1979 Tangerine Bowl
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| 1979 Tangerine Bowl | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Date | December 22, 1979 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Season | 1979 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Stadium | Orlando Stadium | ||||||||||||||||||
| Location | Orlando, Florida | ||||||||||||||||||
| MVP | David Woodley, LSU (overall)[1] Jerry Murphree, LSU (offensive)[1] Benjy Thibodeaux, LSU (defensive)[1] | ||||||||||||||||||
| Attendance | 38,666[1] | ||||||||||||||||||
| Payout | US$150,000 per school[1] | ||||||||||||||||||
The 1979 Tangerine Bowl was an American college football bowl game that was played on December 22, 1979 at Orlando Stadium in Orlando, Florida. The game matched the LSU Tigers against the Wake Forest Demon Deacons.[2] It was the final contest of the 1979 NCAA Division I-A football season for both teams. The game ended in a 34–10 victory for the Tigers.[3]
The game matched the LSU Tigers of the Southeastern Conference against the Wake Forest Demon Deacons of the Atlantic Coast Conference. The Tigers had a conference record of 4–2 and the Demon Decons had a conference record of 3–2. The game was the first bowl game featuring the Tigers and the Demon Deacons, and was their third overall meeting. LSU led the series 2–0 heading into the game.
The teams' first meeting was in 1960, when the Tigers defeated the Demon Deacons 16–0. The teams also played in 1978, with LSU prevailing 13-11 at Baton Rouge.
LSU entered the matchup looking to end a four-game bowl skid, dating to a 33-15 decision over Iowa State in the 1971 Sun Bowl.
Finale for "Cholly Mac"
The game was the last for LSU coach Charles McClendon, who was stepping down after 18 seasons at the helm of the Bayou Bengals. Bo Rein was named McClendon's successor 22 days prior to the bowl.
Ironically, Rein coached North Carolina State to victory over Wake Forest en route to the 1979 ACC championship. The Wolfpack, however, did not play in a bowl game, while three other ACC teams which finished below NC State (Wake Forest, Clemson and North Carolina), did.
McClendon had been at LSU since 1955. He was defensive coordinator under Paul Dietzel from 1955–61, helping the Tigers win the national championship in 1958. Dietzel left to coach Army following the 1961 season.
In 1978, Dietzel returned to LSU as its athletic director. He was fired in February 1982 after the LSU Board of Supervisors discovered gross financial mismanagement within the school's athletic department under Dietzel's watch.