CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

1978 VMI

3–⁠8 (0–⁠3 Southern Conference), coached by Bob Thalman.

Schedule and results

VMI in 1978, game by game: lost at William & Mary 3–10; won vs. Bucknell 25–14; lost at The Citadel 3–14; won at Virginia 17–9; lost vs. East Carolina 6–19; won at Richmond 23–6; lost vs. Lehigh 10–14; lost vs. Western Carolina 12–41; lost at No. 13 Georgia 3–41; lost vs. App State 10–31; lost at Virginia Tech 2–28+17−38Lost 3–10 at William & Mary-7William & MaryWon 25–14 vs. Bucknell+11BucknellLost 3–14 at The Citadel-11The CitadelWon 17–9 at Virginia+8VirginiaLost 6–19 vs. East Carolina-13East CarolinaWon 23–6 at Richmond+17RichmondLost 10–14 vs. Lehigh-4LehighLost 12–41 vs. Western Carolina-29Western CarolinaLost 3–41 at No. 13 Georgia-38No. 13 GeorgiaLost 10–31 vs. App State-21App StateLost 2–28 at Virginia Tech-26Virginia Tech
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 9atWilliam & MaryL 3–⁠1039%
Sep 16vsBucknellW 25–⁠1490%
Sep 23atThe CitadelL 3–⁠1451%
Sep 30atVirginiaW 17–⁠960%
Oct 7vsEast CarolinaL 6–⁠1940%
Oct 14atRichmondW 23–⁠646%
Oct 21vsLehighL 10–⁠1479%
Oct 28vsWestern CarolinaL 12–⁠4168%
Nov 4at13GeorgiaL 3–⁠4119%
Nov 11vsApp StateL 10–⁠3159%
Nov 18atVirginia TechL 2–⁠2834%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Lost to Virginia Tech 28–⁠2; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 6th in the Southern Conference.

In program history: The 65th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 118 on file).

Record
3–⁠8
Conference
0–⁠3 tied for 6th in Southern Conference
AP final
Unranked
Points
114–⁠227
Coach
Bob Thalman
Elo
1322 −157 this season
SP+ rating
-16.2 No. 119 of 133; offense No. 132, defense No. 83
SRS
−14.9 No. 121 of 138 in Division I-A
Recruiting class
—

1978 Southern Conference standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Furman5–⁠18–⁠3
Chattanooga3–⁠17–⁠3–⁠1
App State4–⁠27–⁠4
Western Carolina4–⁠26–⁠5
The Citadel2–⁠35–⁠6
VMI0–⁠33–⁠8
Marshall0–⁠51–⁠10
Davidson0–⁠10–⁠1

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.