1979 Houston Cougars football team
American college football season
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The 1979 Houston Cougars football team, also known as the Houston Cougars, Houston, or UH, represented the University of Houston in the 1979 NCAA Division I-A football season.[1] The Cougars were led by 18th-year head coach Bill Yeoman and played their home games at the Astrodome in Houston, Texas. They competed as members of the Southwest Conference, finishing as co-champions with Arkansas. This was Houston's second consecutive conference championship, and their third overall in their first four years as members of the conference.
| 1979 Houston Cougars football | |
|---|---|
 | |
SWC co-champion Cotton Bowl Classic champion | |
Cotton Bowl Classic, W 17–14 vs. Nebraska | |
| Conference | Southwest Conference |
| Ranking | |
| Coaches | No. 5 |
| AP | No. 5 |
| Record | 11–1 (7–1 SWC) |
| Head coach |
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| Offensive scheme | Houston Veer |
| Defensive coordinator | Don Todd (8th season) |
| Captains |
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| Home stadium | Houston Astrodome |
| 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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The Cougars finished the season with a record of 11–1. Their only loss was at home to the eighth-ranked Texas Longhorns, 21–13. Houston was invited to the 1980 Cotton Bowl Classic, played on New Year's Day, where they defeated seventh-ranked Nebraska. Houston finished ranked fifth in both major final polls.
Schedule
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 8 | at UCLA* | No. 16 | W 24–16 | 40,008 | [2] | ||
| September 15 | Florida* | No. 13 | W 14–10 | 33,851–34,432 | [3] | ||
| September 29 | West Texas State* | No. 8 |
| W 49–10 | 27,080 | [4] | |
| October 6 | Baylor | No. 6 |
| W 13–10 | 37,142 | [5] | |
| October 13 | at Texas A&M | No. 7 | W 17–14 | 59,545 | [6] | ||
| October 20 | SMU | No. 5 |
| W 37–10 | 43,409 | [7] | |
| October 27 | at No. 4 Arkansas | No. 6 | ABC | W 13–10 | 43,319 | [8] | |
| November 3 | at TCU | No. 4 | W 21–10 | 25,412 | [9] | ||
| November 10 | No. 8 Texas | No. 5 |
| L 13–21 | 53,650 | [10] | |
| November 23 | Texas Tech | No. 9 |
| ABC | W 14–10 | 25,637 | [11] |
| December 1 | at Rice | No. 10 |
| W 63–0 | 27,800 | [12] | |
| January 1 | vs. No. 7 Nebraska* | No. 8 | CBS | W 17–14 | 72,032 | [13] | |
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Game summaries
at UCLA
vs Florida
vs West Texas State
vs Baylor
at Texas A&M
vs SMU
at Arkansas
Game Seven – No. 6 Houston Cougars (6–0) at No. 4 Arkansas Razorbacks (6–0) – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. 6 Cougars | 7 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 13 |
| No. 4 Razorbacks | 3 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
at Razorback Stadium • Fayetteville, Arkansas
- Date: October 27, 1979
- Game time: 11:30 a.m. CDT
- Game attendance: 43,319
- TV announcers (ABC): Keith Jackson (play-by-play), Ara Parseghian (color commentator) and Bill Flemming (sideline reporter)
| Game information |
|---|
No scoring plays
|
| Statistics | HOU | ARK |
|---|---|---|
| First downs | ||
| Total yards | ||
| Rushing yards | ||
| Passing yards | ||
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | ||
| Time of possession | ||
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
|---|---|---|---|
| Houston | Passing | ||
| Rushing | |||
| Receiving | |||
| Arkansas | Passing | ||
| Rushing | |||
| Receiving |
at TCU
vs Texas
Game Nine – No. 8 Texas Longhorns (6–1) at No. 5 Houston Cougars (8–0) – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. 8 Longhorns | 7 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 21 |
| No. 5 Cougars | 3 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 13 |
| Game information |
|---|
No scoring plays
|
| Statistics | TEX | HOU |
|---|---|---|
| First downs | ||
| Total yards | ||
| Rushing yards | ||
| Passing yards | ||
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | ||
| Time of possession | ||
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
|---|---|---|---|
| Texas | Passing | ||
| Rushing | |||
| Receiving | |||
| Houston | Passing | ||
| Rushing | |||
| Receiving |
vs Texas Tech
Game Ten – Texas Tech Red Raiders (3–5–2) at No. 9 Houston Cougars (8–1) – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Red Raiders | 3 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 10 |
| No. 9 Cougars | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 14 |
at Houston Astrodome • Houston, Texas
- Date: November 23, 1979
- Game time: 2:00 p.m. CST
- Game attendance: 25,637
- TV announcers (ABC): Verne Lundquist (play-by-play) and Steve Davis (color commentator)
| Game information |
|---|
No scoring plays
|
| Statistics | TTU | HOU |
|---|---|---|
| First downs | ||
| Total yards | ||
| Rushing yards | ||
| Passing yards | ||
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | ||
| Time of possession | ||
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
|---|---|---|---|
| Texas Tech | Passing | ||
| Rushing | |||
| Receiving | |||
| Houston | Passing | ||
| Rushing | |||
| Receiving |
at Rice
vs Nebraska—Cotton Bowl Classic
1980 Cotton Bowl Classic: No. 7 Nebraska Cornhuskers (10–1) vs No. 8 Houston Cougars (10–1) – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. 7 Cornhuskers | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
| No. 8 Cougars | 0 | 7 | 0 | 10 | 17 |
at Cotton Bowl • Dallas, Texas
- Date: January 1, 1980
- Game time: 1:00 p.m. CST
- Game attendance: 72,032
- Referee: Robert Aillet (SEC)
- TV announcers (CBS): Lindsey Nelson (play-by-play – 1st quarter), Frank Glieber (sideline reporter – 1st quarter; play-by-play – 2nd thru 4th quarters) and Paul Hornung (color commentator)
| Game information |
|---|
No scoring plays
|
| Statistics | NEB | HOU |
|---|---|---|
| First downs | ||
| Total yards | ||
| Rushing yards | ||
| Passing yards | ||
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | ||
| Time of possession | ||
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nebraska | Passing | ||
| Rushing | |||
| Receiving | |||
| Houston | Passing | ||
| Rushing | |||
| Receiving |
Roster
| 1979 Houston Cougars football team roster | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Players | Coaches | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Offense
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Defense
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Special teams
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