1978 LSU Tigers football team

The 1978 LSU Tigers football team represented Louisiana State University (LSU) during the 1978 NCAA Division I-A football season. Under head coach Charles McClendon, the Tigers had a record of 8–4 with a Southeastern Conference record of 3–3. It was McClendon's 17th season as head coach at LSU.

1978 LSU Tigers football
Liberty Bowl, L 15–20 vs. Missouri
Conference	Southeastern Conference
Record	8–4 (3–3 SEC)
Head coach	Charles McClendon (17th season)
Home stadium	Tiger Stadium
Seasons ← 1977 1979 →

1978 Southeastern Conference football standings
v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 1 Alabama $	6	–	0	–	0			11	–	1	–	0
No. 16 Georgia	5	–	0	–	1			9	–	2	–	1
Auburn	3	–	2	–	1			6	–	4	–	1
LSU	3	–	3	–	0			8	–	4	–	0
Tennessee	3	–	3	–	0			5	–	5	–	1
Florida	3	–	3	–	0			4	–	7	–	0
Mississippi State	2	–	4	–	0			6	–	5	–	0
Ole Miss	2	–	4	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Kentucky	2	–	4	–	0			4	–	6	–	1
Vanderbilt	0	–	6	–	0			2	–	9	–	0
$ – Conference champion Rankings from AP Poll

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 16	Indiana*	No. 13	Tiger Stadium Baton Rouge, LA		W 24–17
September 23	Wake Forest*	No. 10	Tiger Stadium Baton Rouge, LA		W 13–11	77,197
September 30	at Rice*	No. 11	Rice Stadium Houston, TX		W 37–7
October 7	at Florida	No. 11	Florida Field Gainesville, FL (rivalry)		W 34–21	55,457
October 14	Georgia	No. 11	Tiger Stadium Baton Rouge, LA		L 17–24	77,158
October 21	at Kentucky	No. 16	Commonwealth Stadium Lexington, KY		W 21–0	57,918	^[1]
November 4	Ole Miss	No. 12	Tiger Stadium Baton Rouge, LA (rivalry)	ABC	W 30–8	73,120
November 11	at No. 3 Alabama	No. 10	Legion Field Birmingham, AL (rivalry)	ABC	L 10–31	76,831
November 18	at Mississippi State	No. 17	Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Jackson, MS (rivalry)		L 14–16
November 25	Tulane*		Tiger Stadium Baton Rouge, LA (Battle for the Rag)		W 40–21	75,876	^[2]
December 2	Wyoming*		Tiger Stadium Baton Rouge, LA		W 24–17	64,458	^[3]
December 31	vs. No. 18 Missouri*		Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium Memphis, TN (Liberty Bowl)	ABC	L 15–20	53,064
*Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Roster

1978 LSU Tigers football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class RB 4 Charles Alexander Sr WR 3 Carlos Carson Jr QB Steve Ensminger Jr   Hokie Gajan	Defense Pos. # Name Class DB 37 Willie Teal Jr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class	Head coach Charles McClendon Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible   Injured   Redshirt

Game summaries

Wyoming

Hokie Gajan ran the opening kickoff back 99 yards for a touchdown and Charles Alexander passed the 4,000 career rushing yard mark for his career.^[4]

References

1. D.G. FitzMaurice (October 22, 1978). "Alexander Halted but LSU Rolls, 21-0". Sunday Herald-Leader. pp. C1, C7 – via Newspapers.com.
2. "Woodley, Alexander were LSU's insurance". Alexandria Daily Town Talk. November 26, 1978. Retrieved October 19, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
3. "Tigers Survive Scare, Out-Slosh Wyoming". The Daily Advertiser. December 3, 1978. p. 69 – via Newspapers.com.
4. Eugene Register-Guard. 1978 Dec 03. Retrieved 2019-Jan-21.