1978 Big Ten Conference football season


The 1978 Big Ten Conference football season was the 83rd season of college football played by the member schools of the Big Ten Conference and was a part of the 1978 NCAA Division I-A football season.
The 1978 Michigan Wolverines football team, under head coach Bo Schembechler, compiled a 10–2 record, tied with Michigan State for the Big Ten championship, led the conference in scoring defense, lost to national champion USC in the Rose Bowl, and was ranked No. 5 in the final AP and UPI polls. Quarterback Rick Leach won the Chicago Tribune Silver Football as the most valuable player in the Big Ten, finished third in the voting for the Heisman Trophy, and was selected as a first-team All-American by the American Football Coaches Association.
The 1978 Michigan State Spartans football team, under head coach Darryl Rogers, compiled an 8–3, tied with Michigan for the conference championship, led the conference in scoring offense, and was ranked No. 12 in the final AP Poll. Ed Smith led the conference with 2,226 passing yards and Kirk Gibson led the conference with 806 receiving yards. Gibson was selected as a first-team All-American by the Associated Press, Newspaper Enterprise Association, and The Sporting News. Tight end Mark Brammer was selected as a first-team All-American by the Football Writers Association of America.
The 1978 Purdue Boilermakers football team, under head coach Jim Young, compiled a 9–2–1 record, finished in third place in the Big Ten, defeated Georgia Tech in the 1978 Peach Bowl, and was ranked No. 13 in the final AP and UPI polls. Jim Young was named Big Ten Coach of the Year. Quarterback Mark Hermann passed for 1,904 yards, and defensive lineman Keena Turner was selected as the team's most valuable player.
Ohio State linebacker Tom Cousineau's was selected as a consensus first-team All-American and was the first player selected in the 1979 NFL Draft. Minnesota running back Marion Barber, Jr. led the conference with 1,210 rushing yards, and Ohio State quarterback Art Schlichter led the conference in scoring with 78 points on 13 rushing touchdowns. Ohio State coach Woody Hayes was fired after punching a Clemson player in the closing minutes of the 1978 Gator Bowl.

Season overview

Results and team statistics

Conf. RankTeamHead coachAP finalAP highOverall recordConf. recordPPGPAGMVP
1 MichiganBo Schembechler#5#310–27–131.08.8Rick Leach
1 Michigan StateDarryl Rogers#12#128–37–137.415.5Ed Smith
3PurdueJim Young#13#129–2–16–1–121.810.8Keena Turner
4Ohio StateWoody HayesNR#67–4–16–228.318.0Tom Cousineau
5MinnesotaCal StollNRNR5–64–419.124.3Marion Barber, Jr.
6WisconsinDave McClainNRNR5–4–23–4–220.325.2Mike Kalasmiki
7IndianaLee CorsoNRNR4–73–520.726.4Joe Norman
8IowaBob CommingsNRNR2–92–611.426.5Brad Reid
9IllinoisGary MoellerNRNR1–8–20–6–29.428.8John Sullivan
10NorthwesternRick VenturiNRNR0–10–10–8–18.440.0Pat Geegan

Key
AP final = Team's rank in the final AP Poll of the 1978 season
AP high = Team's highest rank in the AP Poll throughout the 1978 season
PPG = Average of points scored per game; conference leader's average displayed in bold
PAG = Average of points allowed per game; conference leader's average displayed in bold
MVP = Most valuable player as voted by players on each team as part of the voting process to determine the winner of the Chicago Tribune Silver Football trophy; trophy winner in bold

Regular season

September 16

On September 16, 1978, the Big Ten football teams opened the season with three conference games and four non-conference games. The non-conference games resulted in two wins and two losses.
On September 23, 1978, the Big Ten teams played two conference games and six non-conference games. The non-conference games resulted in four wins and two losses, giving the Big Ten a 6–4 non-conference record to that point in the season.
On September 29 and 30, 1978, the Big Ten teams played 10 non-conference games, resulting in four wins and six losses, giving the Big Ten a 10–10 non-conference record to that point in the season.
On October 7, 1978, the Big Ten teams played one conference game and eight non-conference games. The non-conference games resulted in three wins and five losses, giving the Big Ten a 13–15 non-conference record during the regular season.
On October 14, 1978, the Big Ten teams played five conference games.
On October 21, 1978, the Big Ten teams played five conference games.
On October 28, 1978, the Big Ten teams played five conference games.
On November 4, 1978, the Big Ten teams played five conference games.
On November 11, 1978, the Big Ten teams played five conference games.
On November 18, 1978, the Big Ten teams played five conference games.
On November 25, 1978, the Big Ten teams played five conference games.

1979 Rose Bowl

On January 1, 1979, Michigan lost to USC, 17–10, before a crowd of 105,629 in the 1979 Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. The game was marked by the so-called "Phantom Touchdown" scored by USC's Charles White in the second quarter. Replays showed that White fumbled the ball before crossing the goal line. One official marked the ball down at the one-yard line, but another ruled that White had scored. The officials ultimately ruled that White had scored, giving USC its margin of victory. In the final UPI coaches poll, USC jumped to No. 1 after beating Michigan.

1978 Gator Bowl

On December 29, 1978, Ohio State lost to Clemson, 17–15, before a crowd of 72,011 in the 1978 Gator Bowl in Jacksonville, Florida. This game was Woody Hayes' last as Ohio State's head coach. With just over two minutes left in the game, Ohio State quarterback Art Schlichter threw a pass that was intercepted by Clemson's Charlie Bauman. Bauman ran towards the OSU sideline avoiding tackles and was finally shoved out of bounds, where he was punched through his face mask by coach Hayes. The next day, Ohio State fired Hayes after 28 seasons as the school's head football coach.

1978 Peach Bowl

On December 25, 1978, Purdue defeated Georgia Tech, 41–21, before a crowd of 20,277 in the 1978 Peach Bowl held at Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium in Atlanta. Purdue quarterback Mark Herrmann completed 12 of 24 passes for 166 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions.

Statistical leaders

Passing yards

1. Ed Smith, Michigan State
2. Mark Herrmann, Purdue
3. Kevin Strasser, Northwestern
4. Mike Kalasmiki, Wisconsin
5. Rick Leach, Michigan

Rushing yards

1. Marion Barber, Jr., Minnesota
2. John Macon, Purdue
3. Mike Harkrader, Indiana
4. Steve Smith, Michigan State
5. Harlan Huckleby, Michigan

Receiving yards

1. Kirk Gibson, Michigan State
2. Eugene Byrd, Michigan State
3. David Charles, Wisconsin
4. Ralph Clayton, Michigan
5. Doug Donley, Ohio State

Total offense

1. Ed Smith, Michigan State
2. Rick Leach, Michigan
3. Art Schlichter, Ohio State
4. Mark Herrmann, Purdue
5. Mike Kalasmiki, Wisconsin

Passing efficiency rating

1. Ed Smith, Michigan State
2. Mark Herrmann, Purdue
3. Mike Kalasmiki, Wisconsin
4. Art Schlichter, Ohio State
5. Kevin Strasser, Northwestern

Rushing yards per attempt

1. Steve Smith, Michigan State
2. Leroy McGee, Michigan State
3. Tom Stauss, Wisconsin
4. Ricardo Volley, Ohio State
5. Wayne Strader, Illinois

Yards per reception

1. Ralph Clayton, Michigan
2. Doug Donley, Ohio State
3. Kirk Gibson, Michigan State
4. Elmer Bailey, Minnesota
5. Eugene Byrd, Michigan State

Points scored

1. Art Schlichter, Ohio State
2. Morten Andersen, Michigan State
2. Scott Sovereen, Purdue
4. Rick Leach, Michigan
5. Gregg Willner, Michigan

Awards and honors

All-Big Ten honors

The following players were picked by the Associated Press and/or the United Press International as first-team players on the 1978 All-Big Ten Conference football team.
Offense
PositionNameTeamSelectors
QuarterbackRick LeachMichiganAP, UPI
Running backMarion Barber, Jr.MinnesotaAP, UPI
Running backRussell DavisMichiganAP, UPI
ReceiverKirk GibsonMichigan StateAP , UPI
ReceiverEugene ByrdMichigan StateAP , UPI
Tight endMark BrammerMichigan StateAP, UPI
CenterMark HeidelIndianaAP, UPI
GuardKen FritzOhio StateAP, UPI
GuardJohn ArbeznikMichiganUPI
TackleJon GieslerMichiganAP , UPI
TackleJim HinsleyMichigan StateAP, UPI
TackleJoe RobinsonOhio StateAP

Defense
PositionNameTeamSelectors
Defensive lineCurtis GreerMichiganAP, UPI
Defensive lineMelvin LandMichigan StateAP, UPI
Defensive lineKen LoushinPurdueAP, UPI
Defensive lineKeena TurnerPurdueAP, UPI
Defensive lineKelton DanslerOhio StateAP
Defensive lineStan SytsmaMinnesotaUPI
LinebackerTom CousineauOhio StateAP, UPI
LinebackerJoe NormanIndianaAP, UPI
LinebackerRon SimpkinsMichiganAP
Defensive backMike JollyMichiganAP, UPI
Defensive backTom GravesMichigan StateAP
Defensive backVince SkillingsOhio StateAP
Defensive backKeith BrownMinnesotaUPI
Defensive backMike GuessOhio StateUPI
Defensive backMike HardenMichiganUPI

All-American honors

At the end of the 1978 season, only one Big Ten player was a consensus first-team pick for the 1978 College Football All-America Team. The Big Ten's consensus All-Americans were:
PositionNameTeamSelectors
LinebackerTom CousineauOhio StateAP, UPI, NEA, WCFF, AFCA, TSN

Other Big Ten players who were named first-team All-Americans by at least one selector were:
PositionNameTeamSelectors
ReceiverKirk GibsonMichigan StateUPI, NEA, TSN
Defensive backLawrence JohnsonWisconsinNEA, TSN
Tight endMark BrammerMichigan StateFWAA
QuarterbackRick LeachMichiganAFCA

Other awards

The 1979 NFL Draft was held in New York on May 3–4, 1979. The following players were among the first 100 picks:
NamePositionTeamRoundOverall pick
Tom CousineauLinebackerOhio State11
Jon GieslerOffensive tackleMichigan124
Lawrence JohnsonDefensive backWisconsin240
Joe NormanLinebackerIndiana245
Mel LandLinebackerMichigan State363
Russell DavisRunning backMichigan486
Derwin TuckerDefensive BackIllinois499