1980 Cal Poly Mustangs football team

The 1980 Cal Poly Mustangs football team represented California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo as a member of the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) during the 1980 NCAA Division II football season. Led by 13th-year head coach Joe Harper, Cal Poly compiled an overall record of 10–3 with a mark of 2–0 in conference play, winning the CCAA title for the fifth consecutive season. The Mustangs advanced to the NCAA Division II Football Championship playoffs, where they lost shut out Jacksonville State in the quarterfinals, beat Santa Clara in the semifinals, and upset No. 1-ranked Eastern Illinois in the title game, the Zia Bowl played in Albuquerque, New Mexico. During the regular season, two of the Mustangs three losses came at the hands of NCAA Division I-A opponents, Cal State Fullerton and Fresno State. Cal Poly also beat Boise State, the eventual NCAA Division I-AA champion. The Mustangs played home games at Mustang Stadium in San Luis Obispo, California.

1980 Cal Poly Mustangs football
NCAA Division II champion CCAA champion
NCAA Division II Championship Game—Zia Bowl, W 21–13 vs. Eastern Illinois
Conference	California Collegiate Athletic Association
Ranking
AP	No. 3 (NCAA Division II)
Record	10–3 (2–0 CCAA)
Head coach	Joe Harper (13th season)
Home stadium	Mustang Stadium (capacity: 8,500)
Seasons ← 1979 1981 →

1980 California Collegiate Athletic Association football standings
v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 3 Cal Poly $^	2	–	0	–	0			10	–	3	–	0
Cal State Northridge	1	–	1	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Cal Poly Pomona	0	–	2	–	0			3	–	7	–	0
$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant Rankings from Associated Press poll

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 13	at Northern Colorado*		Jackson Field Greeley, CO	W 17–16	1,309	^[1]
September 20	Cal State Fullerton*		Mustang Stadium San Luis Obispo, CA	L 23–30	7,160	^[2]
September 27	at UC Davis*		Toomey Field Davis, CA (rivalry)	W 28–25	8,900–9,000	^[3]
October 4	at Fresno State*		Bulldog Stadium Fresno, CA	L 25–31	15,221	^[4]
October 11	at No. 5 Santa Clara*	No. 10	Buck Shaw Stadium Santa Clara, CA	W 42–28	7,200
October 25	Puget Sound*	No. 7	Mustang Stadium San Luis Obispo, CA	W 24–0	6,080	^[5]
November 1	Cal State Northridge	No. 5	Mustang Stadium San Luis Obispo, CA	W 35–6	8,170	^[6]
November 8	at Cal Poly Pomona	No. 4	Claremont Alumni Field Claremont, CA	W 36–0	4,781
November 15	No. 5 (I-AA) Boise State*	No. 4	Mustang Stadium San Luis Obispo, CA	W 23–20	8,330	^[7]
November 22	Sacramento State*	No. 3	Mustang Stadium San Luis Obispo, CA	L 19–24	5,470
November 29	No. 4 Jacksonville State*	No. 3	Mustang Stadium San Luis Obispo, CA (NCAA Division II Quarterfinal)	W 15–0	4,380	^[8]
December 6	No. 7 Santa Clara*	No. 3	Mustang Stadium San Luis Obispo, CA (NCAA Division II Semifinal)	W 38–14	6,650	^[9]
December 13	No. 1 Eastern Illinois*	No. 3	University Stadium Albuquerque, NM (NCAA Division II Championship Game—Zia Bowl)	W 21–13	2,056	^[10]
*Non-conference game Rankings from Associated Press Poll released prior to the game

^[11][12][13]

Team players in the NFL

The following Cal Poly Mustang players were selected in the 1981 NFL Draft.^[14][15]

Player	Position	Round	Overall	NFL team
Robbie Martin	Wide receiver	4	100	Pittsburgh Steelers
Louis Jackson	Running back	7	168	New York Giants
Mike Daum	Tackle	7	179	Miami Dolphins

The following finished their college career in 1980, were not drafted, but played in the NFL.

Player	Position	First NFL team
LeCharls McDaniel	Defensive back	1981 Washington Redskins
Mel Kaufman	Linebacker	1981 Washington Redskins

References

1. "Gabriel's Team Bows in Opener". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. September 14, 1980. p. III-18. Retrieved March 31, 2017 – via Newspapers.com. 
2. Pete Donovan (September 21, 1980). "Titans Off and Running, Win Again". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. p. III-1. Retrieved February 10, 2017 – via Newspapers.com. 
3. "Final 1980 Cumulative Football Statistics Report". National Collegiate Athletic Association. Retrieved May 12, 2022.
4. "Fresno State 2016 Media Guide" (PDF). Retrieved December 8, 2016.
5. "Cal Poly Poly (sic) Pomona Buried, 93-7". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. October 26, 1980. p. 54. Retrieved March 18, 2017 – via Newspapers.com. 
6. "Azusa Rolls Past Chapman, 51-7". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. November 2, 1980. p. III-1. Retrieved February 21, 2017 – via Newspapers.com. 
7. "2015 Boise State Football Media Guide". Boise State University Athletics. 2015. p. 157. Retrieved February 14, 2017.
8. "Cal Poly nails Jax". The Anniston Star. November 30, 1980. Retrieved November 29, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "Cal Poly SLO Makes It to Division II Final". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. December 7, 1980. p. III-16. Retrieved February 21, 2017 – via Newspapers.com. 
10. "Cal Poly SLO Wins Title". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. December 14, 1980. p. III-15. Retrieved February 21, 2017 – via Newspapers.com. 
11. "Final 1980 Cumulative Football Statistics Report". National Collegiate Athletic Association. Retrieved June 13, 2022.
12. . Archived from the original on September 1, 2018. Retrieved January 12, 2017.
13. "Cal Poly Football; 2016 Media Guide". Retrieved January 12, 2017.
14. . Archived from the original on December 21, 2007. Retrieved January 12, 2017.
15. "Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo Players/Alumni". Retrieved January 12, 2017.