CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

1979 Pittsburgh

11–⁠1, coached by Jackie Sherrill, finished No. 7 in the AP poll.

Schedule and results

Pittsburgh in 1979, game by game: won vs. Kansas 24–0; lost at North Carolina 7–17; won at Temple 10–9; won vs. Boston College 28–7; won vs. Cincinnati 35–0; won at No. 12 Washington 26–14; won vs. No. 17 Navy 24–7; won vs. Syracuse 28–21; won at West Virginia 24–17; won at Army 40–0; won at No. 19 Penn State 29–14; won vs. Arizona 16–10+40−10Won 24–0 vs. Kansas+24KansasLost 7–17 at North Carolina-10North CarolinaWon 10–9 at Temple+1TempleWon 28–7 vs. Boston College+21Boston CollegeWon 35–0 vs. Cincinnati+35CincinnatiWon 26–14 at No. 12 Washington+12No. 12 WashingtonWon 24–7 vs. No. 17 Navy+17No. 17 NavyWon 28–21 vs. Syracuse+7SyracuseWon 24–17 at West Virginia+7West VirginiaWon 40–0 at Army+40ArmyWon 29–14 at No. 19 Penn State+15No. 19 Penn StateWon 16–10 vs. Arizona+6Arizona
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below; orange marks an upset win.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 15vsKansasW 24–⁠082%
Sep 22atNorth CarolinaL 7–⁠1752%
Sep 29atTempleW 10–⁠944%
Oct 6vsBoston CollegeW 28–⁠783%
Oct 13vsCincinnatiW 35–⁠073%
Oct 20at12WashingtonW 26–⁠1439%
Oct 27vs17NavyW 24–⁠763%
Nov 3vsSyracuseW 28–⁠2176%
Nov 10atWest VirginiaW 24–⁠1774%
Nov 17atArmyW 40–⁠086%
Dec 1at19Penn StateW 29–⁠1444%
Dec 25Bowls & playoffvsArizonaFiesta BowlW 16–⁠1076%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Beat Arizona 16–⁠10 in the Fiesta Bowl; No. 7 in the final AP poll.

In program history: The 8th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 128 on file).

AP poll, week by week

  1. Wk 1: 17
  2. Wk 2: 16
  3. Wk 3: 13
  4. Wk 7: 17
  5. Wk 8: 12
  6. Wk 9: 12
  7. Wk 10: 12
  8. Wk 11: 11
  9. Wk 12: 11
  10. Wk 13: 11
  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 1979.

Consensus All-AmericanHugh Green, DE

Record
11–⁠1
Conference
—
AP final
No. 7 peak No. 7
Points
291–⁠116
Coach
Jackie Sherrill
Elo
1739 +141 this season
SP+ rating
22.7 No. 11 of 135; offense No. 31, defense No. 4
SRS
19.5 No. 11 of 140 in Division I-A
Recruiting class
—
Offensive coordinator
Wally English
Defensive coordinator
Foge Fazio
Offense
West Coast
Defense
Multiple front

Drafted in 1980

The 1980 draft
Rd 6Jo Jo Heath DBCincinnati Bengals