1979 Southern Illinois
8–3 (4–1 Missouri Valley Conference), coached by Rey Dempsey. Share
Schedule and results
- Biggest winBeat Wichita State 31–7Oct 13
By 24 points, its widest win.
| Date | Opponent | Result | Elo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 1 | atWest Texas | L 0–14 | 44% |
| Sep 8 | vs Louisiana | W 17–7 | 57% |
| Sep 15 | at Tennessee State | W 18–16 | 38% |
| Sep 22 | at Arkansas State | L 16–24 | 35% |
| Sep 29 | vs Eastern Illinois | L 14–22 | 87% |
| Oct 6 | vs Illinois State | W 7–0 | 73% |
| Oct 13 | vsWichita State | W 31–7 | 71% |
| Oct 27 | at Northern Illinois | W 21–11 | 48% |
| Nov 3 | vs Indiana State | W 41–38 | 62% |
| Nov 10 | at Drake | W 22–21 | 61% |
| Nov 17 | vs New Mexico State | W 45–28 | 78% |
Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.
How it ended: Beat New Mexico State 45–28; unranked in the final AP poll; 3rd in the Missouri Valley Conference.
In program history: The 10th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 62 on file).
- Record
- 8–3
- Conference
- 4–1 3rd in Missouri Valley Conference
- AP final
- Unranked
- Points
- 232–188
- Coach
- Rey Dempsey
- Elo
- 1466 +32 this season
- SP+ rating
- -6.7 No. 101 of 135; offense No. 92, defense No. 88
- SRS
- −5.9 No. 92 of 140 in Division I-A
- Recruiting class
- —
Drafted in 1980
The 1980 draft| Rd 2 | Kevin House WR | Tampa Bay Buccaneers |
1979 Missouri Valley Conference standings
| Team | Conf. | Overall | AP final |
|---|---|---|---|
| West Texas | 5–0 | 5–5–1 | |
 Tulsa | 2–0 | 6–5 | |
 Southern Illinois | 4–1 | 8–3 | |
| Indiana State | 3–2 | 8–3 | |
| Drake | 1–4 | 3–8 | |
| New Mexico State | 1–5 | 2–9 | |
| Wichita State | 1–5 | 1–10 |
Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.