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1978 Notre Dame

9–⁠3, coached by Dan Devine, finished No. 7 in the AP poll.

Schedule and results

Notre Dame in 1978, game by game: lost vs. Missouri 0–3; lost vs. No. 5 Michigan 14–28; won vs. Purdue 10–6; won at Michigan State 29–25; won vs. No. 9 Pittsburgh 26–17; won at Air Force 38–15; won vs. Miami 20–0; won vs. No. 11 Navy 27–7; won vs. Tennessee 31–14; won at No. 20 Georgia Tech 38–21; lost at No. 3 USC 25–27; won vs. No. 9 Houston 35–34+23−14Lost 0–3 vs. Missouri-3MissouriLost 14–28 vs. No. 5 Michigan-14No. 5 MichiganWon 10–6 vs. Purdue+4PurdueWon 29–25 at Michigan State+4Michigan StateWon 26–17 vs. No. 9 Pittsburgh+9No. 9 PittsburghWon 38–15 at Air Force+23Air ForceWon 20–0 vs. Miami+20MiamiWon 27–7 vs. No. 11 Navy+20No. 11 NavyWon 31–14 vs. Tennessee+17TennesseeWon 38–21 at No. 20 Georgia Tech+17No. 20 Georgia TechLost 25–27 at No. 3 USC-2No. 3 USCWon 35–34 vs. No. 9 Houston+1No. 9 Houston
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below; orange marks an upset win.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 9vsMissouriL 0–⁠377%
Sep 23vs5MichiganL 14–⁠2859%
Sep 30vsPurdueW 10–⁠672%
Oct 7atMichigan StateW 29–⁠2558%
Oct 14vs9PittsburghW 26–⁠1750%
Oct 21atAir ForceW 38–⁠1585%
Oct 28vsMiamiW 20–⁠083%
Nov 4vs11NavyW 27–⁠761%
Nov 11vsTennesseeW 31–⁠1485%
Nov 18at20Georgia TechW 38–⁠2162%
Nov 25at3USCL 25–⁠2742%
Jan 1Bowls & playoffvs9HoustonCotton BowlW 35–⁠3457%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Beat Houston 35–⁠34 in the Cotton Bowl; No. 7 in the final AP poll.

In program history: The 27th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 131 on file).

AP poll, week by week

  1. Wk 1: 5
  2. Wk 2: 15
  3. Wk 3: 14
  4. Wk 7: 20
  5. Wk 8: 19
  6. Wk 9: 15
  7. Wk 10: 14
  8. Wk 11: 10
  9. Wk 12: 8
  10. Wk 13: 10
  11. Wk 14: 10
  12. Final: 7

Players on this team

Before 2004 our records hold honors and the draft; these are the players whose college years here, from their Wikipedia articles or their honors, include 1978.

2 consensus All-AmericansDave Huffman, C; Bob Golic, LB

Record
9–⁠3
Conference
—
AP final
No. 7 peak No. 5
Points
293–⁠197
Coach
Dan Devine
Elo
1749 +55 this season
SP+ rating
29.1 No. 3 of 133; offense No. 8, defense No. 5
SRS
20.1 No. 12 of 138 in Division I-A
Recruiting class
—
Offensive coordinator
Merv Johnson
Captains
Bob Golic, Jerome Heavens and Joe Montana
Most valuable player
Joe Montana
Offense
Pro set
Defense
4–⁠3

Drafted in 1979

The 1979 draft
Rd 2Dave Huffman CMinnesota Vikings
Rd 2Bob Golic DTNew England Patriots
Rd 3Joe Montana QBSan Francisco 49ers