You Are Here > SR/CFB > Years > 1979

News: s-r blog:Search Our Pro Football Data Using the P-F-R Play Index

1979 Year Summary

Previous Year ▪ Next Year

National Champion: Alabama (AP, FWAA, NFF, UPI)

Heisman Memorial Trophy: Charles White (Southern California)
FWAA Coach of the Year Award: Earle Bruce (Ohio State)

AP Preseason #1: Southern California ▪ AP Final #1: Alabama

Conference Summary

Sorted by SRS
Overall Bowls SRS Polls
Rk Conference Schs G W L T Pct G W L T Pct SRS SOS Pre Final Champion
1 Southwest Conference 9 103 55 45 3 .549 4 2 2 0 .500 11.11 10.11 4 4 Arkansas
Houston
2 Atlantic Coast Conference 7 80 46 32 2 .588 3 1 2 0 .333 10.02 7.00 0 1 North Carolina State
3 Pacific-10 Conference 10 115 58 54 3 .517 4 2 2 0 .500 7.61 6.84 4 2 Southern California
4 Big Ten Conference 10 114 58 54 2 .518 4 2 2 0 .500 7.09 6.90 3 4 Ohio State
5 Big Eight Conference 8 91 47 44 0 .516 3 2 1 0 .667 6.41 5.76 3 2 Oklahoma
6 Southeastern Conference 10 113 53 59 1 .473 3 2 1 0 .667 6.35 5.94 2 2 Alabama
7 Western Athletic Conference 8 93 47 45 1 .511 1 0 1 0 .000 -0.30 -0.61 0 1 Brigham Young
8 Independent 33 368 183 175 10 .511 7 4 3 0 .571 -0.68 -0.42 4 4
9 Southland Conference 6 67 36 29 2 .552 1 0 1 0 .000 -3.66 -5.69 0 0 McNeese State
10 Mid-American Conference 10 110 53 53 4 .500 0 0 0 0 -4.72 -5.26 0 0 Central Michigan
11 Southern Conference 8 88 43 44 1 .494 0 0 0 0 -6.36 -6.53 0 0 Chattanooga
12 Pacific Coast Athletic Association 6 65 30 33 2 .477 0 0 0 0 -6.66 -5.30 0 0 Utah State
13 Missouri Valley Conference 7 77 33 43 1 .435 0 0 0 0 -8.46 -5.48 0 0 West Texas A&M
14 Ivy Group 8 72 32 39 1 .451 0 0 0 0 -16.76 -15.89 0 0 Yale

AP Poll Summary

School Conf Pre 9/10 9/17 9/24 10/1 10/8 10/15 10/22 10/29 11/5 11/12 11/19 11/26 12/3 Final
Alabama SEC 2 2 2 2 2 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 1
Southern California Pac-10 1 1 1 1 1 1 4 3 3 4 4 4 2 3 2
Oklahoma Big 8 3 3 3 3 3 3 8 7 7 6 7 8 5 5 3
Ohio State Big Ten   15 16 14 8 8 6 4 5 3 2 2 3 1 4
Houston SWC 16 13 10 8 6 7 5 6 4 5 9 9 10 8 5
Florida State Ind 19 18 14 12 9 9 7 8 6 7 5 5 4 4 6
Pittsburgh Ind 17 16 13       17 12 12 12 11 11 11 10 7
Arkansas SWC 20 17 15 13 13 12 10 4 9 9 8 7 8 6 8
Nebraska Big 8 8 8 7 6 5 5 3 2 2 2 3 3 7 7 9
Purdue Big Ten 6 5 17 10 12 20 16 16 15 14 12 12 12 12 10
Washington Pac-10 15 14 12 9 7 6 12 20 16 15 16 14 13 13 11
Texas SWC 4 4 4 4 4 4 2 9 8 8 6 6 6 11 12
Brigham Young WAC         20 16 13 11 11 11 10 10 9 9 13
Baylor SWC                   17 20 17 20 19 14
North Carolina ACC         18 14 19 15 18           15
Auburn SEC           18 14 13 20 16 15 14 14 17 16
Temple Ind                     18     20 17
Michigan Big Ten 7 6 11 11 11 11 11 10 10 10 13 16 15 14 18
Indiana Big Ten                             19
Penn State Ind 5 7 6 18         19     20 19   20
School Conf Pre 9/10 9/17 9/24 10/1 10/8 10/15 10/22 10/29 11/5 11/12 11/19 11/26 12/3 Final
Arizona State Pac-10 18                            
Clemson ACC                   18 14 13 18 18  
Georgia SEC 11 12                          
Louisiana State SEC       20 17 13                  
Michigan State Big Ten 10 10 8 7 16 19                  
Missouri Big 8 12 11 9 5 15 15                  
Navy Ind             20 17              
North Carolina State ACC   19 19 16 14 17 15                
Notre Dame Ind 9 9 5 15 10 10 9 14 13 13          
South Carolina Ind                   19   19 17 16  
Southern Methodist SWC   20 18 19                      
Stanford Pac-10 13                            
Tennessee SEC         19   18 19 17   19        
Texas A&M SWC 14                            
Tulane Ind                     20 18 16 15  
UCLA Pac-10     20 17                      
Wake Forest ACC               18 14 20 17        

Year Leaders

Read more about our data coverage. ▪ An asterisk (*) after a player's name indicates bowl stats are included.
Pass Completions
1. Marc Wilson* (BYU) 278
2. Rich Campbell* (CA) 241
  Ed Luther (SJST) 241
4. Larry Haynes (LAMAR) 233
5. Roch Hontas (TLN) 215
6. Mark Herrmann* (PUR) 203
7. Jay Venuto (WAKE) 198
8. Mark Hutsell (ETNST) 186
  Sander Markel (PAC) 186
10. Mark Carlson (MN) 177
Pass Attempts
1. Marc Wilson* (BYU) 470
2. Ed Luther (SJST) 415
3. Larry Haynes (LAMAR) 402
4. Sander Markel (PAC) 368
5. Jay Venuto (WAKE) 367
  Roch Hontas (TLN) 367
7. Rich Campbell* (CA) 360
8. Mark Herrmann* (PUR) 348
9. Mark Hutsell (ETNST) 302
10. Mark Carlson (MN) 300
  Mike Kelley (GATECH) 300
Pass Completion Percentage
1. Turk Schonert (STAN) 67.0
2. Rich Campbell* (CA) 66.9
3. Paul McDonald* (SCA) 62.1
4. Jordan Case (NTX) 61.7
5. Mark Hutsell (ETNST) 61.6
6. Sammy Shon (OH) 60.5
7. Eric Hipple (UTST) 60.3
8. Marc Wilson* (BYU) 59.1
9. Mark Carlson (MN) 59.0
10. Ed McMichael (RUT) 58.8
Passing Yards
1. Marc Wilson* (BYU) 4100
2. Ed Luther (SJST) 3049
3. Rich Campbell* (CA) 2859
4. Larry Haynes (LAMAR) 2641
5. Jay Venuto (WAKE) 2432
6. Mark Herrmann* (PUR) 2377
7. Roch Hontas (TLN) 2345
8. Steve Brown (APPST) 2307
9. Mark Hutsell (ETNST) 2276
10. Paul McDonald* (SCA) 2223
Passing Yards Per Attempt
1. Brian Broomell (TEMP) 9.8
2. Art Schlichter* (OHST) 9.1
3. Dave Wilson (BALLST) 9.1
4. Marc Wilson* (BYU) 8.7
5. Turk Schonert (STAN) 8.7
6. Rusty Lisch (NDAME) 8.6
7. Sam King (NVLV) 8.5
8. Paul McDonald* (SCA) 8.4
9. Eric Hipple (UTST) 8.1
10. Steve Brown (APPST) 8.0
Adjusted Passing Yards Per Attempt
1. Brian Broomell (TEMP) 9.6
2. Turk Schonert (STAN) 9.2
3. Art Schlichter* (OHST) 9.1
4. Paul McDonald* (SCA) 8.8
5. Marc Wilson* (BYU) 8.3
6. Eric Hipple (UTST) 8.0
7. Dave Wilson (BALLST) 7.7
8. Sam King (NVLV) 7.4
9. Rich Campbell* (CA) 7.3
10. Tim Russell (CIT) 6.8
Passing Touchdowns
1. Marc Wilson* (BYU) 31
2. Brian Broomell (TEMP) 22
3. Roch Hontas (TLN) 21
  Larry Haynes (LAMAR) 21
5. Ed Luther (SJST) 20
6. Turk Schonert (STAN) 19
7. Matt Kupec (NC) 18
  Paul McDonald* (SCA) 18
9. Mark Hutsell (ETNST) 17
10. Jay Venuto (WAKE) 16
  Mark Herrmann* (PUR) 16
  Mike Pusey (WCAR) 16
Passing Interceptions
1. Randy Hertel (RICE) 24
2. Dave Ziebart (AF) 21
  Mike Pusey (WCAR) 21
4. Mark Herrmann* (PUR) 19
  Mike Kelley (GATECH) 19
  Sander Markel (PAC) 19
7. Marc Wilson* (BYU) 18
  Bob Conroy (COLMB) 18
  Larry Haynes (LAMAR) 18
  Phil Davis (WY) 18
Passing Efficiency Rating
1. Turk Schonert (STAN) 163.2
2. Brian Broomell (TEMP) 162.3
3. Paul McDonald* (SCA) 150.8
4. Marc Wilson* (BYU) 146.5
5. Art Schlichter* (OHST) 145.9
6. Eric Hipple (UTST) 140.8
7. Rich Campbell* (CA) 140.7
8. Dave Wilson (BALLST) 137.9
9. Sam King (NVLV) 136.4
10. Mark Hutsell (ETNST) 134.2
Rush Attempts
1. Charles White* (SCA) 332
2. George Rogers* (SC) 311
3. Vagas Ferguson (NDAME) 301
4. Bill Fenn (ILST) 280
5. James Hadnot (TXTECH) 273
6. Freeman McNeil (UCLA) 271
7. Dennis Mosley (IA) 270
8. Floyd Allen (VAMI) 265
9. James McDougald (WAKE) 260
10. Rick Parros (UTST) 259
Rushing Yards
1. Charles White* (SCA) 2050
2. George Rogers* (SC) 1681
3. Billy Sims* (OK) 1670
4. Vagas Ferguson (NDAME) 1437
5. Freeman McNeil (UCLA) 1396
6. Joe Morris* (SYR) 1372
7. James Hadnot (TXTECH) 1371
8. Dennis Mosley (IA) 1267
9. Floyd Allen (VAMI) 1249
10. Rick Parros (UTST) 1236
Rushing Yards Per Attempt
1. Gwain Durden (CHAT) 7.8
2. Lewis Walker (UT) 7.7
3. Brothel Cole (FURM) 7.5
4. James Brooks (AUB) 7.4
5. Sam Harrell (ECAR) 7.4
6. Tony Collins (ECAR) 7.3
7. Homer Jones* (BYU) 7.2
8. Theodore Sutton (ECAR) 6.8
9. Billy Sims* (OK) 6.7
10. Jarvis Redwine* (NE) 6.7
Rushing Touchdowns
1. Billy Sims* (OK) 23
2. Mark Bornholdt (BALLST) 19
  Charles White* (SCA) 19
4. Vagas Ferguson (NDAME) 17
5. Rick Parros (UTST) 15
6. Joe Cribbs (AUB) 14
  Wardell Wright (DRAKE) 14
  Tony Collins (ECAR) 14
9. Butch Woolfolk* (MI) 13
  Scott Smith (NCST) 13
Receptions
1. Rick Beasley (APPST) 74
2. Steve Coury (ORST) 66
3. James Murphy (UTST) 63
4. Matt Bouza* (CA) 59
  Howard Robinson (LAMAR) 59
6. Gerald Harp (WCAR) 57
7. Dave Young* (PUR) 55
  Wayne Baumgardner (WAKE) 55
9. Preston Brown (VAND) 52
  Mike House (PAC) 52
Receiving Yards
1. Rick Beasley (APPST) 1205
2. James Murphy (UTST) 1067
3. Gerald Harp (WCAR) 1009
4. Wayne Baumgardner (WAKE) 1000
5. Gerald Lucear (TEMP) 964
6. Ken Thompson (UTST) 918
7. Steve Coury (ORST) 842
8. Howard Robinson (LAMAR) 840
9. Matt Bouza* (CA) 831
10. Sam Greene (NVLV) 821
Receiving Yards Per Reception
1. Mark Nichols (SJST) 26.7
2. Pat Walker (MIAFL) 26.0
3. Tony Hunter (NDAME) 25.6
4. Rob Rikard (BC) 25.1
5. Kevin House (SIL) 24.2
6. Gary Lewis (TXARL) 23.2
7. Lloyd Jones* (BYU) 22.8
8. Joe Burke (CHAT) 22.3
9. David Verser (KS) 22.0
10. Kirk Wilson (INST) 22.0
Receiving Touchdowns
1. Gerald Lucear (TEMP) 13
2. Howard Robinson (LAMAR) 12
  Rick Beasley (APPST) 12
4. Ken Thompson (UTST) 11
  Mark Nichols (SJST) 11
6. Gerald Harp (WCAR) 10
  Dave Young* (PUR) 10
  Ken Margerum (STAN) 10
9. Sam Greene (NVLV) 9
10. Kevin Williams* (SCA) 8
  Mike Chatham (NC) 8
  Wayne Baumgardner (WAKE) 8
Plays From Scrimmage
1. Charles White* (SCA) 354
2. George Rogers* (SC) 325
3. Vagas Ferguson (NDAME) 315
4. Dennis Mosley (IA) 291
5. James McDougald (WAKE) 287
6. Freeman McNeil (UCLA) 286
7. Bill Fenn (ILST) 284
8. James Hadnot (TXTECH) 283
9. Floyd Allen (VAMI) 281
  Rick Parros (UTST) 281
Yards From Scrimmage
1. Charles White* (SCA) 2195
2. George Rogers* (SC) 1821
3. Billy Sims* (OK) 1712
4. Freeman McNeil (UCLA) 1536
5. Vagas Ferguson (NDAME) 1509
6. Dennis Mosley (IA) 1502
7. James Hadnot (TXTECH) 1464
8. Floyd Allen (VAMI) 1418
9. Joe Morris* (SYR) 1410
10. Rick Parros (UTST) 1369
Touchdowns From Scrimmage
1. Billy Sims* (OK) 23
2. Mark Bornholdt (BALLST) 19
  Charles White* (SCA) 19
4. Vagas Ferguson (NDAME) 17
5. Dennis Mosley (IA) 16
6. Joe Cribbs (AUB) 15
  Rick Parros (UTST) 15
8. Eric Lane* (BYU) 14
  Tony Collins (ECAR) 14
  Wardell Wright (DRAKE) 14
  Johnny McFall (ETNST) 14
Total Plays
1. Marc Wilson* (BYU) 540
2. Phil Davis (WY) 481
3. Ed Luther (SJST) 459
4. Roch Hontas (TLN) 458
5. Larry Haynes (LAMAR) 451
6. Sander Markel (PAC) 445
7. Jay Venuto (WAKE) 443
8. Rich Campbell* (CA) 435
  Oliver Luck (WV) 435
10. Mark Malone (AZST) 421
Total Yards
1. Marc Wilson* (BYU) 3988
2. Ed Luther (SJST) 2997
3. Rich Campbell* (CA) 2635
4. Steve Brown (APPST) 2557
5. Jay Venuto (WAKE) 2485
6. Roch Hontas (TLN) 2442
7. Larry Haynes (LAMAR) 2428
8. Mark Malone (AZST) 2357
9. Brian Broomell (TEMP) 2352
10. Phil Davis (WY) 2316
Total Yards Per Play
1. Marc Wilson* (BYU) 7.4
Total Touchdowns
1. Marc Wilson* (BYU) 35
2. Brian Broomell (TEMP) 26
3. Larry Haynes (LAMAR) 25
4. Ed Luther (SJST) 23
  Art Schlichter* (OHST) 23
  Billy Sims* (OK) 23
7. Mark Malone (AZST) 22
  Roch Hontas (TLN) 22
9. Turk Schonert (STAN) 21
  Tim Clifford* (IN) 21