1979 Central State Bronchos football team

American college football season

1979 Central State Bronchos football
NAIA Division I Championship, L 14–20 vs. Texas A&I
Conference	Independent
Record	11–2
Head coach	Gary Howard (3rd season)
Home stadium	Wantland Stadium
Seasons← 19781980 →

1979 NAIA Division I independents football records
v t e	Conf			Overall
Team	W	L	T	W		L		T
Liberty Baptist		–		9	–	1	–	1
No. 5 Central State (OK) ^		–		11	–	2	–	0
Kentucky State		–		6	–	5	–	0
Wofford		–		5	–	5	–	0
Guilford		–		4	–	5	–	0
Eastern New Mexico		–		4	–	6	–	0
Cameron		–		3	–	7	–	0
Langston		–		1	–	8	–	0

^ – NAIA Division I playoff participant Rankings from NAIA Division I poll

The 1979 Central State Bronchos football team represented Central State University (OK) (now University of Central Oklahoma) during the 1979 NAIA Division I football season, and completed the 74th season of Broncho football. The Bronchos played their home games at Wantland Stadium in Edmond, Oklahoma, which has been Central's home stadium since 1965. The 1979 team returned to the NAIA after a brief stint in NCAA Division II. The 1979 team was led by coach Gary Howard in his third season. The team finished the regular season with a 9–1 record and made the program's third appearance in the NAIA playoffs after and first since 1972. The Bronchos advanced to the National Championship Game where they lost to the Texas A&I Javelinas 20–14.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result
September 8	Evangel		Wantland Stadium Edmond, OK	W 55–0
September 15	Southwestern Oklahoma State		Wantland Stadium Edmond, OK	W 28–0
September 22	at Northwestern Oklahoma State		Ranger Field Alva, OK	W 49–0
September 29	at East Texas State		Memorial Stadium Commerce, TX	W 17–6
October 6	at East Central		Norris Field Ada, OK	W 35–28
October 20	Eastern New Mexico		Wantland Stadium Edmond, OK	W 20–0
October 27	at Cameron		Cameron Stadium Lawton, OK	W 35–14
November 3	vs. Langston		Taft Stadium Oklahoma City, OK	W 48–6
November 10	at Northeastern State		Gable Field Tahlequah, OK (rivalry)	L 14–22
November 17	Texas Lutheran	No. 5	Wantland Stadium Edmond, OK	W 30–20
December 1	at No. 3 Kearney State	No. 5	Foster Field Kearney, NE (NAIA quarterfinal)	W 42–22
December 8	No. 1 Presbyterian	No. 5	Wantland Stadium Edmond, OK (NAIA Semifinal)	W 28–6
December 15	vs. No. 2 Texas A&I	No. 5	McAllen, TX (NAIA Championship, Palm Bowl)	L 14–20
Rankings from Coaches' Poll released prior to the game

After the season

Honors

The NAIA recognized running back, Steve Tate, center Kirk Condry, and quarter back Scott Burger as second team All-Americans.

NFL draft

Main article: 1980 NFL draft

The following Broncho was selected in the National Football League draft following the season.

Round	Pick	Player	Position	NFL team
11	299	Terry Jones	Defensive end	Tampa Bay Buccaneers

References

"Chad Richison Stadium". University of Central Oklahoma athletics. July 19, 2023.
"1979 Football Schedule". University of Central Oklahoma athletics. Retrieved July 19, 2023.
Emil Tagliabue (December 16, 1979). "Javs take NAIA title: A&I turns back Oklahomans, 20-14". Corpus Christi Caller Times. pp. 1C, 2C – via Newspapers.com.
"Texas A&I wins NAIA title". Austin American-Statesman. December 16, 1979. p. D2 – via Newspapers.com.
"NAIA Football Championship Records" (PDF). National Association for Intercollegiate Athletics. 2022. Retrieved July 19, 2023.
"1980 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved July 23, 2023.

v t e Central Oklahoma Bronchos football
Venues	Central Field (1928–1964) Chad Richison Stadium (1965–present)
Bowls & rivalries	Northeastern State
Culture & lore	UCO Stampede of Sound
People	Head coaches NFL draftees
Seasons	1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 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 1943–1945 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
National championship seasons in bold

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