1979 LSU Tigers football team

1979 LSU Tigers football
Tangerine Bowl, W 34–10 vs. Wake Forest
Conference	Southeastern Conference
Record	7–5 (4–2 SEC)
Head coach	Charles McClendon (18th season)
Home stadium	Tiger Stadium

1979 Southeastern Conference football standings

	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 1 Alabama $	6	–	0	–	0			12	–	0	–	0
Georgia	5	–	1	–	0			6	–	5	–	0
No. 16 Auburn	4	–	2	–	0			8	–	3	–	0
LSU	4	–	2	–	0			7	–	5	–	0
Tennessee	3	–	3	–	0			7	–	5	–	0
Kentucky	3	–	3	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Ole Miss	3	–	3	–	0			4	–	7	–	0
Mississippi State	2	–	4	–	0			3	–	8	–	0
Vanderbilt	0	–	6	–	0			1	–	10	–	0
Florida	0	–	6	–	0			0	–	10	–	1
$ – Conference champion Rankings from AP Poll

The 1979 LSU Tigers football team represented Louisiana State University (LSU) during the 1979 NCAA Division I-A football season. Under head coach Charles McClendon, the Tigers had a record of 7–5 with a Southeastern Conference record of 4–2. It was McClendon's 18th and final season as head coach at LSU.

Bo Rein, who led NC State to the 1979 Atlantic Coast Conference championship, was hired six days after the regular season finale, but McClendon and his staff coached the Tangerine Bowl vs. Wake Forest. Rein perished in a bizarre plane crash January 10, 1980, only 42 days after his hiring and was succeeded by former LSU All-American Jerry Stovall.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result
September 15	at Colorado*		Folsom Field Boulder, CO		W 44–0
September 22	Rice*		Tiger Stadium Baton Rouge, LA		W 47–3
September 29	No. 1 USC*	No. 20	Tiger Stadium Baton Rouge, LA		L 12–17
October 6	Florida	No. 17	Tiger Stadium Baton Rouge, LA (rivalry)		W 20–3
October 13	at Georgia	No. 13	Sanford Stadium Athens, GA		L 14–21
October 20	Kentucky		Tiger Stadium Baton Rouge, LA		W 23–19
October 27	No. 8 Florida State*		Tiger Stadium Baton Rouge, LA	ABC	L 19–24
November 3	at Ole Miss		Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Jackson, MS (rivalry)		W 28–24
November 10	No. 1 Alabama		Tiger Stadium Baton Rouge, LA (rivalry)		L 0–3
November 17	Mississippi State		Tiger Stadium Baton Rouge, LA (rivalry)		W 21–3
November 24	at No. 18 Tulane*		Louisiana Superdome New Orleans, LA (Battle for the Rag)	ABC	L 13–24
December 22	vs. Wake Forest*		Orlando Stadium Orlando, FL (Tangerine Bowl)	Mizlou	W 34–10
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from Coaches' Poll released prior to the game

Roster

1979 LSU Tigers football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class WR 3 Carlos Carson Sr QB 5 Steve Ensminger Sr QB 7 Alan Risher Fr QB 8 David Woodley Sr RB 9 LeRoid Jones Sr WR 21 Tracy Porter Jr WR 32 Orlando McDaniel So TE 89 Greg LaFleur Jr	Defense Pos. # Name Class CB 11 James Britt So S 22 Chris Williams Jr CB 37 Willie Teal Sr LB 51 Albert Richardson Fr DE 86 John Adams Sr LB 94 Lyman White Jr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class	Head coach Charles McClendon Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt Roster