1979 Houston Cougars football team American college football season
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.
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 24–1640,008 [ 2]
September 15 Florida * No. 13 W 14–1033,851–34,432 [ 3]
September 29 West Texas State * No. 8 Houston Astrodome Houston, TX W 49–1027,080 [ 4]
October 6 Baylor No. 6 Houston Astrodome Houston, TX (rivalry ) W 13–1037,142 [ 5]
October 13 at Texas A&M No. 7 W 17–1459,545 [ 6]
October 20 SMU No. 5 Houston Astrodome Houston, TX (rivalry ) W 37–1043,409 [ 7]
October 27 at No. 4 Arkansas No. 6 ABC W 13–1043,319 [ 8]
November 3 at TCU No. 4 W 21–1025,412 [ 9]
November 10 No. 8 Texas No. 5 Houston Astrodome Houston, TX L 13–2153,650 [ 10]
November 23 Texas Tech No. 9 Houston Astrodome Houston, TX (rivalry ) ABC W 14–1025,637 [ 11]
December 1 at Rice No. 10 W 63–027,800 [ 12]
vs. No. 7 Nebraska * No. 8 CBS W 17–1472,032 [ 13]
*Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
Roster
1979 Houston Cougars football team roster
Players
Coaches
Offense
Defense
Special teams
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
Legend
(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
Injured
Redshirt
References
^ "1979 Houston Cougars Schedule and Results" .
^ "Houston whips UCLA 24–16 with 2nd-half comeback" . The Sunday Oregonian . September 9, 1979. Retrieved October 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com .
^ "Backup Elston guides slumbering Coogs past Florida" . Fort Worth Star-Telegram . September 16, 1979. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .
^ "Coogs maul West Texas" . Victoria Advocate . September 30, 1979. Retrieved May 2, 2021 – via Newspapers.com .
^ "UH outscraps Bears 13–10" . Fort Worth Star-Telegram . October 7, 1979. Retrieved October 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com .
^ "7th-ranked Cougars beat A&M" . The Paris News . October 14, 1979. Retrieved October 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com .
^ "Houston first quarter dumps Ponies, 37–10" . The Odessa American . October 21, 1979. Retrieved October 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com .
^ "Houston edges Arkansas" . Tallahassee Democrat . October 28, 1979. Retrieved October 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com .
^ "No. 4 Houston passes over TCU" . Fort Myers News-Press . November 4, 1979. Retrieved October 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com .
^ "Longhorns stick Cougars with loss" . Syracuse Herald-Journal . November 11, 1979. Retrieved October 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com .
^ "Houston rallies to pin 14–10 loss on Texas Tech" . The Patriot-News . November 24, 1979. Retrieved October 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com .
^ "Houston annihilates Rice, gets Cotton" . The Victoria Advocate . December 2, 1979. Retrieved October 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com .
^ "Houston gets help from above in Cotton Bowl win over Nebraska" . Rapid City Journal . January 2, 1980. Retrieved October 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com .
Venues Bowls and rivalries Culture & lore People Seasons
National championships in bold