1979 San Jose State Spartans football | |
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Conference | Pacific Coast Athletic Association |
Record | 3–8, 3 wins forfeited, 1 tie forfeited (2–3 PCAA, 2 wins forfeited) |
Head coach |
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Offensive coordinator | Dennis Erickson (1st season) |
Home stadium | Spartan Stadium |
Conf. | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Utah State $ | 5 | – | 0 | – | 0 | 8 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Long Beach State | 3 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 7 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Fresno State | 3 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Cal State Fullerton | 2 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 4 | – | 7 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
San Jose State | 2 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 3 | – | 8 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Pacific (CA) | 0 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 3 | – | 7 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The 1979 San Jose State Spartans football team represented San Jose State University during the 1979 NCAA Division I-A football season as a member of the Pacific Coast Athletic Association. [note 1] The team was led by first year head coach Jack Elway. They played home games at Spartan Stadium in San Jose, California.
The Spartans finished the 1979 season as co-champions of the PCAA, with a record of six wins, four losses and one tie (6–4–1, 4–0–1 PCAA). However, in December 1979 the PCAA ruled that the Spartans had used an ineligible player in seven of their games. As a result, the team's co-championship of the conference was vacated, and the record was adjusted to 3–8 (2–3 PCAA). [1]
Date | Opponent | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | Source |
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September 8 | Utah State | L 48–48 (forfeit) | 10,782 | [2] [3] | ||
September 15 | at Stanford * | L 29–45 | 46,789 | [4] | ||
September 22 | at California * | ABC | L 10–13 | 35,000 | [5] | |
September 29 | at Arizona * | L 18–38 | 48,061 | [6] | ||
October 6 | Cal State Fullerton ![]() |
| L 23–0 (forfeit) | 10,900 | [7] [8] | |
October 13 | at Fresno State | L 35–22 (forfeit) | 11,789 | [9] | ||
October 20 | at Oregon State * | L 24–14 (forfeit) | 11,000 | [10] | ||
October 27 | at Long Beach State | W 53–42 | 6,428 | [11] | ||
November 10 | Pacific (CA) |
| W 32–31 | 11,700 | [12] | |
November 16 | Santa Clara * |
| W 23–14 | [13] | ||
November 24 | Central Michigan * |
| L 32–34 | 10,424 | [14] | |
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The following were selected in the 1980 NFL draft. [17]
Player | Position | Round | Overall | NFL team |
Jewerl Thomas | Running back | 3 | 58 | Los Angeles Rams |
Ed Luther | Quarterback | 4 | 101 | San Diego Chargers |
The following finished their San Jose State career in 1979, were not drafted, but played in the NFL. [18]
Player | Position | First NFL team |
Derrick Martin | Defensive back | 1987 San Francisco 49ers |
Eric Hurt | Defensive back | 1980 Dallas Cowboys |
Jim Walsh | Running back | 1980 Seattle Seahawks |