American college football season
The 1978 Arizona State Sun Devils football team was an American football team that represented Arizona State University in the Pacific-10 Conference (Pac-10) during the 1978 NCAA Division I-A football season . In their 21st season under head coach Frank Kush , the Sun Devils compiled a 9–3 record (4–3 against Pac-10 opponents), finished in a tie for fourth place in the Pac-10, and outscored their opponents by a combined total of 347 to 236.[ 1] [ 2]
The team's statistical leaders included Mark Malone with 1,305 passing yards and 705 rushing yards and Chris DeFrance with 617 receiving yards.[ 3]
Date Opponent Rank Site Result Attendance Source September 9 Pacific (CA) * W 42–769,527 [ 4] September 16 BYU * Sun Devil Stadium Tempe, AZ W 24–1770,311 [ 5] September 23 at Washington State L 26–5133,507 [ 6] September 30 UTEP * Sun Devil Stadium Tempe, AZ W 27–069,497 [ 7] October 7 Northwestern * W 56–1417,009 [ 8] October 14 No. 2 USC Sun Devil Stadium Tempe, AZ W 20–770,138 [ 9] October 28 Washington No. 12 L 7–4154,866 [ 10] November 4 California Sun Devil Stadium Tempe, AZ W 35–2170,876 [ 11] November 11 Stanford Sun Devil Stadium Tempe, AZ L 14–2151,000 [ 12] November 18 at Oregon State W 44–2223,500 [ 13] November 25 Arizona W 18–1758,090 [ 14] December 16 vs. Rutgers * W 34–1833,402 [ 15] *Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
[ 16]
1 2 3 4 Total USC 0 0 0 7 7 • Arizona St 0 3 14 3 20
Date: October 14Location: Sun Devil StadiumGame attendance: 71,138 Scoring summary Q2 ASU Hicks 40 yard field goal ASU 3–0 Q3 ASU Malone 1 yard run (Hicks kick) ASU 10–0 Q3 ASU Mistler 16 yard pass from Malone (Hicks kick) ASU 17–0 Q4 ASU Hicks 28 yard field goal ASU 20–0 Q4 USC Garcia 31 yard pass from McDonald (Jordan kick) ASU 20–7
[ 17]
Mark Malone threw a pair of touchdown passes and Bill Zivic's 45-yard field goal attempt missed wide left in the final seconds to secure the Sun Devil victory.[ 18]
Garden State Bowl: Arizona State Sun Devils vs. Rutgers Scarlet Knights
Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total Arizona St 0 7 14 13 34 Rutgers 10 0 0 8 18
at Giants Stadium , East Rutherford, NJ
MVP: John Mistler
Scoring summary Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP ASU RU 1 Rutgers Dorn 47-yard touchdown run, Startzell kick good 0 7 1 Rutgers 46-yard field goal by Startzell 0 10 2 Arizona St Weathers 14-yard touchdown reception from Malone, Hicks kick good 7 10 3 Arizona St Mistler 26-yard touchdown reception from Malone, Hicks kick good 14 10 3 Arizona St DeFrance 53-yard touchdown reception from Malone, Hicks kick good 21 10 4 Arizona St Malone 1-yard touchdown run, Hicks kick good 28 10 4 Rutgers Blackwell 5-yard touchdown run, 2-point pass good 28 18 4 Arizona St Malone 4-yard touchdown run, kick no good 34 18 "TOP" = time of possession . For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football . 34 18
1978 Arizona State Sun Devils football team roster Players Coaches Offense Defense Special teams Head coach Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt
^ "1978 Arizona State Sun Devils Schedule and Results" . SR/College Football . Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved October 26, 2016 . ^ "2016 ASU Football Media Guide" . Arizona State University. 2016. p. 123. Archived from the original on October 25, 2016. Retrieved October 27, 2016 . ^ "1978 Arizona State Sun Devils Stats" . SR/College Football . Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved October 26, 2016 . ^ "Malone spearheads ASU" . The Oregonian . September 10, 1978. Retrieved October 23, 2024 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "Sun Devils stop BYU" . The Salt Lake Tribune . September 17, 1978. Retrieved October 19, 2024 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "Throwin' Samoan drills Devils, 51–26" . The Arizona Republic . September 24, 1978. Retrieved October 23, 2024 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "A-State blanks Miners" . The Arizona Daily Star . October 1, 1978. Retrieved October 19, 2024 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "Sun Devils hammer winless Northwestern" . The Sioux City Journal . October 8, 1978. Retrieved October 23, 2024 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "Arizona State shocks USC, 20–7" . The Blade-Tribune . October 15, 1978. Retrieved October 23, 2024 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "Tyler scores 2 TDs as tough Huskie defense buries Wildcats" . The Fresno Bee . October 29, 1978. Retrieved October 23, 2024 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "Arizona State stymies Bears" . The Modesto Bee . November 5, 1978. Retrieved October 23, 2024 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "Nelson injured as Cards beat ASU" . Oakland Tribune . November 12, 1978. Retrieved October 23, 2024 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "Devils bury Beavers 44–22" . The Spokesman-Review . November 19, 1978. Retrieved October 23, 2024 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "Arizona St. nips Arizona" . The Patriot-News . November 26, 1978. Retrieved October 23, 2024 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "Arizona State stymies Rutgers" . The Star-Ledger . December 17, 1978. Retrieved October 23, 2024 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "1978 Arizona State Sun Devils Schedule and Results" . SR/College Football . Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved October 23, 2024 . ^ "Devils' first Pacific-10 win shocks USC." Eugene Register-Guard. 1978 Oct 15. Retrieved 2017-Oct-09. ^ 10 Memorable Sun Devil Performances in the Territorial Cup Rivalry . Retrieved 2018-Dec-25.
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