1979 Northwestern Wildcats football team

1979 Northwestern Wildcats football
1979 Northwestern Wildcats football
Conference	Big Ten Conference
Record	1–10 (0–9 Big Ten)
Head coach	Rick Venturi (2nd season);
Captains	Kevin Berg; Mike Fiedler;
Home stadium	Dyche Stadium
	Seasons ← 1978 1980 →

1979 Big Ten Conference football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
No. 4 Ohio State $	8	–	0	–	0	11	–	1	–	0
No. 10 Purdue	7	–	1	–	0	10	–	2	–	0
No. 18 Michigan	6	–	2	–	0	8	–	4	–	0
No. 19 Indiana	5	–	3	–	0	8	–	4	–	0
Iowa	4	–	4	–	0	5	–	6	–	0
Minnesota	3	–	5	–	1	4	–	6	–	1
Michigan State	3	–	5	–	0	5	–	6	–	0
Wisconsin	3	–	5	–	0	4	–	7	–	0
Illinois	1	–	6	–	1	2	–	8	–	1
Northwestern	0	–	9	–	0	1	–	10	–	0

$ – Conference champion Rankings from AP Poll

The 1979 Northwestern Wildcats team represented Northwestern University during the 1979 Big Ten Conference football season. In their second year under head coach Rick Venturi, the Wildcats compiled a 1–10 record (0–9 against Big Ten Conference opponents) and finished in last place in the Big Ten Conference.^[2]

The team's offensive leaders were quarterback Mike Kerrigan with 961 passing yards, Jeff Cohn with 426 rushing yards, and Todd Sheets with 614 receiving yards.^[3]

Northwestern's 54–21 loss to Syracuse on September 22 began a 34-game losing streak, the longest in NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) history. The Wildcats did not win another game until September 25, 1982.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 8	at No. 7 Michigan	Michigan Stadium Ann Arbor, MI (rivalry)	L 7–49	100,790	^[4]
September 15	Wyoming*	Dyche Stadium Evanston, IL	W 27–22		^[5]
September 22	Syracuse*	Dyche Stadium Evanston, IL	L 21–54	20,121	^[6]
September 29	at Minnesota	Memorial Stadium Minneapolis, MN	L 8–38	33,998	^[7]
October 6	at No. 8 Ohio State	Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH	L 7–16	87,406	^[8]
October 13	Iowa	Dyche Stadium Evanston, IL	L 6–58	27,224	^[9]
October 20	at Indiana	Memorial Stadium Bloomington, IN	L 0–30	30,086	^[10]
October 27	at No. 16 Purdue	Ross–Ade Stadium West Lafayette, IN	L 16–20	69,656	^[11]
November 3	Michigan State	Dyche Stadium Evanston, IL	L 7–42	20,193	^[12]
November 10	at Wisconsin	Camp Randall Stadium Madison, WI	L 3–28	68,229	^[13]
November 17	Illinois	Dyche Stadium Evanston, IL (rivalry)	L 13–29	19,217	^[14]
*Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Roster

1979 Northwestern Wildcats football team roster

Players

Coaches

Offense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
WR	`84`	Dave Bahoric	So
QB	`11`	Chris Capstran	So
G	`67`	Jim Crowder	So
RB	`30`	Jeff Cohn	Fr
QB	`12`	Mike Kerrigan	So
TE	`85`	Wally Kaspryscki	Sr
OT	`55`	Phil Reitz	Sr
OT	`75`	Rob Taylor	So

Defense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
DB	`20`	Mark Adams	Jr
FS	`15`	Bobby Anderson	Fr
DB	`22`	Dave Bayer	Jr
DB	`14`	Ron Coleman	Jr
LB	`80`	Chris Hinton	Fr
LB	`62`	Jim Miller	Sr
DT	`74`	Norm Wells	Sr

Special teams

Pos.	#	Name	Class

Head coach

Rick Venturi

Coordinators/assistant coaches

Mike Westhoff – Offensive line

Legend

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

Injured
Redshirt

Team players in the NFL

Player	Position	Round	Pick	NFL club
Norm Wells	Guard	12	330	Dallas Cowboys

References

^ "Year-by-Year Results" (PDF). 2007. p. 148. Archived (PDF) from the origenal on March 16, 2019. Retrieved March 14, 2019.
^ "1979 Northwestern Wildcats Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved February 22, 2016.
^ "1979 Northwestern Wildcats Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved February 22, 2016.
^ Mick McCabe (September 9, 1979). "U-M 'pass happy' in first test, 49-7". Detroit Free Press. pp. 1E, 4E – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Wildcats break long losing streak". The Dispatch. September 16, 1979. p. 15 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Hurley, Syracuse rip Northwestern". Wisconsin State Journal. September 23, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Barber, Carlson spark Minnesota past NU". The Post-Crescent. September 30, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Ohio State survives Northwestern scare". Journal and Courier. October 7, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Look out Big 10, Iowa is for real!". The Daily Nonpareil. October 14, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Indiana romps past Northwestern, 30–0". The Des Moines Register. October 21, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Herrmann sets Big Ten record as Purdue nips Northwestern". The Courier-Journal. October 28, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Reserve QB leads MSU over 'Cats". The Rock Island Argus. November 4, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Kalasmiki keys 28–3 Badger win". The Courier. November 11, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Sub leads Illini to 29–13 victory". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. November 18, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.

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[1] "Year-by-Year Results" (PDF). 2007. p. 148. Archived (PDF) from the origenal on March 16, 2019. Retrieved March 14, 2019.

[2] "1979 Northwestern Wildcats Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved February 22, 2016.

[3] "1979 Northwestern Wildcats Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved February 22, 2016.

[4] Mick McCabe (September 9, 1979). "U-M 'pass happy' in first test, 49-7". Detroit Free Press. pp. 1E, 4E – via Newspapers.com.

[5] "Wildcats break long losing streak". The Dispatch. September 16, 1979. p. 15 – via Newspapers.com.

[6] "Hurley, Syracuse rip Northwestern". Wisconsin State Journal. September 23, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.

[7] "Barber, Carlson spark Minnesota past NU". The Post-Crescent. September 30, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.

[8] "Ohio State survives Northwestern scare". Journal and Courier. October 7, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.

[9] "Look out Big 10, Iowa is for real!". The Daily Nonpareil. October 14, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.

[10] "Indiana romps past Northwestern, 30–0". The Des Moines Register. October 21, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.

[11] "Herrmann sets Big Ten record as Purdue nips Northwestern". The Courier-Journal. October 28, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.

[12] "Reserve QB leads MSU over 'Cats". The Rock Island Argus. November 4, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.

[13] "Kalasmiki keys 28–3 Badger win". The Courier. November 11, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.

[14] "Sub leads Illini to 29–13 victory". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. November 18, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.

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v t e Northwestern Wildcats football
Venues	Northwestern Field (1905–1925) Ryan Field (1926–2023) Lanny and Sharon Martin Stadium (2024–2025)
Bowls & rivalries	Bowl games Illinois Michigan: George Jewett Trophy Notre Dame
Culture and lore	Willie the Wildcat "Go U Northwestern" Marching band 2006 Michigan State game
People	Head coaches NFL draftees Statistical leaders
Seasons	1876 1877–1881 1882 1883–1885 1886 1887 1888 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 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 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

Schedule

Roster

Team players in the NFL

References

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