1978 Yale Bulldogs football team

1978 Yale Bulldogs football
Conference	Ivy League
Record	5–2–2 (4–1–2 Ivy)
Head coach	Carmen Cozza (14th season)
Home stadium	Yale Bowl
Seasons ←  1977 1979  →

1978 Ivy League football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
Dartmouth $	6	–	1	–	0			6	–	3	–	0
Brown	5	–	2	–	0			6	–	3	–	0
Yale	4	–	1	–	2			5	–	2	–	2
Cornell	3	–	3	–	1			5	–	3	–	1
Harvard	2	–	4	–	1			4	–	4	–	1
Columbia	2	–	4	–	1			3	–	5	–	1
Princeton	1	–	4	–	2			2	–	5	–	2
Penn	1	–	5	–	1			2	–	6	–	1
$ – Conference champion

The 1978 Yale Bulldogs football team represented Yale University in the 1978 NCAA Division I-A football season. The Bulldogs were led by 14th-year head coach Carmen Cozza, played their home games at the Yale Bowl and finished in third place in the Ivy League with a 4–1–2 record, 5–2–2 overall. ^[1]

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 23	at Brown	Brown Stadium Providence, RI	W 21–0	15,812	[2]
September 30	Connecticut *	Yale Bowl New Haven, CT	W 21–7	23,431	[3]
October 7	Rutgers *	Yale Bowl New Haven, CT	L 27–28	21,000	[4]
October 14	at Dartmouth	Memorial Field Hanover, NH	L 3–10	17,500	[5]
October 21	Columbia	Yale Bowl New Haven, CT	T 3–3	19,000	[6]
October 28	at Penn	Franklin Field Philadelphia, PA	T 17–17	15,980	[7]
November 4	Cornell	Yale Bowl New Haven, CT	W 42–14	23,000	[8]
November 6	Princeton	Yale Bowl New Haven, CT (rivalry)	W 23–7	32,000	[9]
November 13	at Harvard	Harvard Stadium Boston, MA (rivalry)	W 35–28	41,500	[10]
*Non-conference game

NFL draft

Main article: 1979 NFL draft

The following Bulldog was selected in the National Football League draft following the season. ^[11]

Round	Pick	Player	Position	NFL Team
9	245	John Spagnola	TE	New England Patriots

References

1. "1978 Yale Bulldogs Schedule and Results". Sports Reference. Retrieved November 26, 2017.
2. Roberts, Ernie (September 24, 1978). "Poised Yale Defeats Brown, 21-0". Boston Sunday Globe . Boston, Mass. p. 66 – via Newspapers.com.
3. Visser, Lesley (October 1, 1978). "Yale Holds Off Tough UConn". Boston Sunday Globe . Boston, Mass. p. 51 – via Newspapers.com.
4. Eisenberg, Harry (October 8, 1978). "Yale Misses, Rutgers Wins, 28-27". Boston Sunday Globe . Boston, Mass. p. 82 – via Newspapers.com.
5. Roberts, Ernie (October 15, 1978). "Dartmouth Rebounds, Stuns Yale, 10-3". Boston Sunday Globe . Boston, Mass. p. 58 – via Newspapers.com.
6. Strong, Roger (October 22, 1978). "Columbia Misses Kick, Ties Yale". Boston Sunday Globe . Boston, Mass. p. 64 – via Newspapers.com.
7. Strong, Roger (October 29, 1978). "Late Yale Rally Ties Penn, 17-17". Boston Sunday Globe . Boston, Mass. p. 52 – via Newspapers.com.
8. Ahern, John (November 5, 1978). "QBs Ramble, Yale Crushes Cornell, 42-14". Boston Sunday Globe . Boston, Mass. p. 63 – via Newspapers.com.
9. Strong, Roger (November 12, 1978). "Yale Passes Princeton". Boston Sunday Globe . Boston, Mass. p. 48 – via Newspapers.com.
10. Concannon, Joe (November 19, 1978). "Yale Has Final Say over Harvard, 35-28". Boston Sunday Globe . Boston, Mass. p. 41 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "1979 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved July 11, 2025.