1979 LSU Tigers football team

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

1979 SEC football standings
	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
#1 Alabama †	6	–	0	–	0			12	–	0	–	0
Georgia	5	–	1	–	0			6	–	5	–	0
#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.

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 (Magnolia Bowl)		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 Carson, CarlosCarlos Carson 7.0 !Sr QB 6 Ensminger, SteveSteve Ensminger 7.0 !Sr QB 7 Risher, AlanAlan Risher 1.0 !Fr QB 8 Woodley, DavidDavid Woodley 7.0 !Sr RB 9 Jones, LeRoidLeRoid Jones 7.0 !Sr WR 21 Porter, TracyTracy Porter 5.0 !Jr WR 32 McDaniel, OrlandoOrlando McDaniel 3.0 !So TE 89 LaFleur, GregGreg LaFleur 5.0 !Jr	Defense Pos. # Name Class CB 11 Britt, JamesJames Britt 3.0 !So S 22 Williams, ChrisChris Williams 5.0 !Jr CB 37 Teal, WillieWillie Teal 7.0 !Sr LB 51 Richardson, AlbertAlbert Richardson 1.0 !Fr DE 86 Adams, JohnJohn Adams 7.0 !Sr LB 94 White, LymanLyman White 5.0 !Jr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class	Head coach Charles McClendon Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt Roster