1979 Arkansas Razorbacks football team
American college football season
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The 1979 Arkansas Razorbacks football team represented the University of Arkansas in the Southwest Conference (SWC) during the 1979 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their third year under head coach Lou Holtz, the Razorbacks compiled a 10–2 record (7–1 against SWC opponents), finished in a tie with Houston for the SWC championship, and outscored their opponents by a combined total of 284 to 132. The Razorbacks' only regular season loss was to Houston by a 13–10 score. The team advanced to the 1980 Sugar Bowl, losing to undefeated national champion Alabama by a 24–9 score.[1] Arkansas was ranked No. 8 in the final AP poll and No. 9 in the final UPI Coaches Poll.
| 1979 Arkansas Razorbacks football | |
|---|---|
SWC co-champion | |
Sugar Bowl, L 9–24 vs. Alabama | |
| Conference | Southwest Conference |
| Ranking | |
| Coaches | No. 9 |
| AP | No. 8 |
| Record | 10–2 (6–2 SWC) |
| Head coach |
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| Defensive coordinator | Monte Kiffin (3rd season) |
| Captains |
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| Home stadium | Razorback Stadium War Memorial Stadium |
| Conf. | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 5 Houston + | 7 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 11 | – | 1 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 8 Arkansas + | 7 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 10 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 12 Texas | 6 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 9 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 14 Baylor | 5 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 8 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Texas A&M | 4 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 5 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SMU | 3 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Texas Tech | 2 | – | 5 | – | 1 | 3 | – | 6 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| TCU | 1 | – | 6 | – | 1 | 2 | – | 8 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rice | 0 | – | 8 | – | 0 | 1 | – | 10 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Offensive tackle Greg Kolenda was a consensus All-American for the Razorbacks in 1979.[2] Placekicker Ish Ordonez led the nation in field goals with 18 and lead the Southwest Conference in scoring for the second year in a row with 80 points. He broke the NCAA record of 12 consecutive field goals making 16 and hit 18 of 22 field goals on the season, for an 82% average and was second-team All-American. All SWC Quarterback Kevin Scanlon was selected the Southwest Conference Player of the Year and honorable mention All American. Arkansas was tied for sixth in scoring defense, giving up 108 points in 11 games (9.8 points per game).
Schedule
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 15 | Colorado State* | No. 17 | W 36–3 | 55,317 | [3] | ||
| September 22 | Oklahoma State* | No. 15 |
| W 27–7 | 55,812 | [4] | |
| September 29 | Tulsa* | No. 13 | W 33–8 | 45,742 | [5] | ||
| October 6 | at TCU | No. 13 | W 16–13 | 25,317 | [6] | ||
| October 13 | at Texas Tech | No. 12 | W 20–6 | 47,109 | [7] | ||
| October 20 | No. 2 Texas | No. 10 |
| ABC | W 17–14 | 55,838 | [8] |
| October 27 | No. 6 Houston | No. 4 |
| ABC | L 10–13 | 43,319 | [9] |
| November 3 | at Rice | No. 9 | W 34–7 | 17,000 | [10] | ||
| November 10 | No. 17 Baylor | No. 9 |
| W 29–20 | 43,284 | [11] | |
| November 17 | at Texas A&M | No. 8 | W 22–10 | 62,648 | [12] | ||
| November 24 | SMU | No. 7 |
| W 31–7 | 54,718 | [13] | |
| January 1 | vs. No. 2 Alabama* | No. 6 | ABC | L 9–24 | 77,486 | [14] | |
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Game summaries
Texas
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Texas | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
| • Arkansas | 0 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 17 |
- Date: October 20
- Location: War Memorial Stadium
- Game attendance: 55,838
- TV announcers (ABC): Al Michaels and Ara Parseghian
| Q1 | TEX | Jam Jones 37 yard run (Goodson kick) | TEX 7–0 | |
| Q2 | ARK | Anderson 28 yard run (Ordonez kick) | Tie 7–7 | |
| Q3 | ARK | Mason 7 yard pass from Scanlon (Ordonez kick) | ARK 14–7 | |
| Q4 | 8:25 | ARK | Ordonez 31 yard field goal | ARK 17–7 |
| Q4 | TEX | Stapleton 35 yard pass from Little (Goodson kick) | ARK 17–14 | |
Texas' John Goodson missed a 51-yard field goal into a 24-mile per hour wind with 1:29 left to play as Arkansas beat the Longhorns for the first time since 1971.[15]
Roster
- RB Gary Anderson, Fresh
- DB Kim Dameron, Fresh
- Jeff Goff (defense), Soph
- DE Jim Howard
- P Bruce Lahay
- TE Darryl Mason
- WR TE Gene Ratliff
- PK Ish Ordonez
- Ricky Richardson (defense), Soph
- QB Kevin Scanlon, Sr.
- G George Stewart
