# 1979 BYU Cougars football team

The 1979 BYU Cougars football team represented Brigham Young University (BYU) for the 1979 NCAA Division I-A football season. The Cougars were led by eighth-year head coach LaVell Edwards and played their home games at Cougar Stadium in Provo, Utah. The team competed as a member of the Western Athletic Conference, winning the conference title for the fourth consecutive year with a conference record of 7–0. BYU finished the regular season with an undefeated record of 11–0. BYU was invited to the 1979 Holiday Bowl, where they lost to Indiana. They were ranked 13th in the final AP Poll and 12th in the final Coaches Poll.

## Schedule

| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 8 | at No. 14 Texas A&M* | | Rice StadiumHouston, TX | | W 18–17 | 40,000 |
| September 15 | Weber State* | | Cougar StadiumProvo, UT | | W 48–3 | 33,161 |
| September 29 | UTEP | | Cougar StadiumProvo, UT | | W 31–7 | 34,724 |
| October 5 | Hawaii | No. 20 | Cougar StadiumProvo, UT | | W 38–15 | 34,741 |
| October 13 | at Utah State* | No. 16 | Romney StadiumLogan, UT | | W 48–24 | 28,094 |
| October 20 | at Wyoming | No. 13 | War Memorial StadiumLaramie, WY | | W 54–14 | 14,723 |
| October 27 | New Mexico | No. 11 | Cougar StadiumProvo, UT | | W 59–7 | 33,921 |
| November 3 | at Colorado State | No. 11 | Hughes StadiumFort Collins, CO | | W 30–7 | 25,612 |
| November 9 | at Long Beach State* | No. 11 | Anaheim StadiumAnaheim, CA | | W 31–17 | 20,051 |
| November 17 | Utah | No. 10 | Cougar StadiumProvo, UT | | W 27–0 | 40,236 |
| November 24 | at San Diego State | No. 10 | San Diego StadiumSan Diego, CA | ABC | W 63–14 | 46,121 |
| December 21 | vs. Indiana* | No. 9 | San Diego StadiumSan Diego, CA (Holiday Bowl) | | L 37–38 | 52,500 |
| *Non-conference gameRankings from AP Poll released prior to the game ||||||||

## Game summaries
### Vs. Texas A&M

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| BYU | 0 | 3 | 7 | 8 | 18 |
| Texas A&M | 7 | 0 | 7 | 3 | 17 |
at Rice Stadium, Houston, Texas
* Date: September 8, 1979
* Game attendance: 40,000
* Box Score
Game information :
First quarter
A&M – David Brothers 1-yard run (David Hardy kick). Texas A&M 7–0.
Second quarter
BYU – Brent Johnson 27-yard field goal. Texas A&M 7–3.
Third quarter
A&M – Mike Mosley 7-yard run (David Hardy kick). Texas A&M 14–3.
BYU – Dan Plater 20-yard pass from Marc Wilson (Brent Johnson kick). Texas A&M 14–10.
Fourth quarter
A&M – David Hardy 37-yard field goal. Texas A&M 17–16.
BYU – Clay Brown 3-yard pass from Marc Wilson (pass good), 0:52. BYU 18–17.
Top passers
BYU – Marc Wilson – 17/35, 165 yards, 2 TD, 3 INT
A&M – Mike Mosley – 9/13, 125 yards
Top rushers
BYU – Homer Jones – 7 rushes, 53 yards
A&M – Curtis Dickey – 28 rushes, 148 yards
Top receivers
BYU – Dan Plater – 3 receptions, 49 yards, TD
A&M – Gerald Carter – 6 receptions, 104 yards :
The game was played at Rice Stadium because Kyle Field was being renovated.
QB Marc Wilson had undergone an emergency appendectomy and had lost weight during the week of the game.
The defense carried the offense that was still finding its rhythm with a blocked punt and a goal line stand. The ailing Wilson drove BYU down the field to score with 52 seconds left to pull within 17–16. Coach Edwards let the team decide whether to go for the tie or the win and they chose the latter. The attempt was converted and BYU put itself in the national spotlight with a major upset.

### Utah

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Utah | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| • BYU | 17 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 27 |
Marc Wilson threw for 374 yards as BYU clinched at least a share of the WAC title and set up a showdown with San Diego State for the following week. Wilson set an NCAA record for the most passing yards against a single opponent in two games and tied Rice's Tommy Kramer 1976 record for 300-yard passing games in a season with seven.

### Game 12: Holiday Bowl (vs. Indiana)

Marc Wilson 28/43, 380 yards, 2 TD, TD rushing