The 1979 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team represented the University of Notre Dame during the 1979 NCAA Division I-A football season . The Irish finished unranked in both major polls for the first time since 1963 .
Schedule
Date Time Opponent Rank Site TV Result Attendance September 15 3:20 p.m. at No. 6 Michigan No. 9 ABC W 12–10105,111
September 22 2:30 p.m. at No. 17 Purdue No. 5 L 22–2870,567
September 29 2:30 p.m. No. 7 Michigan State No. 15 W 27–359,075
October 6 2:30 p.m. Georgia Tech No. 10 Notre Dame Stadium South Bend, IN W 21–1359,075
October 13 3:30 p.m. at Air Force No. 10 W 38–1334,881
October 20 12:50 p.m. No. 4 USC No. 9 ABC L 23–4259,075
October 27 2:30 p.m. South Carolina No. 14 Notre Dame Stadium South Bend, IN W 18–1759,075
November 3 1:30 p.m. Navy No. 13 Notre Dame Stadium South Bend, IN (rivalry ) W 14–059,075
November 10 1:30 p.m. at Tennessee No. 13 L 18–4086,489
November 17 1:30 p.m. No. 14 Clemson Notre Dame Stadium South Bend, IN L 10–1659,075
November 24 11:00 p.m. vs. Miami (FL) W 40–1562,574
[1]
Roster
1979 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team roster
Players
Coaches
Offense
Defense
Special teams
Pos.
#
Name
Class
P
Dick Boushka
K
Chuck Male
Sr
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
Legend
(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
Injured
Redshirt
Game summaries
at Michigan
Game information
First quarter
MICH – Bryan Virgil 30-yard field goal, 7:31. Michigan 3–0. Drive: 10 plays, 84 yards.
ND – Chuck Male 40-yard field goal. Tie 3–3. Drive:
Second quarter
MICH – Stan Edwards 1-yard run (Bryan Virgil kick), 10:48. Michigan 10–3. Drive: 13 plays, 80 yards, 6:39.
ND – Chuck Male 40-yard field goal, 4:48. Michigan 10–6. Drive:
Third quarter
ND – Chuck Male 22–yard field goal. Michigan 10–9. Drive:
ND – Chuck Male 39-yard field goal. Notre Dame 12–10. Drive:
Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
Bob Crable (10 tackles) leaped to block the potential-game winning field in the final seconds.
[2]
at Purdue
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(December 2020 )
Michigan State
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(December 2020 )
Georgia Tech
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(December 2020 )
at Air Force
1
2 3 4 Total
• Notre Dame
10
21 0 7
38
Air Force
0
7 6 0
13
Scoring summary Q1 ND Ferguson 5 yard run (Male kick) ND 7–0
Q1 ND Male 43 yard field goal ND 10–0
Q2 ND Lisch 1 yard run (Male kick) ND 17–0
Q2 AFA James 1 yard run (Sturch kick) ND 17–7
Q2 ND Vehr 2 yard pass from Lisch (Male kick) ND 24–7
Q2 ND Ferguson 23 yard run (Male kick) ND 31–7
Q3 AFA Schafer 2 yard pass from Ziebart (run failed) ND 31–13
Q4 ND Hunter 75 yard pass from Lisch (Male kick) ND 38–13
[3]
USC
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(December 2020 )
South Carolina
A football gifted by the Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team to President
Gerald Ford , commemorating their 18–17 victory over
South Carolina on October 27.
Navy
1
2 3 4 Total
Navy
0
0 0 0
0
• Notre Dame
7
0 0 7
14
Date: November 3Location: Notre Dame StadiumGame attendance: 59,075
Scoring summary Q1 ND Lisch 1 yard run (Male kick) ND 7–0
Q4 ND Ferguson 3 yard run (Male kick) ND 14–0
ND: Ferguson 34 Rush, 155 Yds (first player in school history with 3,000 career rushing yards)
[4]
at Tennessee
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(December 2020 )
Clemson
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(December 2020 )
vs. Miami (FL)
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(December 2020 )
Team players in the NFL
References
Venues Bowls and rivalries Culture and lore People Seasons National championship seasons in bold