1979 Florida State Seminoles football team

The 1979 Florida State Seminoles football team represented Florida State University in the 1979 NCAA Division I-A football season. The team was coached by Bobby Bowden and played their home games at Doak Campbell Stadium.

1979 Florida State Seminoles football
Orange Bowl, L 7–24 vs. Oklahoma
Conference	Independent
Ranking
Coaches	No. 8
AP	No. 6
Record	11–1
Head coach	Bobby Bowden (4th season)
Offensive coordinator	George Henshaw (1st season)
Offensive scheme	Pro-style
Defensive coordinator	Jack Stanton (4th season)
Base defense	4–3
Home stadium	Doak Campbell Stadium (Capacity: 47,413)
Seasons ← 1978 1980 →

1979 NCAA Division I-A independents football records

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 6 Florida State		–		–				11	–	1	–	0
No. 7 Pittsburgh		–		–				11	–	1	–	0
UNLV		–		–				9	–	1	–	2
No. 17 Temple		–		–				10	–	2	–	0
Tulane		–		–				9	–	3	–	0
Rutgers		–		–				8	–	3	–	0
Tennessee State		–		–				8	–	3	–	0
East Carolina		–		–				7	–	3	–	1
No. 20 Penn State		–		–				8	–	4	–	0
South Carolina		–		–				8	–	4	–	0
Navy		–		–				7	–	4	–	0
Notre Dame		–		–				7	–	4	–	0
Southern Miss		–		–				6	–	4	–	1
Syracuse		–		–				7	–	5	–	0
Colgate		–		–				5	–	4	–	1
Boston College		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Holy Cross		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Memphis State		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Miami (FL)		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
North Texas State		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Villanova		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Virginia Tech		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
West Virginia		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Georgia Tech		–		–				4	–	6	–	1
Louisville		–		–				4	–	6	–	1
William & Mary		–		–				4	–	7	–	0
Illinois State		–		–				3	–	8	–	0
Northeast Louisiana		–		–				3	–	8	–	0
Army		–		–				2	–	8	–	1
Air Force		–		–				2	–	9	–	0
Cincinnati		–		–				2	–	9	–	0
Richmond		–		–				0	–	11	–	0
Rankings from AP Poll

Florida State finished #6 in the AP poll and #8 in the UPI poll with an 11–1 record. The Seminoles' offense scored 326 points while the defense allowed 160 points. The Seminoles finished the regular season unbeaten for only the second time in program history and played in the Orange Bowl.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 8	Southern Miss	No. 19	Doak Campbell Stadium Tallahassee, FL		W 17–14	45,467	^[1]
September 15	vs. Arizona State	No. 18	Tampa Stadium Tampa, FL		W 31–3	33,484
September 22	Miami (FL)	No. 14	Doak Campbell Stadium Tallahassee, FL (rivalry)		W 40–23	47,679
September 29	at Virginia Tech	No. 12	Lane Stadium Blacksburg, VA	ABC	W 17–10	39,200	^[2]
October 6	at Louisville	No. 9	Fairgrounds Stadium Louisville, KY		W 27–0	27,306
October 13	Mississippi State	No. 9	Doak Campbell Stadium Tallahassee, FL		W 17–6	48,701	^[3]
October 27	at LSU	No. 7	Tiger Stadium Baton Rouge, LA	ABC	W 24–19	67,197	^[4]
November 3	at Cincinnati	No. 6	Nippert Stadium Cincinnati, OH		W 26–21	14,539
November 10	No. 19 South Carolina	No. 7	Doak Campbell Stadium Tallahassee, FL		W 27–7	49,490	^[5]
November 17	Memphis State	No. 5	Doak Campbell Stadium Tallahassee, FL		W 66–17	48,021
November 23	at Florida	No. 5	Florida Field Gainesville, FL (rivalry)	ABC	W 27–16	58,263	^[6]
January 1	vs. No. 5 Oklahoma	No. 6	Miami Orange Bowl Miami, FL (Orange Bowl)	NBC	L 7–24	66,714
Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Season summary

Mark Lyles led the team in rushing with 1011 yards and 8 touchdowns. Jimmy Jordan led the team in passing with 1173 yards and threw 13 touchdown passes. Jackie Flowers led the team in receiving with 37 catches for 622 yards and 7 TD receptions. Monk Bonasorte led the team with 8 pass interceptions. Bonassorte {DB}, Bobby Butler {DB}, Jackie Flowers {TE}, Mike Good {G}, Ken Lanier {OT}, Ron Simmons {NG} and Scott Warren {DE} were selected to the First team All-South Independent team. Ron Simmons was selected as a First team All-American. Bonasorte was a 3rd team AP All-American. Bobby Butler {DB}, Jackie Flowers, Mike Good, Jimmy Jordan {QB} and Ken Lanier were named as Honorable Mention All-Americans by the Associated Press and/or The Sporting News. Mark Lyles {RB} {Cincinnati}, Flowers {Dallas}, Walter Carter {DT} {Oakland} and Jordan {New England} were selected in the 1980 NFL draft.

Southern Miss

1 2 3 4 Total Southern Miss 0 7 7 0 14 • Florida St 3 0 0 14 17 Date: September 8 Location: Doak Campbell Stadium

^[7] Behind 14-3 with 10 minutes left in the last quarter, Florida State struck for two quick touchdowns and overtook Southern Mississippi 17-14 before 45,467 fans at Doak Campbell Stadium. Jimmy Jordan threw an 8 yard TD pass to Jackie Flowers, then a 65 yard punt return for a touchdown by Gary Henry with 6:28 put the Seminoles in front to stay.

Arizona State

1 2 3 4 Total Arizona St 0 0 3 0 3 • Florida St 7 17 0 7 31 Date: September 15 Location: Tampa Stadium

Florida State romped to an easy 31-3 football victory over Arizona State. It was 24-0 at halftime. Monk Bonasorte helped to provide 10 first half points with two interceptions. Wally Woodham threw 18 yards to Jackie Flowers for a touchdown. Mark Lyles ran 1 yard for a touchdown to give FSU a 14-0 lead. Dave Cappelen kicked a 42 yard field goal and Jimmy Jordan threw his first of two touchdown passes, an 8 yard pass to Grady King. In the 4th quarter he threw 15 yards to Ricky Williams for the final Seminole touchdown. ^[8]

Miami (FL)

Miami (FL) Hurricanes (1–0) at #14 Florida State Seminoles (2–0)

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Miami (FL)	7	0	0	16	23
Florida St	3	16	14	7	40

at Doak Campbell Stadium, Tallahassee, Florida

• Date: September 22
• Game attendance: 48,432
• ^[9]

Game information

First quarter FSU – Dave Cappelen 26-yard field goal, 9:12. Florida St 3–0. MIA – Chris Hobbs 10-yard run (Dan Miller kick), 4:29. Miami (FL) 7–3. Second quarter FSU – Mark Lyles 4-yard run (Dave Cappelen kick), 12:30. Florida St 10–7. FSU – Dave Cappelen 28-yard field goal, 6:21. Florida St 13–7. FSU – Mark Lyles 1-yard run (pass failed), 0:22. Florida St 19–7. Third quarter FSU – Greg Ramsey 3-yard run (Dave Cappelen kick), 10:58. Florida St 26–7. FSU – Greg Ramsey 2-yard run (Dave Cappelen kick), 1:52. Florida St 33–7. Fourth quarter MIA – Jim Kelly 2-yard run (run good), 11:29. Florida St 33–15. FSU – Gary Henry 57-yard blocked punt return (Dave Cappelen kick), 10:00. Florida St 40–15. MIA – James Joiner 9-yard run (run good), 7:58. Florida St 40–23. Top passers MIA FSU – Wally Woodham – 9/14, 93 yards Top rushers MIA FSU – Mark Lyles – 25 rushes, 85 yards, 2 TD Top receivers MIA FSU – Sam Platt – 3 receptions, 46 yards

Miami jumped out to an early lead after the first quarter, but that would pretty much be all they could celebrate during this day in the Capital City. Two Mark Lyles touchdowns in the second quarter helped the Seminoles take a 19-7 lead at the half, while Greg Ramsey would add two rushing scores in the third quarter and the route was on. The Hurricanes scored a touchdown to open the fourth quarter, but Gary Henry’s return of a blocked punt cemented the outcome and Florida State was able to celebrate in their own locker room after defeating the Hurricanes at home for the first time, 40-23, pacing the Noles to the first undefeated regular season under Bobby Bowden.

Virginia Tech

It was Virginia Tech's last chance to win. Fourth down and 13 at its 17. As Steve Casey rolled to pass, Seminole linebacker Paul Piurowski was bearing down on him. Casey slipped as he tried to maneuver, and Piurowski was on top of him at the 12 and the Florida State held on for a 17-10 victory. Trailing 7-0 in the 2nd quarter, the Seminoles struck on a Greg Ramsey 16 yard run and Jackie Flowers 18 yard TD pass from Jimmy Jordan. Dave Cappelen added a 20 yard field goal in the 3rd quarter. Wally Woodham and Jimmy Jordan combined for 322 yards passing, but threw 4 interceptions.

Louisville

1 2 3 4 Total • Florida St 7 8 9 3 27 Louisville 0 0 0 0 0 Date: October 6 Location: Cardinal Stadium

Blocking two punts, holding Louisville to just two first downs until 7:30 was left on the clock, Florida State's defense was again the dominant show as the unbeaten Seminoles won 27-0. FSU did it on two touchdowns, a couple of safeties and a field goal before 27,306 fans at Fairgrounds Stadium. Wally Woodham threw two touchdowns, one to Sam Platt (5 yards) and one to Sam Childers (1 yard). Bobby Butler fell on a blocked punt in the end zone for a touchdown.

^[10]

Mississippi State

1 2 3 4 Total Miss St 0 0 0 6 6 • Florida St 0 14 3 0 17 Date: October 13 Location: Doak Campbell Stadium

Putting two touchdowns on the scoreboard in the final six minutes of the first half, Florida State held on with its defense in the closing two quarters and claimed a 17-6 victory over Mississippi State. FSU scored on a one yard run by Mike Whiting, and on an 18 yard pass from Jimmy Jordan to Jackie Flowers. Dave Cappelen kicked a 46 yard field goal.

^[11]

LSU

1 2 3 4 Total • Florida St 7 7 0 10 24 LSU 0 13 0 6 19 Date: October 27 Location: Tiger Stadium TV announcers (ABC): Jim Lampley & Frank Broyles

Jimmy Jordan gunned three touchdown passes as Florida State muscled past Louisiana State 24-19 before 67,197 in Tiger Stadium. Jordan completed 14 passes for 312 yards. In the 1st half, the Seminoles forced three LSU fumbles and recovered all three. Florida State, in the 2nd half, intercepted two passes. Monk Bonasorte recovered a fumble and intercepted two passes. Florida State totaled 436 yards of offense. Jordan’s TD passes went to Sam Platt (3 yards), Jackie Flowers (40 yards) and Hardis Johnson (53 yards).

^[12]

Cincinnati

1 2 3 4 Total • Florida St 7 0 0 19 26 Cincinnati 0 21 0 0 21 Date: November 3 Location: Nippert Stadium

The sixth ranked Seminoles squeezed past Cincinnati 26-21 when Mike Whiting crashed into the end zone from eight yards out with 1:38 left to play. The Seminoles trailed 21-7 at the start of the fourth quarter. Ahead 7-0 after their first offensive series, FSU was stunned by a 21 point 2nd quarter onslaught by Cincinnati, a 17 1/2 point underdog. Wally Woodham led the charge in the 4th quarter with touchdown passes to Mark Lyles (7 yards) and Jackie Flowers (5 yards), followed by Whiting’s game winner.

^[13]

South Carolina

1 2 3 4 Total South Carolina 0 7 0 0 7 • Florida St 10 6 0 11 27 Date: November 10 Location: Doak Campbell Stadium

A record Doak Campbell Stadium crowd of 49,490 saw the 9-0 Seminoles beat South Carolina 27-7. Wally Woodham completed 15 of 25 passes for 145 yards. Florida State nominated possession, 83 plays to 52, and totaled 381 yards to Carolina's 265. Mark Lyles ran for 132 yards on 25 carries and a 1 yard touchdown run. Dave Capellen kicked four field goals. Jimmy Jordan threw a 7 yard TD pass to Sam Childers.

^[14]

Memphis State

1 2 3 4 Total Memphis St 3 0 0 14 17 • Florida St 3 21 28 14 66 Date: November 17 Location: Doak Campbell Stadium

Florida State clobbered Memphis State 66-17 before 48,021 at Doak Campbell Stadium. Memphis State's defense had given up just three touchdown passes. Quarterback Jimmy Jordan threw for that many in the second quarter. Two of those Jordan TD shots came in the last 45 seconds of the half, stretching a 10-3 lead to 24-3. Jordan’s touchdown passes were to Jackie Flowers (24 yards), Hardis Johnson (4 yards) and Grady King (5 yards). The defense and special teams got their shots in as well with Paul Piurowski returning an interception 29 yards for a touchdown and Keith Jones returning a blocked punt (by Bobby Butler) 16 yards for a touchdown. Mark Lyles, Ricky Williams, Keith Kennedy and Kelly Burney ran for touchdowns for the Noles.

^[15]

At Florida

#5 Florida State Seminoles (10–0) at Florida Gators (0–9–1)

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Florida St	3	7	0	17	27
Florida	0	0	10	6	16

at Florida Field, Gainesville, Florida

• Date: November 23
• Game attendance: 58,263
• TV announcers (ABC): Jim Lampley & Lee Grosscup
• ^[16]

Game information

First quarter FSU – Dave Cappelen 42-yard field goal, 4:23. Florida St 3–0. Second quarter FSU – Hardis Johnson 21-yard pass from Jimmy Jordan (Dave Cappelen kick), 0:11. Florida St 10–0. Drive: 71 yards. Third quarter FLA – Brian Clark 39-yard field goal, 11:39. Florida St 10–3. FLA – Carl Prioleau 2-yard run (Brian Clark kick), 1:28. Tie 10–10. Fourth quarter FSU – Mark Lyles 20-yard run (Bill Capece kick), 12:31. Florida St 17–10. Drive: 80 yards. FSU – Bill Capece 18-yard field goal, 10:46. Florida St 20–10. FLA – Chris Faulkner 35-yard pass from Larry Ochab (pass failed), 2:21. Florida St 20–16. FSU – Mark Lyles 2-yard run (Bill Capece kick), 1:10. Florida St 27–16. Top passers FSU – Wally Woodham – 7/10, 82 yards FLA – Larry Ochab – 22/54, 270 yards, TD, 5 INT Top rushers FSU – Mark Lyles – 20 rushes, 151 yards, TD FLA Top receivers FSU – Grady King – 6 receptions, 59 yards FLA

Florida hosted Florida State at Florida Field in a regionally televised contest on ABC-TV. A debatable ruling on an interception by FSU’s Walter Carter led to a Bill Capece field goal that gave the Seminoles a 20-10 lead in the fourth quarter. The game had been tied 10-10 early in the final period. Mark Lyles’ two fourth quarter touchdowns however, would be just what the Seminoles needed as FSU completed a perfect regular season. Lyles rushed for 151 yards while teammate Michael Whiting added 123 yards on the ground. Defensively, Florida State forced six turnovers for their third straight victory over rival Florida. The Noles went on to a 27-16 victory.

Orange Bowl

1 2 3 4 Total • Oklahoma 0 17 0 7 24 Florida St 7 0 0 0 7 Date: January 1 Location: Orange Bowl

Mike Whiting gave the Seminoles a lead with his touchdown run, but that was their only score of the night. A fumbled field goal snap, three turnovers, over 100 yards of rushing by quarterback J. C. Watts and halfback Billy Sims, and 24 unanswered points by Oklahoma doomed the Seminoles. It all started with a Watts run for a touchdown in the second quarter to tie the game at seven. After the kickoff, the Seminoles turned the ball over on an interception, giving the ball back to Oklahoma. Stanley Wilson then scored a touchdown run to make it 14–7. Mike Keeling added a field goal late in the quarter to give the Sooners a 17–7 lead at halftime. The second half scoring was limited to one Oklahoma touchdown from 22 yards out in the fourth quarter; Watts ran for twelve yards before pitching the ball to Sims, who took it the rest of the way for a 24–7 lead, the final score. The Sooners ran for 411 yards on 59 carries, an average of nearly seven yards per attempt, while having twice as many total yards as the Seminoles.

^[17]

Roster

1979 Florida State Seminoles football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class G 63 Lee Adams Jr C 52 Willie Andrusko So WR 88 Jeff Bowden So OT 75 Tom Brannon Jr G 61 Brent Brock   Jr QB Ken Burnett RB Kelly Burney RB Gator Cherry TE Sam Childers WR 23 Jackie Flowers Sr OL Greg Futch OL Mike Good QB 4 Rick Houston Sr WR Hardis Johnson RB Homes Johnson WR Tony Johnson QB 15 Jimmy Jordan Sr TE Bill Keck RB Keith Kennedy TE Grady King OT 72 Ken Lanier Jr RB Mark Lyles OL John Madden WR Dennis McKinnon WR 18 Joe Moss So TE 81 Zeke Mowatt Fr WR Sam Platt RB Greg Ramsey QB 11 Rick Stockstill   So WR 82 Lawrence Strainge So WR 9 Greg Thompson Fr WR 19 Kurt Unglaub Sr FB 26 Wade Wallace Sr OL Gil Wesley FB 27 Michael Whiting So WR Phil Williams RB Ricky Williams QB Wally Woodham	Defense Pos. # Name Class DB Mark Bonasorte CB 21 Bobby Butler Jr DT 76 Walter Carter Sr DL Jarvis Coursey DT 91 John Diamantas So DB 20 Jeff Ector Fr DL James Gilbert DB 43 Hector Gray DB Gary Henry LB Reggie Herring DB Ivory Joe Hunter DB Keith Jones DL Mark Macek DT 60 Scott McLean So DT 77 Jeremy Mindlin LB Paul Piurowski DL Ed Richardson DL Arthur Scott DL Ron Simmons DL Scott Warren	Special teams Pos. # Name Class K Bill Capece K Dave Cappelen P 3 Rohn Stark So	Head coach Bobby Bowden Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible   Injured   Redshirt

Awards and honors

Monk Bonasorte

• Associated Press – 3rd Team All-American

Bobby Butler

• Associated Press – All-American – Honorable Mention

Jackie Flowers

• Football News – 2nd Team All-American
• United Press International – 2nd Team All-American
• Associated Press – All-American – Honorable Mention
• The Sporting News – All-American – Honorable Mention

Mike Good

• Associated Press – All-American – Honorable Mention

Ken Lanier

• Associated Press – All-American – Honorable Mention

Ron Simmons

• American Football Coaches Association – 1st Team All-American
• Associated Press – 1st Team All-American
• Walter Camp – 1st Team All-American
• Football News – 1st Team All-American
• Kodak – 1st Team All-American
• United Press International – 1st Team All-American
• NCAA – Consensus All-American
• The Sporting News – All-American – Honorable Mention

Scott Warren

• Churchman's – 1st Team All-American
• Associated Press – All-American – Honorable Mention

^[18]

References

1. "FSU snaps out of it, wins by 3". The Tampa Tribune. September 9, 1979. Retrieved March 25, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
2. "FSU rumbles; Seminoles nix Gobbler jinx in 17–10 win". St. Petersburg Times. September 30, 1979. Retrieved December 15, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
3. "Seminoles shut down Mississippi St., 17–6". The News and Observer. October 14, 1979. Retrieved October 30, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
4. "FSU's Jordan spears LSU". The Orlando Sentinel Star. October 28, 1979. Retrieved October 30, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "FSU gives bowl scouts a 27–7 message". The Tampa Tribune. November 11, 1979. Retrieved January 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "Seminoles win, but Gators happier". The Palm Beach Post-Times. November 24, 1979. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
7. NoleFan.org. Retrieved 2015-Nov-24.
8. NoleFan.org. Retrieved 2015-Nov-24.
9. Recap/Box. Retrieved 2015-Nov-24.
10. NoleFan.org. Retrieved 2015-Nov-24.
11. NoleFan.org. Retrieved 2015-Nov-24.
12. NoleFan.org. Retrieved 2015-Nov-24.
13. NoleFan.org. Retrieved 2015-Nov-24.
14. NoleFan.org. Retrieved 2015-Nov-24.
15. NoleFan.org. Retrieved 2015-Nov-24.
16. NoleFan.org. Retrieved 2015-Nov-24.
17. NoleFan.org. Retrieved 2015-Nov-24.
18. "FSU Football All-American, Pro & FSU HOF Roster".