American college football season
The 1979 NC State Wolfpack football team represented the North Carolina State Wolfpack during the 1979 NCAA Division I-A football season . The team's head coach was Bo Rein . NC State has been a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) since the league's inception in 1953. The Wolfpack played its home games in 1979 at Carter–Finley Stadium in Raleigh, North Carolina , which has been NC State football's home stadium since 1966. NC State won the 1979 ACC Championship with a record of 5–1 in conference play. At season's end the Wolfpack did not play in a bowl game, having declined an invitation to play in the Garden State Bowl . As of 2022, the 1979 NC State team is the last bowl-eligible Power Five conference champion to not play in a bowl game.
Rein accepted the head coaching position at LSU on November 30, 1979. He never coached a game in Baton Rouge , perishing January 10, 1980 when the private aircraft he was traveling in flew well off course and crashed into the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Virginia .
Schedule [ edit ] Date Opponent Rank Site TV Result Attendance Source September 8 East Carolina * W 34–2053,400 [1] September 15 Virginia No. 19 Carter–Finley Stadium Raleigh, NC W 31–2745,800 [2] September 22 at West Virginia * No. 19 W 38–1426,298 [3] September 29 Wake Forest No. 16 Carter–Finley Stadium Raleigh, NC (rivalry ) W 17–1444,800 [4] October 6 at Auburn * No. 14 L 31–4451,146 [5] October 13 Maryland No. 17 Carter–Finley Stadium Raleigh, NC W 7–039,800 [6] October 20 No. 19 North Carolina No. 15 Carter–Finley Stadium Raleigh, NC (rivalry ) ABC L 21–3554,200 [7] October 27 at Clemson W 16–1361,412 [8] [9] November 3 at South Carolina * L 28–3056,409 [10] November 10 Penn State * Carter–Finley Stadium Raleigh, NC L 7–951,200 [11] November 17 at Duke W 28–724,100 [12] *Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
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1979 NC State Wolfpack football team roster Players Coaches Offense Defense Pos. # Name Class LB 53 Robert Abraham So DB 14 Jeff Culler Jr LB 32 Marion Gale Sr DT 91 Bubba Green Jr DT 90 Simon Gupton Sr LB 59 Joe Hannah Sr LB 96 David Horning Jr DB 26 Ronnie Lee Jr DB 42 Donnie LeGrande Jr LB 43 Dann Lute So DB 16 Mike Nell Sr DT 95 Brian O'Doherty Sr DT 93 Dennis Owens So DL 73 John Stanton Sr
Special teams Pos. # Name Class P 17 John Isley Sr
Head coach Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt
References [ edit ] ^ "Wolfpack comeback topples ECU" . The News and Observer . September 9, 1979. Retrieved March 4, 2021 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "Cavaliers push State's Wolfpack" . The Daily News Leader . September 16, 1979. Retrieved January 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "QB Smith gets Pack past WVU" . Durham Sunday Herald . September 23, 1979. Retrieved January 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "Wolfpack stops Deacons" . Florence Morning News . September 30, 1979. Retrieved January 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "Auburn rolls by Wolfpack" . The News and Observer . October 7, 1979. Retrieved October 30, 2023 – via Newspapers.com . ^ " 'Wham-bam-oof,' State runs over Maryland 7–0" . The Roanoke Times . October 14, 1979. Retrieved January 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "Tar Heels subdue Wolfpack" . Winston-Salem Journal . October 21, 1979. Retrieved January 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "Clemson Football Media Guide - 1980" . Clemson University . 1980. p. 2. Retrieved November 10, 2023 . ^ " 'Pack edges Tigers, 16–13" . The Sun-News . October 28, 1979. Retrieved January 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "Rogers, USC outrun 'Pack" . The Greenville News . November 4, 1979. Retrieved January 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "Menhardt's late field goal lifts Penn State by 'Pack" . Daily Press . November 11, 1979. Retrieved January 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "Wolfpack pounds Duke, wins title" . The Chapel Hill News . November 18, 1979. Retrieved January 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "1979 North Carolina State Wolfpack Schedule and Results | College Football at Sports-Reference.com" . sports-reference.com . Retrieved October 9, 2017 .
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National championships in bold