1979 West Virginia Mountaineers football team

The 1979 West Virginia Mountaineers football team represented West Virginia University in the 1979 NCAA Division I-A football season. It was the Mountaineers' 87th overall season and they competed as a Division I-A Independent. The team was led by head coach Frank Cignetti Sr., in his fourth year, and played their final season of home games at Mountaineer Field in Morgantown, West Virginia. They finished the season with a record of five wins and six losses (5–6 overall).

1979 West Virginia Mountaineers football
Conference	Independent
Record	5–6
Head coach	Frank Cignetti Sr. (4th season)
Defensive coordinator	Gary Tranquill (1st season)
Home stadium	Mountaineer Field
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

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 8	Temple	Mountaineer Field Morgantown, WV	L 16–38	34,299	[1]
September 15	vs. Syracuse	Giants Stadium East Rutherford, NJ (rivalry)	L 14–24	10,375	[2]
September 22	No. 19 NC State	Mountaineer Field Morgantown, WV	L 14–38	26,298	[3]
September 29	at Richmond	City Stadium Richmond, VA	W 20–18	17,500	[4]
October 6	Kentucky	Mountaineer Field Morgantown, WV	W 10–6	33,792	[5]
October 13	at Boston College	Alumni Stadium Chestnut Hill, MA	W 20–18	21,640	[6]
October 20	Tulane	Mountaineer Field Morgantown, WV	W 27–17	28,303	[7]
October 27	at Penn State	Beaver Stadium University Park, PA (rivalry)	L 6–31	77,923	[8]
November 3	Virginia Tech	Mountaineer Field Morgantown, WV (rivalry)	W 34–23	27,531	[9]
November 10	No. 12 Pittsburgh	Mountaineer Field Morgantown, WV (rivalry)	L 17–24	38,681	[10]
November 17	at Arizona State	Sun Devil Stadium Tempe, AZ	L 7–42	68,573	[11]
Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Roster

1979 West Virginia Mountaineers football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class QB 10 Oliver Luck So RB 31 Robert Alexander Jr FB 45 Walter Easley Jr G 83 Mike Durrette Jr	Defense Pos. # Name Class DB 27 Jerry Holmes Sr DB 40 Fulton Walker Jr LB 50 Dennis Fowlkes Fr LB 90 Darryl Talley Fr DT 91 Todd Campbell Fr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class	Head coach Frank Cignetti Sr. Coordinators/assistant coaches Nick Saban Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

References

1. "Temple routs sloppy W. Va. in second half". The Philadelphia Inquirer. September 9, 1979. Retrieved January 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
2. "Hurley hurt as Syracuse rolls to win". Democrat and Chronicle. September 16, 1979. Retrieved January 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
3. "QB Smith gets Pack past WVU". Durham Sunday Herald. September 23, 1979. Retrieved January 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
4. "West Virginia edges Richmond". The Daily News Leader. September 30, 1979. Retrieved October 28, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Sub back de-claws Wildcats". The Sunday Courrier & Press. October 7, 1979. Retrieved January 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "West Virginia rallies by BC". Daily Press. October 14, 1979. Retrieved January 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
7. "Mountaineers upset Green Wave, 27–17". The Daily Advertiser. October 21, 1979. Retrieved January 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
8. "West Virginia beaten, 31–6, by Penn State". The Des Moines Register. October 28, 1979. Retrieved January 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "Jekyll–Hyde West Virginia rallies for 34–23 win over Virginia Tech". The Pittsburgh Press. November 4, 1979. Retrieved December 15, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
10. "Pitt holds on to beat W. Va". The Sunday News. November 11, 1979. Retrieved January 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "Arizona State rolls past West Virginia". The Arizona Republic. November 18, 1979. Retrieved January 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.