1979 Nevada Wolf Pack football team

American college football season

1979 Nevada Wolf Pack football
NCAA Division I-AA Semifinal, L 30–33 vs. Eastern Kentucky
Conference	Big Sky Conference
Record	8–4 (5–2 Big Sky)
Head coach	Chris Ault (4th season)
Defensive coordinator	John L. Smith (3rd season)
Home stadium	Mackay Stadium
Seasons← 1978 1980 →

1979 Big Sky Conference football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
Boise State *	7	–	0	–	0	10	–	1	–	0
No. 9 Montana State $	6	–	1	–	0	6	–	4	–	0
No. 5 Nevada ^	5	–	2	–	0	8	–	4	–	0
No. T–10 Northern Arizona	3	–	4	–	0	7	–	4	–	0
Weber State	3	–	4	–	0	3	–	8	–	0
Idaho	2	–	5	–	0	4	–	7	–	0
Montana	2	–	5	–	0	3	–	7	–	0
Idaho State	0	–	7	–	0	0	–	11	–	0

$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant * – Boise State was on probation Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA AP Poll

The 1979 Nevada Wolf Pack football team represented the University of Nevada, Reno as a member of the Big Sky Conference during the 1979 NCAA Division I-AA football season. Led by fourth-year head coach Chris Ault, the Wolf Pack compiled an overall record of 8–4 with a mark of 5–2 in conference play, placing third in the Big Sky. Nevada advanced to the NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship playoffs, where the Wolf Pack lost in the semifinals to the evenutal national champion, Eastern Kentucky. The team played home games at Mackay Stadium in Reno, Nevada.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result	Attendance
September 8	Idaho State		Mackay Stadium Reno, NV	W 24–6	11,766
September 15	UNLV*		Mackay Stadium Reno, NV (Fremont Cannon)	L 21–26	12,751
September 22	at UC Davis*	No. T–10	Toomey Field Davis, CA	W 28–21
October 6	Simon Fraser*	No. 10	Mackay Stadium Reno, NV	W 35–10	9,425
October 13	Montana State	No. T–8	Mackay Stadium Reno, NV	L 10–12	9,215
October 20	Weber State		Wildcat Stadium Ogden, UT	W 22–3	9,362
October 27	at Montana		Dornblaser Field Missoula, MT	W 27–20	5,163
November 3	at Idaho		Kibbie Dome Moscow, ID	W 38–26	5,500
November 10	Boise State	No. T–10	Mackay Stadium Reno, NV (rivalry)	L 27–28	14,256
November 17	Missouri Southern*	No. 8	Mackay Stadium Reno, NV	W 32–6	7,020
November 24	at No. T–7 Northern Arizona	No. T–7	NAU Skydome Flagstaff, AZ	W 31–7
December 8	at No. 3 Eastern Kentucky*	No. 5	Hanger Field Richmond, KY (NCAA Division I-AA Semifinal)	L 30–33	5,100
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from Associated Press Poll released prior to the game

Roster

1979 Nevada Wolf Pack football team roster

Players

Coaches

Offense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
QB	`12`	Larry Wortman	Sr
RB	`27`	Frank Hawkins	Jr
OL	`78`	Eric Sanders	Jr

Defense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
DT	`77`	Don Smerek	Sr
DE	`83`	Charles Mann	Fr

Special teams

Pos.	#	Name	Class

Head coach

Chris Ault

Coordinators/assistant coaches

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible

Injured
Redshirt

References

"Hawkins sets rushing record in 24–6 victory". Nevada State Journal. September 9, 1979. Retrieved September 12, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
"Rebels win Cannon". Nevada State Journal. September 16, 1979. Retrieved September 12, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
"UN–Reno overcomes UCD 28–21". The Sacramento Bee. September 23, 1979. Retrieved September 12, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
"Wolfpack devours Clansmen". The Province. October 7, 1979. Retrieved September 12, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
"Montana State nips Nevada–Reno". The Arizona Republic. October 14, 1979. Retrieved September 12, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
"Nevada–Reno coasts to victory". The Idaho Statesman. October 21, 1979. Retrieved September 12, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
"Nevada–Reno stops Grizzlies". The Daily Inter Lake. October 28, 1979. Retrieved September 12, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
Killen, John (November 3, 1979). "Vandals". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). p. 1C.
Emerson, Paul (November 4, 1979). "High rollers". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). p. 8D.
"Wolf Pack gamblers crap out". Nevada State Journal. November 11, 1979. Retrieved September 12, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
"Nevada–Reno rips Missouri Southern". The Grand Island Independent. November 18, 1979. Retrieved September 12, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
"Hawkins gives NAU the axe". The Billings Gazette. November 25, 1979. Retrieved September 12, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
"Flores' overtime kick helps Eastern nip Reno". The Courier-Journal. December 9, 1979. Retrieved September 12, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.

v t e Nevada Wolf Pack football
Venues	Evans Field (1896–1905) Mackay Field and Stadium (I) (1915–1965) Mackay Stadium (1966–present)
Bowls & rivalries	Bowl games Boise State UNLV (Fremont Cannon)
Culture & lore	Alphie and Wolfie Jr. KTHX-FM
People	Head coaches NFL draftees Statistical leaders
Seasons	1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906–1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025

‹ The template below (1979 Division I-AA football playoff navbox) is being considered for deletion. See templates for discussion to help reach a consensus. ›

v t e 1979 NCAA Division I-AA football playoff participants
Eastern Kentucky Lehigh Murray State Nevada
Champion – Eastern Kentucky Colonels

Categories: