grande Produce, LTD announced a recall of jalapeño peppers, serrano peppers, and avocados which has been distributed between May 17 and July 17. Soon thereafter, on July 21 Agricola Zaragoza, Inc. of Texas announced a recall of jalapeño peppers distributed after June 30th.


2008 United States wireless spectrum auction
The United States 700 MHz FCC wireless spectrum auction, officially known as Auction 73, was started by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) on January 24, 2008 for the rights to operate the 700 MHz radio frequency band in the United States. The details of process were the subject of debate among several telecommunications companies, including Verizon Wireless, AT&T Mobility, as well as the Internet company Google. Much of the debate swirled around the open  access requirements set down by the Second Report and Order released by the FCC determining the process and rules for the auction. All bidding was required by law to commence by January 28.


2008 United States wireless spectrum auction, Overview
Full -power TV stations were forced to transition to digital broadcasting in order to free 108 MHz of radio spectrum for newer wireless services. Most analog broadcasts ceased on June 12, 2009.


2008 United States wireless spectrum auction, Overview
The 700 MHz spectrum was previously used for analog television broadcasting, specifically UHF channels 52 through 69. The FCC ruled that the 700 MHz spectrum would no longer be necessary for TV because of the improved spectral efficiency of digital broadcasts. Digital broadcasts allow TV channels to be broadcast on adjacent channels without having to leave empty TV channels as guard bands between them. All broadcasters were required to move to the frequencies occupied by channels 2 through 51 as part of the digital TV transition.


2008 United States wireless spectrum auction, Overview, Precedents
A similar reallocation was employed in 1989 to expand analog cellphone service, having previously eliminated TV channels 70-83 at the uppermost UHF frequencies. This created an unusual situation where old TV tuning equipment was able to listen to cellular phone calls, although such activity was made illegal and the FCC prohibited the sale of future devices with that capability.


2008 United States wireless spectrum auction, Overview, Prior auctions
Some of the 700 MHz spectrum licenses were already auctioned in Auctions 44 and 49. Paired channels 54/59 (lower-700 MHz block C) and unpaired channel 55 (block D) were sold and in some areas were already being used for broadcasting and Internet access. For example, Qualcomm MediaFLO in 2007 started using channel 55 for broadcasting mobile TV to cell phones in New York, San Diego, Atlanta, and elsewhere. Qualcomm later ended the service and sold (at a large profit) channel 55 nationwide to AT&T Mobility, along with channel 56 in the Northeast Corridor and much of California.


2008 United States wireless spectrum auction, Overview, Prior auctions
Dish Network bought channel 56 (block E) licenses in the remainder of the nation's media markets, so far using it only for testing ATSC-M/H. As of 2015, AT&T does not appear to be using block D or E (band class 29) yet, but plans to use link aggregation for increased download speeds and capacity.


2008 United States wireless spectrum auction, Auction rules and process
For the 700-MHz auction, the FCC designed a new multi-round process that limits the number of package bids that each bidder can submit (12 items and 12 package bids) and the prices at which they can be submitted, provides computationally intensive feedback prices similar to the pricing approach. This package bidding process (which is often referred to as combinatorial auctions) was the first of its kind to be used by the FCC in an actual auction.


2008 United States wireless spectrum auction, Auction rules and process
Bidders were allowed to bid on individual licenses or on an all-or-nothing bid which could be done up to twelve packages, which the bidder determined at any point in the auction. Doing the auction this way allowed the bidder to avoid the exposure problem when licenses are complements. The provisional winning bids are the set of consistent bids that maximize total revenues. The 700 MHz auction represented a good test-case for package bidding for two reasons. First, the 700 MHz auction only involves 12 licenses: 2 bands (one 10 MHz and one 20 MHz) in each of the 6 regions. Secondly, prospective bidders had expressed interest in alternative packaging because some Internet service providers had different needs and the flexibility would benefit them. The FCC issued Public Notice DA00-1486 adopted and described the package bidding rules for the 700 MHz auction.


2008 United States wireless spectrum auction, Auction rules and process
The FCC's original proposal allowed only nine package bids: the six 30 MHz regional bids and three nationwide bids (10, 20, or 30 MHz). Although these nine packages were consistent with the expressed desires or many prospective bidders, others felt that the nine packages were too restrictive. The activity rule is unchanged, aside from a new definition of activity and a lower activity requirement of 50%. A bidder must be active on 50% of its current eligibility or its eligibility in the next round will be reduced to two times its activity. Bids made in different rounds were treated as mutually exclusive and a bidder wishing to add a license or package to its provisional winnings must renew the provisional winning bids in the current round.


2008 United States wireless spectrum auction, Auction rules and process
The FCC placed rules on public safety for the auction. 20 MHz of the valuable 700 MHz spectrum were set aside for the creation of a public/private partnership that will eventually roll out to a new nationwide broadband network tailored to the requirements of public safety. The FCC offered the commercial licensee extra spectrum adjacent to the public safety block that the licensee can use as it wants. The licensee is allowed to use whatever bandwidth that is available on the public safety side of the network to offer data services of their own.


2008 United States wireless spectrum auction, Google involvement
In an effort to encourage network neutrality, groups such as Public Knowledge, MoveOn.org, Media Access Project, along with individuals such as Craigslist founder Craig Newmark, and Harvard Law professor Lawrence Lessig appealed to the Federal Communications Commission to make the newly freed airways open access to the public.


2008 United States wireless spectrum auction, Google involvement
Prior to the bidding process, Google asked that the spectrum be free to lease wholesale and the devices operating under the spectrum be open. At the time, many providers such as Verizon and AT&T used technological measures to block external applications. In return, Google guaranteed a minimum bid of $4.6 billion. Google's specific requests were the adoption of these policies:


2008 United States wireless spectrum auction, Google involvement
The result of the auction was that Google was outbid by others in the auction, triggering the open platform restrictions Google had asked for without having to actually purchase any licenses. Google was actively involved in the bidding process although it had no intentions of actually winning any licenses. The reason for this was that it could push up the price of the bidding process in order to reach the US$4.6B reserve price, therefore triggering the open source restrictions listed above.


2008 United States wireless spectrum auction, Google involvement
Had Google not been actively involved in the bidding process, it would have made sense for businesses to suppress their bidding strategies in order to trigger a new auction without the restrictions imposed by Google and the FCC. Google's upfront payment of $287 million in order to participate in the bidding process was largely recovered after the auction since it had not actually purchased any licences. Despite this, Google ended paying interest costs, which resulted in an estimated loss of 13 million dollars.


2008 United States wireless spectrum auction, Google involvement
The FCC ruled in favor of Google's requests. Only two of the four requirements were put in place on the upper C-Block, open applications and open devices. Google had wanted the purchaser to allow 'rental' of the blocks to different providers.


2008 United States wireless spectrum auction, Google involvement
In retaliation, Verizon filed a lawsuit against the Federal Communications Commission to remove the provisions Google had asked for. Verizon called the rules "arbitrary and capricious, unsupported by substantial evidence and otherwise contrary to law."


2008 United States wireless spectrum auction, Lawsuits
After the open access rules were implemented, Verizon Wireless filed suit against the FCC on September 13, 2007, seeking to have the rules dismissed on the grounds that the open access requirement "violates the U.S. Constitution, violates the Administrative Procedures Act … and is arbitrary, capricious, unsupported by the substantial evidence and otherwise contrary to law." On October 23, Verizon chose to drop the lawsuit after losing its appeal for a speedy resolution on October 3. However, the CTIA stepped in to challenge the same regulations in a lawsuit filed the same day. On November 13, 2008, the CTIA dropped its lawsuit against the FCC.


2008 United States wireless spectrum auction, Auction
The FCC placed very detailed rules about the process of this auction of the 698–806 MHz part of the wireless spectrum. Bids were anonymous and designed to promote competition. The aggregate reserve price for all block C licenses was approximately $4.6 billion. The total reserve price for all five blocks being auctioned in Auction 73 was just over $10 billion.


2008 United States wireless spectrum auction, Results of the auction
Auction 73 generally went as planned by telecommunications analysts. In total, Auction 73 raised $19.592 billion. Notably, Verizon Wireless and AT&T Mobility together accounted for $16.3 billion of the total revenue. Of the 214 approved applicants, 101 successfully purchased at least one license. Despite their heavy involvement with the auction, Google did not purchase any licenses. However, Google did place the minimum bid on Block C licenses in order to ensure that the license would be required to be open-access.


2008 United States wireless spectrum auction, Results of the auction
After the end of Auction 73, there remained some licenses that either went unsold or were defaulted on by the winning bidder from Blocks A and B. A new auction, Auction 92, was held on July 19, 2011 to sell the 700 MHz band licenses that were still available. The auction closed on July 28, 2011, with 7 bidders having won 16 licenses worth $19.8 million.


2008 United States wireless spectrum auction, Interoperability issues
Six years after the end of the auction of 700 MHz spectrum, block A remained largely unused, although T-Mobile USA began to deploy its extended-range LTE in 2015 on licenses purchased from Verizon Wireless and cleared of RF interference in several areas by TV stations changing off of channel 51. This delay was caused by technical issues which were regulatory and possibly anticompetitive in nature.


2008 United States wireless spectrum auction, Interoperability issues
After the March 2008 conclusion of Auction 73, Motorola initiated steps to have 3GPP establish a new industry standard (later designated as band class 17) that would be limited to the lower 700 MHz B and C blocks. In proposing band class 17, Motorola cited the need to address concerns about high-power  transmissions of TV stations still broadcasting on channel 51 and the lower-700 MHz D and E blocks.


2008 United States wireless spectrum auction, Interoperability issues
As envisioned and ultimately adopted, the band class 17 standard allows LTE operations in only the lower-700 MHz B and C blocks using a specific signaling protocol that would filter out all other frequencies. Although band class 17 operates on two of the three blocks common to band class 12, band class 17 devices use more narrow electronic filters, which have the effect of permitting a smaller range of frequencies to pass through the filter. In addition, band class 12 and 17 signaling protocols are not compatible.


2008 United States wireless spectrum auction, Interoperability issues
The creation of two non-interoperable band classes has had numerous effects. Customers are unable to switch between a licensee deploying its service using band class 17 and a licensee that provides its service using band class 12 without purchasing a new device (even when the two operators use the same 2G and 3G technologies and bands), and band class 12 and 17 devices cannot roam on each other's cellular networks.


2008 United States wireless spectrum auction, Interoperability issues
When deploying its LTE network, C Spire Wireless decided not to use A block because of the lack of band-12 support in mobile devices, issues with roaming, and the increased cost of base stations due to lack of supply. US Cellular deployed a band class 12 LTE network, however not all of US Cellular's devices were able to access it. In particular, the iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C could not. Other wireless telecommunication providers launched LTE band class 12 networks, but have not been able to offer smartphones that access them, instead resorting to fixed or mobile wireless broadband modems. As of April 2015, only three telecom providers were offering smartphones that use band 12: US Cellular, T-Mobile USA, and Nex-Tech Wireless.


2008 United States wireless spectrum auction, Interoperability issues
While smaller US telecommunication providers were upset at the lack of interoperability, AT&T defended the creation of band 17 and told the other carriers to seek interoperability with Sprint and T-Mobile instead. However, in September 2013, AT&T changed their stance and committed to support and sell band-12 devices


2008 United States wireless spectrum auction, Interoperability issues
Consistent with these commitments, AT&T anticipates that its focus and advocacy within the 3GPP standards setting process will shift to band-12-related projects and work streams. AT&T must place priority within the 3GPP RAN committee on the development of various band-12 carrier-aggregation scenarios. Upon completing implementation of the MFBI feature, AT&T anticipates that its focus on new standards related to the paired lower-700 MHz spectrum will be almost exclusively on band 12 configurations, features and capabilities.


2008 United States wireless spectrum auction, Interoperability issues
Additionally, Dish Network agreed to lower its maximum effective radiated power levels on block E, which is on the lower adjacent channel to the downlink (tower-to-user transmissions) for block A. It did this in exchange for the FCC allowing it to operate the block as a one-way service, effectively making it a broadcast, although it could still be interactive through other means. Since Dish has already been experimentally operating it as a single-frequency network, this should not have a significant effect on whatever service it might offer in the future.


2008 Universal Studios fire
On June 1, 2008, a fire broke out on the backlot of Universal Studios Hollywood, an American film studio and theme park in the San Fernando Valley area of Los Angeles County, California. The fire began when a worker used a blowtorch to warm asphalt shingles that were being applied to a facade. He left before checking that all spots had cooled, and a three-alarm fire broke out. Nine firefighters and a Los Angeles County sheriffs' deputy sustained minor injuries. The fire was extinguished after 24 hours.


2008 Universal Studios fire
Universal Pictures said the fire destroyed a three-acre (1.2 ha) portion of the Universal backlot, including the attraction King Kong Encounter and 40,000 to 50,000 archived digital video and film copies. A 2019 New York Times Magazine exposé asserted that the fire also destroyed 118,000 to 175,000 audio master tapes belonging to Universal Music Group (UMG). This included original recordings belonging to some of the best-selling artists worldwide. UMG initially disputed this, but CEO Lucian Grainge later confirmed a significant loss of musical archives had occurred.


2008 Universal Studios fire, Fire
On June 1, 2008, a three-alarm fire broke out on Universal Studios Lot, the backlot of Universal Studios. The fire started when a worker was using a blowtorch to warm asphalt shingles being applied to a facade. The Los Angeles County Fire Department (LACFD) reported that Brownstone Street, New York Street, New England Street, the King Kong attraction, some structures that make up Courthouse Square, and the Video Vault, which contained duplicates of Universal's film library, had burned down. Aerial news footage captured the Courthouse building surviving its third fire, with only the west side slightly charred.


2008 Universal Studios fire, Fire
The LACFD sent 516 firefighters, as well as two helicopters dropping water. Nine firefighters and a Los Angeles County sheriff's deputy sustained minor injuries. The fire took at least 12 hours to extinguish, in part because of the low water pressure due to the low capacity of Universal's pipes; firefighters had to tap streams and lakes.


2008 Universal Studios fire, Fire
Universal executives initially claimed the fire destroyed 40,000 to 50,000 archived digital video and film copies of Universal movies and TV shows, some almost a century old, and including the films Knocked Up and Atonement, the NBC series Law & Order, The Office, and Miami Vice, and the CBS series I Love Lucy. Universal president Ron Meyer told the media that "nothing irreplaceable was lost" and that the company had duplicates of everything destroyed.


2008 Universal Studios fire, Fire
Several days after the fire,  the King Kong attraction was reported to be replaced by a new attraction. However, Universal reverted to its original plan, basing the new attraction, King Kong: 360 3-D, on the 2005 King Kong film.


2008 Universal Studios fire, 2019 New York Times report
In June 2019, The New York Times Magazine published an investigative article by music journalist Jody Rosen arguing the damage was far more serious than the studio had said.


2008 Universal Studios fire, 2019 New York Times report
The fire destroyed Building 6197, a warehouse adjoining the King Kong attraction. In addition to more videos, it housed a huge archive of analog audio master tapes belonging to Universal Music Group (UMG). The collection included the master tape catalogues of many labels acquired by UMG, including Chess, Decca, MCA, Geffen, Interscope, A&M, Impulse!, and their subsidiary labels. Estimates of the individual items lost range from 118,000 to 175,000 album and 45-rpm single master tapes, phonograph master discs, lacquers (also known as acetates), as well as all the documentation contained in the tape boxes. Many tapes contained unreleased recordings such as outtakes, alternative versions of released material, and instrumental "submaster" multitracks created for dubbing and mixdown. Randy Aronson, manager of the vault at the time, estimates that the masters of as many as 500,000 individual tracks were lost.


2008 Universal Studios fire, 2019 New York Times report
Among the possible losses were the entire AVI Records catalog, all of Decca's masters from the 1930s to the 1950s, most of the original Chess masters, which included artists such as Chuck Berry, Muddy Waters, and Howlin' Wolf, as well as most of John Coltrane's master tapes from his period signed to  Impulse! Records. On Twitter, Rosen stated that the Coltrane masters were among the most checked-out Impulse! items in the vault, and a source had told him that the masters for A Love Supreme were likely elsewhere during the fire.


2008 Universal Studios fire, 2019 New York Times report
Two weeks later, Rosen wrote a follow-up article, listing at least 700 additional artists named in internal UMG documents as possibly affected. Determining which recordings had been destroyed, or how much of an artist's discography had been affected, was impossible, he wrote. For example, Rosen said it was difficult to confirm whether the Neil Young recordings listed in the documents were the original master tapes of the albums he recorded for Geffen Records in the 1980s, or session outtakes from those records. Rosen tweeted that the documents also listed several Broadway cast recordings among the tapes destroyed. Additionally, several nonmusical audio recordings were reported as destroyed, including the original recording of Martin Luther King Jr.'s 1968 "Remaining Awake During a Great Revolution" sermon delivered at the Washington National Cathedral.


2008 Universal Studios fire, 2019 New York Times report, Artists' responses
Bryan Adams, Semisonic drummer Jacob Slichter, and Counting Crows singer Adam Duritz said they had been told that UMG had misplaced their tapes. Richard Carpenter told the Times he had been informed about the destruction of his tapes by a UMG employee while he was working on a reissue, and only after Carpenter had made multiple, persistent inquiries. Following the publication of Rosen's articles, several affected musicians posted reactions on social media, with some noting specific tapes that may have been lost.


2008 Universal Studios fire, 2019 New York Times report, Artists' responses
For instance, singer-songwriter Jill Sobule said she had lost two masters in the fire, including tapes for an unreleased album produced by Joe Jackson. After being listed in the New York Times piece, the Canadian band The Tragically Hip discovered that their master tapes had been transferred from the Universal facility to Canada in 2001 and had escaped the fire.


2008 Universal Studios fire, 2019 New York Times report, Artists' responses
Within two weeks of Rosen's article, five plaintiffs (singer-songwriter Steve Earle, the estates of the late Tupac Shakur and Tom Petty, and the bands Hole and Soundgarden) filed a class-action lawsuit in federal court against UMG. In their complaint, the plaintiffs claimed UMG never told artists about the effects of the fire and had breached their contracts by failing to properly secure its master tape collection. They further alleged that UMG did not share insurance or legal payouts received as a result of the fire.


2008 Universal Studios fire, 2019 New York Times report, Artists' responses
The lawsuit also alleged that Universal had compiled a master inventory list of master tapes that had been destroyed. The plaintiffs sought to recover half of any insurance payments UMG received from the fire, and half of any losses that were not covered by those settlements. An uninvolved industry attorney told Billboard that the case concerned property rights, as in whether UMG or the artists owned the master tapes.


2008 Universal Studios fire, 2019 New York Times report, Artists' responses
A month later, Universal moved to dismiss the class-action lawsuit. On August 16, 2019, Hole dropped out of the lawsuit after UMG assured them that the band's masters were not affected by the fire. Slightly over a month later, UMG also claimed that Shakur, Earle, and Petty did not lose their masters in the fire, and that an investigation with Soundgarden was still going on.


2008 Universal Studios fire, 2019 New York Times report, Artists' responses
Five days later, Universal demanded Soundgarden drop the suit, which the label had also moved to dismiss, citing documentary proof that the label had informed the band about the lost masters in 2015 and accusing their lawyer of "[failing] to conduct presuit diligence in your rush to be the first to file." The surviving band members declined. "Their arbitrary deadlines have zero force or effect," Howard King, their attorney, told Rolling Stone. "Until UMG reveals what it collected for their litigation claims to extensive damage to master recordings, we cannot accept their belated claim that no damages were actually suffered."


2008 Universal Studios fire, 2019 New York Times report, Artists' responses
Universal's dismissal motion also publicly confirmed that master tapes for Soundgarden's Badmotorfinger album had been destroyed in the fire, and that members of the group had been made aware of the destruction in 2015 while they were working on a remaster of the album that was eventually completed with a backup safety copy. In December 2019, district court judge John Kronstadt ruled that Universal must hand over discovery evidence, and denied the label's request to postpone the delivery. In March 2020, Soundgarden and the Shakur estate dropped out of the class action against UMG. On March 23, Steve Earle also dropped out, leaving Tom Petty's widow as the only remaining plaintiff. The lawsuit was dismissed by Kronstadt on April 6, 2020.


2008 Universal Studios fire, 2019 New York Times report, UMG response
UMG disputed Rosen's article, saying it contained "numerous inaccuracies" and "fundamental misunderstandings of the scope of the incident and affected assets". UMG said it was unable to disclose details due to "constraints".


2008 Universal Studios fire, 2019 New York Times report, UMG response
In a Billboard interview, UMG archivist Patrick Kraus said that several masters of John Coltrane, Muddy Waters,  and Ahmad Jamal recordings, plus items from the catalogs of Nashboro Records, Chess Records, and Impulse! Records survived the fire and were still in Universal's archive. Rosen responded in his June 25 piece, noting that some of the masters that Kraus had mentioned may have survived the fire because they were being used for remastering projects at the time, or were not the primary source master. Aronson also confirmed to Rosen that the vast majority of items in the vault at the time of the fire were original, primary source master recordings.


2008 Universal Studios fire, 2019 New York Times report, UMG response
In an email to staff following the publication of Rosen's story, Lucian Grainge confirmed that UMG had suffered a serious loss of archival material. Grainge wrote: "While I've been somewhat relieved by early reports from our team that many of the assertions and subsequent speculation are not accurate, one thing is clear: the loss of even a single piece of archived material is heartbreaking." He wrote that it was "completely unacceptable" that their artists did not know the details and pledged to deliver "answers". On June 26, Kraus issued a memo to staff which detailed UMG's plan to determine which assets had been affected.


2008 Universal Studios fire, 2019 New York Times report, UMG response
A month after the story broke, Kraus issued an internal note to Universal staff, which claimed that only 22 original master recordings by five artists were lost in the fire, and backup copies had been found for each lost master. He added that UMG has been fielding requests from over 200 artists and their representatives. Kraus said his team had reviewed over 26,000 assets by 30 artists. From that sample, 424 assets (including 349 audio recordings) might have been lost due to the fire. On November 4, 2019, a lawyer representing Universal claimed the artists would receive no compensation.


2008 Universal Studios fire, 2019 New York Times report, UMG response
A February 2020 court filing by UMG confirmed that master tapes from at least 19 artists had been damaged or destroyed in the fire. The artists whom UMG confirmed as affected are Bryan Adams, ... And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead, David Baerwald, Beck, Sheryl Crow, Peter Frampton, Jimmy Eat World, Elton John, Michael McDonald, Nirvana, Les Paul, R.E.M., Slayer, Sonic Youth, Soundgarden, the Surfaris, Suzanne Vega, White Zombie, and Y&T.


2008 Universal Studios fire, List of artists affected, according to The New York Times
According to The New York Times Magazine, artists whose original master recordings were destroyed in whole or part in the 2008 fire include:


2008 Universal Studios fire, List of artists affected, according to The New York Times
Subsequent legal documents filed by Universal Music Group in February 2020 cited four additional artists not included in the New York Times list:


2008 Universitario de Deportes season
This article shows statistics of the club's players in the season, and also lists all matches that the club played in the 2008 season.


2008 Universitario de Deportes season, Players, Squad information
The following table shows only appearances and goals made this season.


2008 Universitario de Deportes season, Matches, Friendly
Last updated: 16 Dec 2008Source: 1Universitario goals come first.Country's flag depict country of foreign team to that of Universitario.Ground: H = Home; A = Away; N = Neutral; HR = Home replacement; AR = Away replacement; GD = Goal difference


2008 Utah Blaze season
The 2008 Utah Blaze season was the third season for this Arena Football League franchise. Despite losing their first nine games, the Blaze were able to finish the regular season with six wins in their last seven games, earning them a playoff berth as the fourth seed in the American Conference. In their wild card round game, however, they were defeated by the Colorado Crush, 44–49.


2008 Utah Blaze season, Final roster
Rookies in italics updated October 7, 200824 Active, 3 Inactive, 2 PS


2008 Utah Democratic presidential primary
The 2008 Utah Democratic presidential primary took place on February 5, 2008, with the votes of 23 pledged delegates to the 2008 Democratic National Convention at stake. The primary was one of many held on Super Tuesday. Barack Obama won the primary.


2008 Utah Grand Prix
The 2008 Larry H. Miller Dealerships Utah Grand Prix was the fourth round of the 2008 American Le Mans Series season. It took place at Miller Motorsports Park, Utah on May 18, 2008.


2008 Utah Grand Prix, Race results
Class winners in bold. Cars failing to complete 70% of winner's distance marked as Not Classified (NC).


2008 Utah Grand Prix, Race results
† - #1 Audi Sport North America was docked three championship points for an avoidable on-track incident.


2008 Utah Grand Prix, Race results
‡ - #87 Farnbacher-Loles Motorsports was disqualified after failing post-race technical inspection. The car's fuel cell was too large.


2008 Utah Republican presidential primary
The 2008 Utah Republican presidential primary took place on February 5, 2008, with 36 national delegates. Polls showed Mitt Romney leading at up to 85% of the vote.


2008 Utah Republican presidential primary
On August 23, 2008 the Utah Republican party adopted a standing rule effectively binding the delegates to John McCain for the first ballot at the National Convention (as Romney had withdrawn).


2008 Utah State Aggies football team
The 2008 Utah State Aggies football team represented Utah State University as a member of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) in 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Aggies were led by fourth-year head coach Brent Guy and played their home games in Romney Stadium in Logan, Utah.


2008 Utah State Aggies football team
Guy was fired prior to the end of the season after the team compiled a 2–9 record. At Utah State, Guy never finished a season with more than three wins. He coached the Aggies in their final game, in which they defeated New Mexico State, 47–2, and completed their schedule with a 3–9 record.


2008 Utah Utes football team
The 2008 Utah Utes football team represented the University of Utah in the 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team, coached by 4th year head football coach Kyle Whittingham, plays its home games in Rice-Eccles Stadium. Utah was one of only two teams in the top-level Division I FBS to finish the regular season undefeated (the other being the Boise State Broncos), but after the Broncos were defeated by TCU in the Poinsettia Bowl and Utah won the Sugar Bowl over Alabama, the Utes finished as the nation's only undefeated team.


2008 Utah Utes football team
It was the fifth undefeated and untied season in school history. During the 2008-2009 season, Utah defeated 4 teams that were ranked in the AP's final poll: #6 Alabama, #7 TCU, #18 Oregon State, and #25 BYU. Utah also began the season by defeating the Michigan Wolverines—ranked #24 at the time—in Ann Arbor. This resume propelled Utah to finish the season ranked #1 in four out of the six BCS computer models: Sagarin (Elo-Chess), Peter Wolfe, Anderson & Hester, and Massey.


2008 Utah Utes football team
Utah received championship recognition from NCAA-designated major selector Anderson & Hester. Kyle Whittingham received multiple coach of the year awards including from the Mountain West Conference, AFCA, and the Paul "Bear" Bryant Award.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Michigan
Utah fans went to the Big House hoping for a better outcome  than the last time the Utes visited Michigan Stadium, which resulted in a 10–7 loss in 2002. New Michigan coach Rich Rodriguez's offense was new to a Michigan squad built to run a smashmouth offense and was slow to get things going against the Ute defense, and the experienced Michigan defense prevented the Utah offense from gaining momentum. After a slow start for both teams, the Ute offense scored finally started clicking and scored sixteen points in the 2nd quarter taking a 22–10 lead into half-time.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Michigan
The offense wouldn't be able to do much the rest of the game. In the 2nd half it was more of the same from the 1st quarter, the only score coming off of a 53-yard field-goal from Louie Sakoda to put the Utes up 25–10. Michigan scored on the first play of their 2nd possession of the 4th quarter with a 33-yard touchdown pass by Steven Threet to Junior Hemingway, inching closer to the Utah lead.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Michigan
Only two minutes later Michigan RB Sam Mcguffie ran into the endzone from three yards out bringing the Wolverines to within two points, but failed on the ensuing two-point conversion. Utah was able to run out most of the clock before turning the ball over on downs to the Wolverines who were unable to score before time expired, giving the Utes their first win of the season and improving Kyle Whittingham's record against BCS opponents to 5–3.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, UNLV
After an emotional win against Michigan in the season opener, UNLV provided the perfect opponent for Utah to avoid having a "let-down" game as the Rebels embarrassed Utah in Las Vegas the year before, winning 27–0 in one of the most troublesome losses in Utah history. Things did not start off well as UNLV, behind the running of Frank Summers, took first half-leads of 7–0 and 14–7.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, UNLV
But shortly before halftime, quarterback Brian Johnson led the Utes on an eighty-yard drive that tied the game going into halftime, and Utah scored on its first four possessions of the second half to turn the game into a rout. Six different Utah players scored touchdowns, and both Johnson and running back Matt Asiata ran and threw for a touchdown.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Utah State
Even though Utah faced an early 7–0 deficit, this game was never close. Utah scored the game's next thirty points and Matt Asiata tacked on a pair of second-half touchdowns to finish with three rushing TDs as the Utes won going away. Utah State finished with just 116 yards of total offense, and 57 of those came on its final drive of the game against Utah's reserves. Both of Utah State's scoring drives came on short fields caused by turnovers.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Air Force
Despite outgaining the Falcons 440-191 and holding Air Force's vaunted option attack to a 30-year low of 53 yards rushing, Utah needed to put together an 11-play, 80-yard drive capped by Darrell Mack's third rushing touchdown with 58 seconds remaining to win.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Air Force
Offensively, Utah dug itself a hole after building a 9–0 lead. Johnson threw an interception in the end zone and had a second-quarter fumble returned for another touchdown to give Air Force a 16–9 halftime lead. But a ground-heavy attack helped Utah tie the game early in the second half and Air Force never threatened again to take the lead. Mack finished with 101 yards and three scores on 18 carries, while Asiata finished with 116 yards on 19 carries.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Weber State
With a game in just five days against Oregon State—fresh off an upset victory over then-No. 1 Southern California, the Utes did enough to decide the outcome early. Utah rolled up 450 yards of total offense to take a 37–7 lead early in the fourth quarter before the Wildcats—coached by former Utah head coach Ron McBride and a member of the Football Championship Subdivision—scored twice late to make the final score respectable. With 13 points on three field goals and four extra points, Utah kicker Louie Sakoda became the all-time leading scorer in school history.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Oregon State
Utah scored 11 points in the final 1:29 to escape with a victory. Utah trailed 9–3 early in the second quarter before finishing off the half with a Louie Sakoda 28-yard field goal and touchdowns of 14 yards from Brian Johnson to Freddie Brown and a 12-yard run by Brent Casteel to take a 20–9 halftime lead. Oregon State reeled off 19 straight points of its own to take a 28–20 lead with 2:18 left to play. In a departure from conventional football strategy, Oregon State had elected twice to go for two points after its first two touchdowns of the half (its PAT after the first touchdown was blocked, resulting in coach Mike Riley to "chase points" by going for 2) instead of kicking extra points.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Oregon State
Had it kicked extra points, Oregon State would have led 30–20. But Johnson lead a 4-play, 60-yard drive capped by a 25-yard scoring pass to Bradon Godfrey, then rushed for the 2-point conversion to tie the game, but only after Oregon State was whistled for pass interference on Utah's first two-point try.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Oregon State
Oregon State then threw incomplete on first down, ran out of bounds to stop the clock on second down (another time-honored no-no in football at that stage of the game) and threw incomplete on third down. After a 31-yard punt, Oregon State had used up just 23 seconds, which left plenty of time for a game-winning drive. Johnson threw for 7, 8 and 16 yards to get the Utes into Sakoda's range, and his 37-yard field goal as time expired was good.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Wyoming
Fighting winds in excess of 40 mph (64 km/h), Utah won handily on a day in which the offense was outgained 252–242 by scoring a touchdown on defense and two more on special teams. Sean Smith picked off a deflected pass on Wyoming's second possession and returned it 25 yards for a score—one of two interceptions on the day for the all-Mountain West Conference cornerback. After a pair of Louie Sakoda field goals made the score 13–0, Aiona Key blocked a Wyoming punt and returned it 6 yards for a touchdown. Matt Asiata added a rushing and receiving touchdown to give Utah a 34–0 lead, and RJ Rice's recovery of a muffed punt in the end zone accounted for the final score.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Colorado State
For the first time all season, Utah used a variety of big plays on offense to bury the improved Rams. Brian Johnson threw touchdowns of 32 and 33 yards to Freddie Brown and David Reed and backup quarterback Corbin Louks ran for scores of 21 and 69 yards. Wide receiver Jereme Brooks ran 34 yards for another score as Utah piled up 549 yards of total offense, 327 on the ground.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, New Mexico
The Lobos had marred great Utah seasons before, most notably in 1994 when it beat an undefeated Utes team ranked #8 in the country for their first loss and handing the 2003 MWC champions its only conference loss (and one of two all year) in a lopsided win at Rice-Eccles Stadium. New Mexico almost did it again, but the special teams rose to the occasion for the Utes as Key blocked a first-half field goal attempt and Louie Sakoda repeatedly pinned the Lobos deep with well-placed punts.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, New Mexico
His last put the Lobos at their own 1 with 1:58 left, and the Lobos, with no timeouts, could only get to the Utah 46 before time expired. Sakoda kicked a pair of field goals and Casteel's 10-yard catch from Brian Johnson gave Utah a 13–3 lead late in the third quarter, a lead which ultimately held up.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, TCU
This game was advertised as a "Blackout". The Utes wore black uniforms for the first time in school history and the fans responded by turning Rice-Eccles Stadium into a sea of black. None of it fazed TCU, which went 64 and 72 yards on its first two possessions to take a quick 10–0 lead. Louie Sakoda's 49-yard field goal with 2:37 left in the first quarter got Utah on the board, and Smith's interception right before half time helped set up another Sakoda field goal, this one from 37 yards.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, TCU
TCU's defense, coupled with some untimely playcalling by Utah, made the Frogs' 10–6 lead stand up deep into the fourth quarter. But TCU kicker Ross Evans missed two field goals—the first off the left upright, the second wide right, giving Utah one final shot at salvaging frontrunner status in the MWC and for a BCS bid as it took over on its own 20 with 2:48 left. Completions of 5 and 7 yards got Utah a first down, then Brian Johnson connected with Casteel for a 22-yard strike to get into TCU territory.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, TCU
A pass interference call moved the ball to the TCU 31, where Utah faced its most crucial point of the season. Facing 4th and 5 after a pair of incompletions and a 5-yard pass to Godfrey, Johnson beat the blitz and found Brown for an 11-yard gain to the TCU 15. Another pass to Godfrey put the ball at the TCU 9, and Johnson found Brown on a slant pattern for the winning touchdown on the next play. Versus commentators Tommy Hart and Dan Fouts gave a memorable account of the crowd noise after the touchdown:


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, TCU
Hart: This is a well-built stadium. This press box is shaking right now.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, TCU
Fouts: Oh good, I thought it was my knees. You get a little excited when you see a great 80-yard drive engineered by Brian Johnson ... 7 of 9 on that drive and the capper, finding Freddie Brown downtown.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, TCU
TCU would get the ball back with one more shot to get into field goal range—and for Evans to redeem himself for his two previous misses. But Andy Dalton, on 4th and 10 with just seconds to go, was intercepted on a deep pass by Robert Johnson at the Utah 15 to end the game.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, San Diego State
Brian Johnson had an excellent performance as Utah tuned up for the following week's showdown with BYU by throwing five first-half touchdowns, completing 27 of 38 passes for 283 yards as the Utes were in control the entire game. Backup safety Deshawn Richard would return two passes 89 and 36 yards for touchdowns in the final quarter to put an exclamation point on the Utes' rout of the Aztecs.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Brigham Young
Utah Leads Series: 53 – 33 – 4Utah forced six turnovers and BYU forced none, turning what was otherwise a close game statistically into a blowout. Brian Johnson won his matchup against his highly touted counterpart, Max Hall, completing 30 of 36 passes for 303 yards and four touchdowns, while Hall went 21-41-205 with no touchdowns and five interceptions, in addition to losing a fumble.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Brigham Young
Johnson was sharp early, leading Utah to points on its first three possessions for a 17–3 lead. But BYU fought back to tie the game. Louie Sakoda's 35-yard field goal with 1:41 left in the first half gave Utah a 20–17 lead before Hall started padding his interceptions stats with an ill-timed throw to Joe Dale. On the same play, Hall was whistled for unsportsmanlike conduct, giving Utah the ball at the BYU 44. Two plays resulted in a first down before Johnson found David Reed for a 32-yard strike in the corner of the end zone for a 27–17 halftime lead.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Brigham Young
Hall did rush 11 yards for a touchdown with 6:46 left in the third quarter to get BYU within 27–24, but that would be the last time he would star in a highlight that helped his team. BYU's final five possessions ended interception, fumble, interception, interception, interception.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Brigham Young
Starting with the fumble, Utah scored touchdowns on three straight possessions. Three plays into the fourth quarter, Casteel caught a pass in the flat and ran 8 yards for a touchdown and a 34–24 lead. Utah all but clinched a BCS bid and the outright MWC crown with its next interception when Paul Kruger floated off his defensive end position and into pass coverage. Hall never saw the sophomore lurking in the flat, and only a desperate swipe by Hall kept Kruger from returning the interception for a touchdown.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Brigham Young
On the next play, Asiata took the direct snap, ran forward two steps and threw a jump pass to Chris Joppru in the back of the end zone for a 41–24 lead with 12 minutes left in the game. Smith's fifth interception of the year helped Johnson cap his day with a 1-yard scoring pass to tight end Colt Sampson, and for the third time this season Utah fans rushed the field after a victory against a ranked team.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Sugar Bowl: Utah vs. Alabama
Utah, 9½ point underdogs entering the game, treated the Superdome crowd of 71,872 to an offensive explosion in the first quarter and a dominant defense in beating fourth-ranked Alabama to cap a perfect 13–0 season—the second undefeated season in five years for the Utes.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Sugar Bowl: Utah vs. Alabama
Alabama picked up one first down on its opening drive, but a third-down sack of quarterback John Parker Wilson by Stevenson Sylvester—the first of three for the junior linebacker—ended the threat. Utah immediately went to work on offense as quarterback Brian Johnson completed all five of his passes to five different receivers, the touchdown pass coming on a 7-yarder to Casteel.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Sugar Bowl: Utah vs. Alabama
The Tide's poor start continued as Wilson was intercepted by Robert Johnson on the second play of the ensuing drive. Starting from the Alabama 32, Brian Johnson connected with David Reed on a 30-yard pass to the Alabama 2, and Asiata took it in two plays later for a score out of the "Wildcat" formation for a 14–0 lead.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Sugar Bowl: Utah vs. Alabama
Kepa Gaison ended Alabama's third drive with another sack, and Brian Johnson quickly fired up the Ute attack, completing 5 of 7 passes for 50 yards, drawing a pass interference penalty on Alabama and running another 9 yards for a first down on 3rd-and-4 from midfield. Bradon Godfrey capped the drive with an 18-yard touchdown reception, and Utah led 21–0 just 11 minutes into the game.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Sugar Bowl: Utah vs. Alabama
Alabama rallied, scoring 17 straight points on Leigh Tiffin's 52-yard field goal and Javier Arenas' 73-yard punt return in the second quarter, and Glenn Coffee's 4-yard touchdown catch off a short field caused by a Brian Johnson fumble to start the third quarter.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Sugar Bowl: Utah vs. Alabama
But as it had done against Air Force, Oregon State and TCU, the Utah offense responded when it had to. Brian Johnson's first pass of the ensuing drive went to Brown for 33 yards, and Godfrey gained 10 on 3rd-and-10 to keep the drive alive. Facing 3rd-and-10 at the Alabama 28, Johnson threw into the left flat for Reed, who slipped a tackle and went into the end zone untouched for a 28–17 lead.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Sugar Bowl: Utah vs. Alabama
The Utah defense dominated from there, sacking Wilson four more times (Utah finished with eight sacks; Alabama had given up 13 all season entering the game), forcing a Wilson fumble that Utah recovered and turned into the final points, a 28-yard field goal by Louie Sakoda, and a second interception. Alabama crossed midfield just once after the Reed touchdown, and never got any further than the Utah 32.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Sugar Bowl: Utah vs. Alabama
The final box score revealed an unexpected advantage for Utah. Alabama's run game, which ranked 22nd nationally at 196 yards per game entering the contest, was held to 31 yards on 33 carries. Alabama had given up only 27 first-quarter points and one first-quarter touchdown all season long; against Utah it gave up 21 and three, respectively.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Sugar Bowl: Utah vs. Alabama
Alabama's secondary was 13th nationally in pass efficiency defense at 101.63, but Johnson's passer rating for this game was 158.84. Johnson finished 27 of 41 for 336 yards and three TDs—all of which were the most yards, completions and TDs the Tide had given up to a single quarterback all season long.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Sugar Bowl: Utah vs. Alabama
The victory marked Utah's eighth consecutive bowl victory—the longest active streak in the country—and was the program's first victory against an SEC school in seven tries. It also became the first program in the BCS era to finish a season undefeated twice, joining the 2004 team.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Utah's poll finish
The effects of this game were monumental. Immediately, on sports internet site polls and in newspaper columns, the Utes' case for a share of the national championship was made. Among the noteworthy members of the press to chime in were Rick Reilly of ESPN The Magazine and John Feinstein of The Washington Post.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Utah's poll finish
In the end, sixteen AP voters went against the result of the BCS title game and voted Utah No. 1. It was not enough to offset Florida's forty-eight first-place votes, but Utah still finished a comfortable No. 2, surpassing its No. 4 finish in the 2004 season for its highest ranking ever. Utah also placed ahead of two teams which won their BCS bowl games—traditional powers Southern California and Texas, both of whom entered the bowl season ranked ahead of Utah. USC earned one first-place vote, but finished No. 3.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Utah's poll finish
In the coaches poll, Utah finished fourth and earned one first-place vote courtesy of head coach Kyle Whittingham, who vowed after the Sugar Bowl to vote Utah No. 1—despite his obligations as a member of the American Football Coaches Association to vote the winner of the BCS title game in the top spot.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Utah's poll finish
The computers which make up the BCS standings told a different story. Utah was ranked first in four of the six BCS computer models: Sagarin (Elo-Chess), Peter Wolfe, Anderson & Hester and Massey. Utah finished third in the Colley Matrix and Richard Billingsley rankings. Florida didn't finish lower than second in any of the computer rankings, but earned only two first-place finishes amongst the computers.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Utah's poll finish
The Anderson & Hester poll, an NCAA-designated major selector, selected Utah as its national champion.


2008 Utah Utes football team, Depth chart
These are the projected starters and primary backups as of November 2008.


2008 Utah Utes football team, After the season, NFL draft
The Utes had four players go in the 2009 NFL Draft:


2008 Utah gubernatorial election
The 2008 Utah gubernatorial election was held on November 4, 2008. Incumbent Republican Governor Jon Huntsman Jr. won re-election in a landslide, defeating Democratic nominee Bob Springmeyer and  Libertarian nominee Dell Schanze. As of 2021, this is the last Gubernatorial election in which a candidate received more than 70% of the vote.


2008 Uttarakhand local elections
The 2008 Uttarakhand Municipal general elections and 2008 Uttarakhand Panchayat general elections were held in the Indian state of Uttarakhand.


2008 Uttarakhand local elections
Elections are not held in the nagar panchayats of Badrinath, Kedarnath and Gangotri due to their status of temporary settlements. Local interim administration councils administer these three pilgrimage sites for a period of six months during the summers.


2008 Uyghur unrest
The  2008 Uyghur unrest is a loose name for incidents of communal violence by Uyghur people in Hotan and Qaraqash county of Western China, with incidents in March, April, and August 2008. The protests were spurred by the death in police custody of Mutallip Hajim.


2008 Uyghur unrest
The authorities attribute most of unrest activities of the last years to groups like the Hizb ut-Tahrir al-Islami (Islamic Party of Liberation) or the East Turkestan Islamic Movement.


2008 Uyghur unrest, Incidents
According to reports, on 18 March 2008, an Uighur woman detonated a bomb on a city bus in Urumqi, escaping before the explosion. While officials denied the incident, the International Herald Tribune reported of residents confirming the bombing. Many businesses belonging to those that belong to the Muslim ethnic group Hui were destroyed by the separatist group.


2008 Uyghur unrest, Incidents
On 23 March 2008, Muslim Uighurs held anti-government protests in the far western region of Xinjiang, China. Chinese officials blamed separatists inspired by the 2008 Tibetan unrest. Demonstrators took to the streets at the weekly bazaar in Hotan. The authorities maintain tight controls on information from the area and reports of deaths or their denial could not be independently verified.


2008 Uyghur unrest, Incidents
Demonstrations followed the death in custody of a wealthy Uyghur jade trader and philanthropist, Mutallip Hajim, 38. The protesters, who according to several accounts numbered around 600, began their march at the Lop bus station. An unknown number of men joined their 2 km (1.2 mi) march to the Big Bazaar shopping area, where they were surrounded by police who arrested around 400. The New York Times reported that the demonstrators were hoisting banners and shouting pro-independence slogans before the police forces moved in.


2008 Uyghur unrest, Incidents
On 23 March and 24 March 2008, as many as 1,000 people in Hotan and Karakax County took to the streets in protest. The protests coincided with unrest in Tibet, but the motivations appeared to be local. One issue that reportedly brought locals to the streets in protest was a government ban on women wearing headscarfs. Another issue was the death of Mutallip Hajim. Alim Seytoff, head of the World Uyghur Congress, stated that, "The Uighurs began protesting after the killing of Mutallip Hajim, who had died in police custody." This claim was echoed by unnamed sources in a Radio Free Asia report. Local police and the government run religious affairs department refused to comment on Hajim's death when contacted by Agence France-Presse.


2008 Uyghur unrest, Incidents
Police arrested 70 people from Uyghur ethnic group in the Silk Road oasis city of Kashgar on 3 April, fearing trouble when the Olympic torch passes through the city in June, The Guardian reported.


2008 Uyghur unrest, Incidents
Residents of townships and villages near Gulja, a city in northwestern Xinjiang, said that about 25 Uyghurs were arrested on 4 April on a tip that people in the area were making bombs.


2008 Uyghur unrest, Incidents
On 4 August 2008, two men attacked a police post near the city of Kashgar. They threw two improvised explosive devices and attacked at the police with knives. According to the government news agency, 16 policemen died and another 16 were injured.


2008 Uyghur unrest, Incidents
On 10 August 2008, in the oasis town of Kuqa, a series of explosions and shootings were reported. The explosions occurred at various police stations and office buildings. The events claimed 12 deaths, ten of which were of the attackers themselves.


2008 Uyghur unrest, Incidents
On 12 August 2008, unidentified men assaulted civilian guards with knives in Yamanya Town, leaving three dead and one critically injured.


2008 Uyghur unrest, Incidents
On 28 August 2008, a group of policemen were attacked by six to seven attackers with knives in the town of Qizilboy in Peyzawat county, resulting in the death two ethnic Uyghur police officers and at least two other policemen were critically injured. According to the deputy Peyzawat county police chief, Omerjan, the police officers who are all ethnic Uyghurs who were searching a cornfield following a tip that a woman suspected of aiding assailants in the Yamanya attack was hiding there.


2008 Uzbek League
The 2008 Uzbek League season was the 17th edition of top level football in Uzbekistan since independence from the Soviet Union in 1992.


2008 Uzbek League, Overview
It was contested by 16 teams, and Bunyodkor won the championship. Traktor Tashkent and Tupalang Sariosiyo withdrew of 2008 season participation because of financial problems. They were replaced by and OTMK Olmaliq, a team from First League, and  Metallurg Bekabad which as of 2008 season end, was originally relegated to First League, remained in top division.


2008 Uzbek League, Overview
Sogdiana Jizzakh and Uz-Dong-Joo promoted from First League. Vobkent FK was relegated in 2007 season.


2008 V-League
V-League 2008 was the 52nd season of Vietnam's professional football league. The league was held from January 6, 2008 to August 24, 2008. Petro Vietnam was the league sponsor for the second season (Since 2007).


2008 V-League
Bình Dương F.C. won their second titles in this season.


2008 V-League, Awards, Dream Team
Đào Văn Phong (Khatoco Khánh Hòa) Vũ Như Thành (Becamex Bình Dương) Luiz Fabiano (Xi Măng Hải Phòng) Huỳnh Quang Thanh (Becamex Bình Dương)


2008 V-League, Awards, Dream Team
Phạm Thành Lương (Hà Nội ACB) Leandro (Xi Măng Hải Phòng) Rafael Marquez (Thể Công) Phan Thanh Phúc (SHB Đà Nẵng)


2008 V-League, Awards, Dream Team
Antonio Carlos (Đồng Tâm Long An) Almeida  (SHB Đà Nẵng)


2008 V8 Supercar Championship Series
The 2008 V8 Supercar Championship Series was the tenth V8 Supercar Championship Series and the twelfth series in which V8 Supercars contested the premier Australian touring car title. The championship began on 21 February at the Clipsal 500 on the streets of Adelaide and concluded on 7 December at Oran Park Raceway. It consisted of 14 rounds covering all states and the Northern Territory of Australia as well as rounds in New Zealand and Bahrain.


2008 V8 Supercar Championship Series
Jamie Whincup secured the Drivers championship with two races in hand with victory in race 1 of the 2008 NRMA Motoring & Services Grand Finale. Whincup was also awarded the 49th Australian Touring Car Championship title by CAMS. Triple Eight Race Engineering won the Teams Championship and Ford was awarded the Manufacturers Championship.


2008 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Teams and drivers
The following teams and drivers contested the 2008 V8 Supercar Championship Series.


2008 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Rule Changes
The points system was changed for 2008. Points were awarded to the top 30 drivers, with 300 points being the most available to a driver in each round.


2008 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Rule Changes
In Friday practice sessions, drivers who had finished in the top 15 in the 2007 Championship were not permitted to participate for the first 30 minutes.


2008 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Technical changes
An option to use sequential gearboxes in lieu of H-pattern gearboxes was introduced. Initially optional, sequential gearboxes later became mandatory.


2008 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Driver changes
Russell Ingall signed with Paul Morris Motorsport and raced under the identity of Supercheap Auto Racing.


2008 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Driver changes
In a complicated series of moves several drivers have been shuffled around the Holden teams. The juggling began with Todd Kelly signing with Perkins Engineering. Reigning series champion Garth Tander took the #1 plate to the Holden Racing Team with Toll sponsorship and some key personnel led by Rob Crawford transfer across teams with him. And finally, former Supercheap Auto driver Paul Dumbrell took Tander's seat at the HSV Dealer Team.


2008 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Driver changes
Second tier Fujitsu series champion team Tony D'Alberto Racing moved to the V8 Supercar series, and took over the running of the Rod Nash Racing owned franchise, replacing Independent Racing Cars who previously operated the team. Tony D'Alberto replaced Steve Owen as driver.


2008 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Driver changes
Paul Cruickshank Racing signed Fabian Coulthard to replace the retired John Bowe.


2008 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Driver changes
Marcus Marshall drove the Irwin backed Falcon at Britek Motorsport.


2008 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Driver changes
Dean Canto announced on his website that he had his contract with Garry Rogers Motorsport terminated a year early. He later drove for Ford Performance Racing in the endurance events.


2008 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Driver changes
Garry Rogers Motorsport announced their new driver as Fujitsu series runner up, and WPS Racing enduro driver, Michael Caruso.


2008 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Driver changes
Team Kiwi Racing purchased a former Triple Eight Race Engineering Falcon and ran the car themselves. While the team had not made a formal announcement, V8Supercars have published Fujitsu series front runner Kayne Scott as the team's driver. Although due to a date clash with Round 2 and the final of the New Zealand V8 series, Scott was not available and was replaced by Chris Pither.


2008 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Driver changes
Reversing a previous decision to fold their team, Paul Weel Racing announced their return for the 2008 season and ran a single VE Commodore for Andrew Thompson.


2008 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Driver changes
Former PWR racer Cameron McConville signed with Brad Jones Racing, a team he raced for previously in the mid-90s when it ran the Audi Super Touring program. The team also changed manufacturer camps to become a Holden team and ran with the technical assistance of Walkinshaw Performance, the organisation that runs the Holden Racing Team and HSV Dealer Teams.


2008 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Driver changes
Ford Rising Stars Racing named Formula 3 Euroseries racer Michael Patrizi as the driver for their début season. However the team did not make their season debut until the third round of the year at the Hamilton 400. The team utilised the second of the two Paul Weel Racing franchises.


2008 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Driver changes
Stone Brothers Racing named teenager Shane van Gisbergen to the #9 Ford Falcon, replacing Russell Ingall. Van Gisbergen was linked to SBR last season and was placed with Team Kiwi Racing in the second half of the season after TKR's previous partnership with Ford Performance Racing dissolved.


2008 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Driver changes
Despite previously announcing that they would be forced to sell their franchise from lack of a major sponsor and technical partner, Walden Motorsport had committed to run and V8Supercar's website had named Australian Production Car Championship racer Garth Walden as the driver in the teams Ford Falcon, although it has yet to be confirmed that the team actually have possession of an eligible car. After failing to appear at the first two rounds the franchise has been placed for sale.


2008 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Driver changes
WPS Racing announced the closure of the team with the vehicles and equipment sold off to new owners. The franchises have already been sold within TEGA. The team cite business and health issues affecting team principal Craig Gore.


2008 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Driver changes
Shane Price was sacked from the Perkins Engineering a week after the Bathurst 1000 and replaced with endurance co-driver Jack Perkins.


2008 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Results and standings, Manufacturers Championship
Ford won the Manufacturers Championship having won more rounds than rival Holden.


2008 V8 Supercar season
The 2008 V8 Supercar season was the twelfth season in which V8 Supercars contested the premier Australian touring car racing series. It was the 49th year of touring car racing in Australia since the first running of the Australian Touring Car Championship, known today as the V8 Supercar Championship Series, and of the fore-runner of the present day Bathurst 1000, the Armstrong 500.


2008 V8 Supercar season
The season began on 21 February at the Clipsal 500 on the streets of Adelaide and finished on 7 December at Oran Park Raceway. 2008 featured the twelfth V8 Supercars Championship Series, consisting of 14 rounds covering all states and the Northern Territory of Australia as well as rounds in New Zealand and Bahrain. It also featured a non-championship event supporting the 2008 Australian Grand Prix. It included the ninth second tier Development Series, this year referred to as the Fujitsu V8 Supercar Series.


2008 V8 Supercar season
All bar one of the seven rounds were held as a support category for the V8 Supercar Championship Series. For the first time a third tier series was run, known as the Shannons V8 Touring Car National Series. Its four rounds were held as part of the Shannons Nationals Motor Racing Championships.


2008 V8 Supercars Manufacturers Challenge
The 2008 Sprint Gas V8 Supercars Manufacturers Challenge was the third meeting of the 2008 V8 Supercar season. It was held on the weekend of 13 to 16 March at Albert Park Street Circuit, in the inner suburbs of Melbourne, the capital of Victoria. The meeting was a non-championship affair, conducted under a unique Holden vs Ford format. It was the lead support category for the 2008 Australian Grand Prix.


2008 V8 Supercars Manufacturers Challenge, Qualifying
Qualifying was held on Thursday 13 March. Mark Skaife was fastest as the Holden Racing Team continued its resurgence. Steven Richards shook off his car destroying crash at Eastern Creek to be second fastest ahead of Jason Richards in the Tasman Motorsport Commodore.


2008 V8 Supercars Manufacturers Challenge, Qualifying
The end of qualifying was nervous with the first top ten shootout of the season to be held the following day and while Russell Ingall scraped into the top ten, the unique Ford vs Holden rules for this event which demanded five of each manufacturer in the top ten saw Ingall, as the sixth Holden, relegated in favour of the fifth Ford, Steven Johnson. Michael Patrizi qualified 28th on the debut of both himself and his Ford Rising Stars Racing in the main game series.


2008 V8 Supercars Manufacturers Challenge, Top Ten shootout
The top ten shootout, the first to be held in 2008, was held on Friday 14 March. Garth Tander kept the Holden Racing Team atop the timesheets, picking off pole position, holding off a motivated Craig Lowndes for the position. Steven Richards was third fastest, but would be relegated to fourth on the grid as the Ford vs Holden format stated that the grid would be formed in alternating manufacturer order ahead of outright pace, meaning fifth fastest qualifying Rick Kelly would start third as the second fastest Holden.


2008 V8 Supercars Manufacturers Challenge, Race 1
Race 1 was held on Friday 12 March immediately after the shootout.


2008 VFF Bred Cup
The 2008 VFF Bred Cup was the qualifying competition for the 2008–09 OFC Champions League. The club who advanced to this tournament was Port Vila Sharks, Vanuatu's sole representative at the competition. The competition was played in two separate championships, north and south, with each winner and runners-up facing off in the overall finals.


2008 VFF Bred Cup, Overall finals, Final
Port Vila Sharks advance to the 2008–09 OFC Champions League.


2008 VFL season
The 2008 Victorian Football League (VFL) was a semi-professional Australian Rules Football competition featuring thirteen teams from Victoria and one team from Tasmania.


2008 VFL season
It was the 127th season of the Australian rules football competition. The premiership was won by the North Ballarat Football Club, who defeated Port Melbourne by 45 points in the Grand Final on 26 September. It was the first VFL premiership in North Ballarat's history.


2008 VFL season, League membership and affiliations
Prior to the 2008 season, there were several changes to the VFL-AFL reserves affiliations:


2008 VFL season, League membership and affiliations
As a result, the size of the VFL increased to fourteen teams: nine VFL-AFL affiliations, two AFL reserves teams and three stand-alone VFL clubs.


2008 VFL season, Season Awards, Best and Fairest
The VFL Best and Fairest is awarded the J. J. Liston Trophy.


2008 VFL season, Season Awards, Leading Goalkickers
The VFL Leading Goalkicker at the end of the regular season is awarded the Jim 'Frosty' Miller Medal. The 2008 winner was Nick Sautner of the Sandringham Zebras.


2008 VL14
2008 VL14 is a potentially hazardous asteroid of the Apollo class, discovered by the Mount Lemmon Survey on 9 November 2008. It has an average estimated diameter of 260 meters according to NASA's Center for Near-Earth Object Studies. Around 22 October 2054, 2008 VL14 is expected to pass about 0.09 AU (13 million km) from Earth, but could pass as close as 0.0002 AU (30 thousand km). The object is not risk-listed.


2008 VMI Keydets football team
The 2008 VMI Keydets football team represented the Virginia Military Institute during the 2008 NCAA Division I FCS football season. It was the Keydets 118th year of football, which began in 1891, and their 6th season in the Big South Conference. VMI was run by first year head coach Sparky Woods, who was previously a head coach at Appalachian State and South Carolina. Woods was a replacement for his predecessor Jim Reid, who departed from the Institute to be linebackers coach of the Miami Dolphins.


2008 VMI Keydets football team
The Keydets enjoyed one of their most successful seasons in recent years in terms of wins. The year started with a convincing victory over St. Francis 49–0. After a 52–17 drubbing from William & Mary, the Keydets handled another Division-II opponent, Chowan, 69–20. A late second-half surge then pushed Ohio past VMI 51–31 the following week. Another large loss came from Richmond at home, 56–16. The Keydets did, however, get their first conference win since 2005, a 47–20 blowout victory over Coastal Carolina. VMI ended the year with a 49–27 win over future conference member Presbyterian, breaking a four-game losing streak.


2008 VTB United League Promo-Cup
VTB United League Promo-Cup 2008 was the first test run tournament of the VTB United League. The tournament was held during the 2008–09 basketball season on 20–22 December 2008, at the CSKA Universal Sports Hall in Moscow. The tournament included 8 teams from Russia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Ukraine.


2008 VTB United League Promo-Cup
CSKA Moscow won the tournament by defeating Khimki Moscow Region in the final. Kyiv finished in third place by defeating Dynamo Moscow.


2008 VTV9 – Binh Dien International Women's Volleyball Cup
The 2008 VTV9 - Binh Dien International Women's Volleyball Cup was the 3rd staging . The tournament was held in Đắk Lắk, Vietnam.


2008 VTV9 – Binh Dien International Women's Volleyball Cup, Pools composition
VTV Bình Điền Long An (Host) Sri Lanka  Nakhon Ratchsima  Thông tin LVPB  Giấy Bãi Bằng


2008 VTV9 – Binh Dien International Women's Volleyball Cup, Pool standing procedure
Match won 3–0 or 3–1: 3 match points for the winner, 0 match points for the loserMatch won 3–2: 2 match points for the winner, 1 match point for the loser


2008 Vaahteraliiga season
The 2008 Vaahteraliiga season was the 29th season of the highest level of American football in Finland. The regular season took place between May 24 and August 30, 2008. The Finnish champion was determined in the playoffs and at the championship game Vaahteramalja XXIX the Porvoo Butchers won the Helsinki Roosters.


2008 Valdostan regional election
The Valdostan regional election of 2008 took place in Italy's Aosta Valley on 25 May 2008. The election saw the victory of the centrist autonomist coalition led by Aosta Valley's former governor, Augusto Rollandin.


2008 Vale of Glamorgan Council election
The 2008 Vale of Glamorgan Council election took place on Thursday 1 May 2008 to elect members of Vale of Glamorgan Council in Wales. This was the same day as other United Kingdom local elections. The previous full council election was in 2004 and the next full elections were on 3 May 2012.


2008 Vale of Glamorgan Council election, Election result
Forty-seven seats were up for election and the Conservative Party managed to win an overall majority, where previously no party was in overal control. The result took place in the context of Gordon Brown's Labour government falling to its lowest polling since the 1960s, with the Conservatives winning control of eleven other councils in England and Wales.


2008 Vale of Glamorgan Council election, Ward results
[ a] Councillors previously elected as Independent. Llantwit First Independents registered as a new political party in 2007


2008 Valencia GP2 Series round
2008 Valencia GP2 Series round was the Eight round of the 2008 GP2 Series season. It was held on August 23 and 24, 2008 at Valencia Street Circuit at Valencia, Spain. The race was used as a support race to the 2008 European Grand Prix.


2008 Valencia International Piano Competition Prize Iturbi
Valencia International Piano Competition Prize Iturbi XVI took take place in Valencia from September 15–27, 2008. It was won by Zhengyu Chen, who became the first Chinese pianist to attain the 1st prize.


2008 Valencia International Piano Competition Prize Iturbi, Competition Results (by rounds), First Round
September 16 and 17. Palau de la Música - Sala Rodrigo.


2008 Valencia International Piano Competition Prize Iturbi, Competition Results (by rounds), Quarter-finals
September 18, 19 and 20. Palau de la Música - Sala Rodrigo.


2008 Valencia International Piano Competition Prize Iturbi, Competition Results (by rounds), Semi-finals
September 21 and 22. Palau de la Música - Sala Rodrigo.


2008 Valencia International Piano Competition Prize Iturbi, Competition Results (by rounds), Final
September 26 and 27. Palau de la Música - Sala Iturbi.


2008 Valencia Superbike World Championship round
The 2008 Valencia Superbike World Championship round was the third round of the 2008 Superbike World Championship. It took take place on the weekend of April 4–6, 2008, at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo in Valencia, Spain.


2008 Valencian Community motorcycle Grand Prix
The 2008 Valencian Community motorcycle Grand Prix was the last round of the 2008 MotoGP championship. It took place on the weekend of 24–26 October 2008 at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo.


2008 Valencian Community motorcycle Grand Prix, Championship standings after the race (MotoGP)
Below are the standings for the top five riders and constructors after round eighteen has concluded.


2008 Vallelunga Superbike World Championship round
The 2008 Vallelunga Superbike World Championship round was the twelfth round of the 2008 Superbike World Championship season. It took place on the weekend of September 19-21, 2008, at the Vallelunga circuit.


2008 Vallelunga Superleague Formula round
The 2008 Vallelunga Superleague Formula round was the fifth round of the inaugural Superleague Formula championship, with the races taking place on November 2, 2008. Eighteen football teams were represented on the grid, the same number of teams as there was at the previous three rounds. There were two driver changes before this round of the championship and one during the round: Duncan Tappy returned to the Tottenham Hotspur cockpit replacing Dominik Jackson, having missed the previous round in Portugal and Kasper Andersen was replaced by Stamatis Katsimis in the Olympiacos CFP car.