1979 Air Force Falcons football team

The 1979 Air Force Falcons football team represented the United States Air Force Academy in the 1979 NCAA Division I-A football season, their last as an Independent. Led by first–year head coach Ken Hatfield, Air Force played home games at Falcon Stadium in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

1979 Air Force Falcons football
Conference	Independent
Record	2–9
Head coach	Ken Hatfield (1st season)
Offensive scheme	Wishbone triple option
Defensive coordinator	Al Groh (2nd season)
Base defense	3–4
Home stadium	Falcon Stadium
Seasons ← 1978 1980 →

1979 NCAA Division I-A independents football records

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 6 Florida State		–		–				11	–	1	–	0
No. 7 Pittsburgh		–		–				11	–	1	–	0
UNLV		–		–				9	–	1	–	2
No. 17 Temple		–		–				10	–	2	–	0
Tulane		–		–				9	–	3	–	0
Rutgers		–		–				8	–	3	–	0
Tennessee State		–		–				8	–	3	–	0
East Carolina		–		–				7	–	3	–	1
No. 20 Penn State		–		–				8	–	4	–	0
South Carolina		–		–				8	–	4	–	0
Navy		–		–				7	–	4	–	0
Notre Dame		–		–				7	–	4	–	0
Southern Miss		–		–				6	–	4	–	1
Syracuse		–		–				7	–	5	–	0
Colgate		–		–				5	–	4	–	1
Boston College		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Holy Cross		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Memphis State		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Miami (FL)		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
North Texas State		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Villanova		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Virginia Tech		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
West Virginia		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Georgia Tech		–		–				4	–	6	–	1
Louisville		–		–				4	–	6	–	1
William & Mary		–		–				4	–	7	–	0
Illinois State		–		–				3	–	8	–	0
Northeast Louisiana		–		–				3	–	8	–	0
Army		–		–				2	–	8	–	1
Air Force		–		–				2	–	9	–	0
Cincinnati		–		–				2	–	9	–	0
Richmond		–		–				0	–	11	–	0
Rankings from AP Poll

The Falcons lost their first eight games,^[1] then won two of three to finish at 2–9,^[2] and were outscored 127–253. The win over Army on November 3 broke an eleven-game losing streak.^[1]

Air Force joined the Western Athletic Conference in 1980.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 8	Tulsa	Falcon Stadium Colorado Springs, CO	L 7–24	23,000	[3]
September 15	at Wisconsin	Camp Randall Stadium Madison, WI	L 0–38	66,466	[4]
September 22	Illinois	Falcon Stadium Colorado Springs, CO	L 19–27	18,178	[5]
September 29	Kansas State	Falcon Stadium Colorado Springs, CO	L 6–19	22,200	[6]
October 6	at Navy	Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium Annapolis, MD (Commander-in-Chief's Trophy)	L 7–24	31,109	[7]
October 13	No. 10 Notre Dame	Falcon Stadium Colorado Springs, CO (rivalry)	L 13–38	34,881	[8]
October 20	at Oregon	Autzen Stadium Eugene, OR	L 9–17	28,457	[9]
October 27	at Colorado State	Hughes Stadium Fort Collins, CO (rivalry)	L 6–20	21,104	[10]
November 3	Army	Falcon Stadium Colorado Springs, CO (Commander-in-Chief's Trophy)	W 28–7	30,334	[11]
November 10	at Georgia Tech	Grant Field Atlanta, GA	L 0–21	30,113	[12]
November 17	Vanderbilt	Falcon Stadium Colorado Springs, CO	W 30–29	15,619	[13]
Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

^[14]

Roster

1979 Air Force Falcons football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class	Defense Pos. # Name Class S 17 Johnny Jackson So	Special teams Pos. # Name Class	Head coach Ken Hatfield (1st year) Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

References

1. "Falcons rip rival Army for first win". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). wire services. November 4, 1979. p. 11B.
2. "Air Force 30, Vanderbilt 28". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). wire services. November 18, 1979. p. 13B.
3. "Tulsa Hurricane blows Air Force Falcons away". The Kansas City Star. September 9, 1979. Retrieved October 25, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
4. "Badger attack grounds Air Force, 38–0". The Post-Crescent. September 16, 1979. Retrieved October 25, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Holmes leads Illinois by Air Force, 27–19". The Pantagraph. September 23, 1979. Retrieved October 25, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "Brown leads K-State past Air Force, 19–6". The Salina Journal. September 30, 1979. Retrieved October 25, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
7. "Navy stops Air Force". The Odessa American. October 7, 1979. Retrieved October 25, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
8. "Notre Dame routs Air Force, 38–13". The Kokomo Tribune. October 14, 1979. Retrieved October 25, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "Two late Oregon TDs sink Air Force, 17–9". The Knoxville News-Sentinel. October 21, 1979. Retrieved October 25, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
10. "CSU Rams batter Air Force". San Angelo Standard-Times. October 28, 1979. Retrieved October 19, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "Air Force flies past Army, 28–7". The Fresno Bee. November 4, 1979. Retrieved October 25, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
12. "Georgia Tech runs to 21–0 over Air Force". The Selma Times-Journal. November 11, 1979. Retrieved July 25, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
13. "Vandy loses on EP kick with :00 left". The Knoxville News-Sentinel. November 18, 1979. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
14. "1979 Air Force Falcons Schedule and Results". Sports-Reference. Retrieved November 21, 2017.