1979 Virginia Cavaliers football team

The 1979 Virginia Cavaliers football team represented the University of Virginia during the 1979 NCAA Division I-A football season. The Cavaliers were led by fourth-year head coach Dick Bestwick and played their home games at Scott Stadium in Charlottesville, Virginia. They competed as members of the Atlantic Coast Conference, finishing in sixth.

1979 Virginia Cavaliers football
Conference	Atlantic Coast Conference
Record	6–5 (1–4 ACC)
Head coach	Dick Bestwick (4th season)
Captain	Steve Potter, Michael Newhall[1]
Home stadium	Scott Stadium
Seasons ← 1978 1980 →

1979 Atlantic Coast Conference football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
NC State $	5	–	1	–	0			7	–	4	–	0
Clemson	4	–	2	–	0			8	–	4	–	0
Maryland	4	–	2	–	0			7	–	4	–	0
Wake Forest	3	–	2	–	0			8	–	4	–	0
No. 15 North Carolina	3	–	3	–	0			8	–	3	–	1
Virginia	1	–	4	–	0			6	–	5	–	0
Duke	0	–	6	–	0			2	–	8	–	1
$ – Conference champion Rankings from AP Poll

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 8	Richmond*	Scott Stadium Charlottesville, VA	W 31–0	29,673	[2]
September 15	at No. 19 NC State	Carter–Finley Stadium Raleigh, NC	L 27–31	45,800	[3]
September 22	VMI*	Scott Stadium Charlottesville, VA	W 19–0	24,872	[4]
September 29	Duke	Scott Stadium Charlottesville, VA	W 30–12	26,947	[5]
October 6	at Clemson	Memorial Stadium Clemson, SC	L 7–17	62,310	[6][7]
October 13	James Madison*	Scott Stadium Charlottesville, VA	W 69–9	18,447	[8]
October 20	at No. 20 Navy*	Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium Annapolis, MD	L 10–17	22,604	[9]
November 3	at Georgia*	Sanford Stadium Athens, GA	W 31–0	59,100	[10]
November 10	Virginia Tech*	Scott Stadium Charlottesville, VA (rivalry)	W 20–18	38,847	[11]
November 17	North Carolina	Scott Stadium Charlottesville, VA (rivalry)	L 7–13	31,472	[12]
November 24	at Maryland	Byrd Stadium College Park, MD (rivalry)	L 7–17	26,071	[13]
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

^[14][15]

Roster

1979 Virginia Cavaliers football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class RB 22 Ken Tomey Jr QB 22 Hayden Martin Jr TE 22 Chris Hardin Jr RG 22 Curtis Maxwell Jr TE 22 Walter Pittson Jr WR 22 Winston Parsons Jr WR 22 Tim Thompson Jr	Defense Pos. # Name Class SS 31 Tony Blount Sr LB 22 Mark Simpson Jr Sa 22 Lucas Horton Jr LT 22 Clyde Robertson Jr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class Pu 22 Steve Thompson Jr KR 38 Gary Suttle So	Head coach Dick Bestwick Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

References

1. "2017 Cavalier Football Fact Book" (PDF). Virginia Cavaliers Athletics. p. 122. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 28, 2017. Retrieved June 11, 2018.
2. "Taylor-led Cavaliers smash Spiders 31–0". Richmond Times-Dispatch. September 9, 1979. Retrieved October 28, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
3. "Cavaliers push State's Wolfpack". The Daily News Leader. September 16, 1979. Retrieved January 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
4. "Virginia blanks Keydets". The News and Observer. September 23, 1979. Retrieved February 2, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Taylor, Vigorito lead Virginia to 30–12 win". Richmond Times-Dispatch. September 30, 1979. Retrieved January 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "Clemson Football Media Guide - 1980". Clemson University. 1980. p. 2. Retrieved November 10, 2023.
7. "Clemson defense leaves Virginia 0-for-forever". The Charlotte Observer. October 7, 1979. Retrieved January 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
8. "Cavs trample Madison, 69–9". Durham Morning Herald. October 14, 1979. Retrieved March 10, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "Late drive lifts Navy over Cavs". Winston-Salem Journal. October 21, 1979. Retrieved January 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
10. "Virginia shocks Vince Dooley's Bulldogs 31–0". The Roanoke Times. November 4, 1979. Retrieved October 30, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "Two-point conversion fails, UVA trips VPI". Daily Press. November 11, 1979. Retrieved December 15, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
12. "Tar Heels defeat Cavaliers, 13–7". The Sun-News. November 18, 1979. Retrieved January 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
13. "Terps rope Cavs, 17–7". Bristol Herald Courier. November 25, 1979. Retrieved January 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
14. "1979 Virginia Cavaliers Schedule and Results". Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 11, 2018.
15. "All-Time Virginia Box Score Game Statistics". Virginia Cavaliers Official Athletic Site. Retrieved June 5, 2021.