1979 Missouri Tigers football team

The 1979 Missouri Tigers football team was an American football team that represented the University of Missouri in the Big Eight Conference (Big 8) during the 1979 NCAA Division I-A football season. The team compiled a 7–5 record (3–4 against Big 8 opponents), finished in fourth place in the Big 8, and was outscored by opponents by a combined total of 260 to 166. Warren Powers was the head coach for the second of seven seasons.^[1][2] The team played its home games at Faurot Field in Columbia, Missouri.

1979 Missouri Tigers football
Hall of Fame Classic, W 24–14 vs. South Carolina
Conference	Big Eight Conference
Ranking
Coaches	No. 20
Record	7–5 (3–4 Big 8)
Head coach	Warren Powers (2nd season)
Defensive coordinator	Carl Reese (3rd season)
Home stadium	Memorial Stadium
Seasons ← 1978 1980 →

1979 Big Eight Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 3 Oklahoma $	7	–	0	–	0			11	–	1	–	0
No. 9 Nebraska	6	–	1	–	0			10	–	2	–	0
Oklahoma State	5	–	2	–	0			7	–	4	–	0
Missouri	3	–	4	–	0			7	–	5	–	0
Colorado	2	–	5	–	0			3	–	8	–	0
Iowa State	2	–	5	–	0			3	–	8	–	0
Kansas	2	–	5	–	0			3	–	8	–	0
Kansas State	1	–	6	–	0			3	–	8	–	0
$ – Conference champion Rankings from AP Poll

The team's statistical leaders included James Wilder with 645 rushing yards, Phil Bradley with 1,448 passing yards and 1,764 yards of total offense, Andy Gibler with 316 receiving yards, and Gerry Ellis with 54 points scored.^[3]

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 8	San Diego State*	No. 12	Faurot Field Columbia, MO	W 45–15	62,168	[4]
September 15	at Illinois*	No. 11	Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL (rivalry)	W 14–6	49,049	[5][6]
September 22	at Ole Miss*	No. 9	Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Jackson, MS	W 33–7	46,000	[7]
September 29	No. 4 Texas*	No. 5	Faurot Field Columbia, MO	L 0–21	75,136	[8]
October 13	Oklahoma State	No. 15	Faurot Field Columbia, MO	L 13–14	66,003	[9]
October 20	at Colorado		Folsom Field Boulder, CO	W 13–7	51,123	[10]
October 27	Kansas State		Faurot Field Columbia, MO	L 3–19	70,029	[11]
November 3	No. 2 Nebraska		Faurot Field Columbia, MO (rivalry)	L 20–23	74,575	[12]
November 10	at Iowa State		Cyclone Stadium Ames, IA (rivalry)	W 18–9	46,800	[13]
November 17	No. 7 Oklahoma		Faurot Field Columbia, MO (rivalry)	L 22–24	69,973	[14]
November 24	at Kansas		Memorial Stadium Lawrence, KS (Border War)	W 55–7	34,599	[15]
December 29	vs. No. 16 South Carolina*		Legion Field Birmingham, AL (Hall of Fame Classic)	W 24–14	62,785	[16]
*Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Personnel

1979 Missouri Tigers football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class WR 82 Ken Blair Jr QB 15 Phil Bradley Jr C 55 Brad Edelman So RB 43 Gerry Ellis Sr WR 8 Ron Fellows Jr WR 83 Andy Gibler Fr RB 32 James Wilder Jr	Defense Pos. # Name Class LB 34 Lester Dickey Jr DB 29 Demetrious Johnson Fr DE 88 Kurt Peterson Sr CB 9 Johnnie Poe Jr SS 18 Kevin Potter Fr DE 90 Wendell Ray Jr DT 56 Jerome Sally So DT 92 Bennie Smith So DE 96 Ray Stephens Jr CB 30 Bill Whitaker Jr FS 21 Eric Wright Jr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class K 3 Jeff Brockhaus Jr K 1 Ron Verrilli	Head coach Warren Powers Coordinators/assistant coaches Mike Price – Quarterback/wide receiver Billy Thornton – Running backs Dick Beechner – Tight ends/special teams coordinator John Faiman – Offensive line Carl Reese – Defensive coordinator George Wheeler – Defensive tackles Zaven Yaralian – Defensive backs Mark Heydorff – Assistant Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

References

1. "1979 Missouri Tigers Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved November 12, 2016.
2. "2016 Mizzou Football Media Guide" (PDF). University of Missouri. p. 158. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 10, 2016. Retrieved November 12, 2016.
3. "2014 Mizzou Football Records Book" (PDF). University of Missouri. pp. 26–27. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 28, 2018. Retrieved November 12, 2016.
4. "1979: A Fleeting Taste of the Big-Time (Part One)". Retrieved December 8, 2016.
5. Richardson, Steve (September 16, 1979). "MU Defense Saves Day At Goal Line". The Kansas City Star. Kansas City, Missouri. p. 1S. Retrieved March 4, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .
6. Richardson, Steve (September 16, 1979). "Running of Ellis Puts Tigers in Gear (continued)". The Kansas City Star. Kansas City, Missouri. p. 9S. Retrieved March 4, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .
7. "Mizzou defeats Ole Miss, 33–7". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. September 23, 1979. Retrieved October 30, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
8. "No. 5 Mizzou draws blanks against Texas". The Spokesman-Review. September 30, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "Missouri falls, 14–13". Wisconsin State Journal. October 14, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
10. "Defense gives Missouri triumph". Springfield News-Leader. October 21, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "Kansas State defense shackles Missouri, 19–3". The Sioux City Journal. October 28, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
12. "Nebraska wins as Mizzou gamble fails". St. Joseph News-Press. November 4, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
13. "Verrilli kicks Mizzou to life, 18–9". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. November 11, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
14. "Sooners escape Missouri". St. Petersburg Times. November 18, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
15. "KU turnovers give Tigers easy victory". The Salina Journal. November 25, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
16. "Missouri topples Gamecocks 24–14". The Kansas City Star. December 30, 1979. Retrieved January 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.