American college football season
| 1980 SMU Mustangs football |
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Holiday Bowl, L 45–46 vs. BYU |
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| Conference | Southwest Conference |
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| Ranking |
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| Coaches | No. 20 |
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| AP | No. 20 |
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| Record | 8–4 (5–3 SWC) |
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| Head coach | |
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| Offensive scheme | Option |
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| Defensive coordinator | Steve Sidwell (5th season) |
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| Base defense | 3–4 |
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| Home stadium | Texas Stadium |
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Seasons |
1980 Southwest Conference football standings | Conf | | | Overall |
| Team | W | | L | | T | | | W | | L | | T |
| No. 14 Baylor $ | 8 | – | 0 | – | 0 | | | 10 | – | 2 | – | 0 |
| No. 20 SMU | 5 | – | 3 | – | 0 | | | 8 | – | 4 | – | 0 |
| Houston | 5 | – | 3 | – | 0 | | | 7 | – | 5 | – | 0 |
| Texas | 4 | – | 4 | – | 0 | | | 7 | – | 5 | – | 0 |
| Rice | 4 | – | 4 | – | 0 | | | 5 | – | 6 | – | 0 |
| Arkansas | 3 | – | 5 | – | 0 | | | 7 | – | 5 | – | 0 |
| Texas A&M | 3 | – | 5 | – | 0 | | | 4 | – | 7 | – | 0 |
| Texas Tech | 3 | – | 5 | – | 0 | | | 5 | – | 6 | – | 0 |
| TCU | 1 | – | 7 | – | 0 | | | 1 | – | 10 | – | 0 |
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| Rankings from AP Poll |
The 1980 SMU Mustangs football team represented Southern Methodist University (SMU) as a member of the Southwest Conference (SWC) during the 1980 NCAA Division I-A football season. Led by fifth-year head coach Ron Meyer, the Mustangs compiled an overall record 8–4 with a mark of 5–3 in conference play, tying for second place in the SWC. SMU was invited to the Holiday Bowl, there they lost to BYU. The Mustangs finished the season ranked No. 20 in both major polls.[1]
Schedule
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | Source |
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| September 13 | North Texas State* | | | | W 28–9 | 52,781 | [2] |
| September 20 | TCU | | | | W 17–14 | 39,622 | |
| September 27 | Texas–Arlington* | | | | W 52–16 | 26,611 | [3] |
| October 4 | at Tulane* | | | | W 31–21 | 42,563 | |
| October 11 | at No. 18 Baylor | No. 20 | | | L 28–32 | 35,000 | |
| October 18 | Houston | | | | L 11–13 | 32,109 | |
| October 25 | at No. 2 Texas | | | ABC | W 20–6 | 73,535 | |
| November 1 | Texas A&M | No. 19 | | | W 27–0 | 41,289 | |
| November 8 | at Rice | No. 18 | | | W 34–14 | 23,000 | |
| November 15 | at Texas Tech | No. 18 | | | L 0–14 | 42,197 | |
| November 23 | Arkansas | | | | W 31–7 | 28,225 | |
| December 19 | vs. No. 13 BYU* | No. 20 | | Mizlou | L 45–46 | 50,200 | |
- *Non-conference game
- Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
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Roster
| 1980 SMU Mustangs football team roster |
| Players | Coaches |
| Offense | Defense | Pos. | # | Name | Class | | DL | 75 | Harvey Armstrong | Jr | | DB | 27 | Charles Bruton | Sr | | DT | 74 | Michael Carter | So | | DB | 29 | Russell Carter | Fr | | DL | 99 | Eric Ferguson | Jr | | DB | 9 | Mark Gibson | Sr | | DL | 80 | Byron Hunt | Sr | | DB | 20 | James Mobley | Jr | | DB | 34 | John Simmons | Sr | | Special teams | Pos. | # | Name | Class | | K | 1 | Eddie Garcia | Jr | | - Head coach
- Coordinators/assistant coaches
- Legend
- (C) Team captain
- (S) Suspended
- (I) Ineligible
 Injured Redshirt
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Season summary
Texas
SMU at Texas | | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | | • SMU | 0 | 3 | 10 | 7 | 20 | | Texas | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 6 | |
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| Scoring summary |
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| | 1 | | Texas | Goodson 20 yard field goal | Texas 3-0 | | | 2 | | SMU | Garcia 47 yard field goal | Tie 3-3 | | | 2 | | Texas | Goodson 47 yard field goal | Texas 6-3 | | | 3 | | SMU | James 53 yard run (Garcia kick) | SMU 10-6 | | | 3 | | SMU | Garcia 44 yard field goal | SMU 13-6 | | | 4 | | SMU | Mobley 22 yard interception return (Garcia kick) | SMU 20-6 |
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This game became notable for a significant change made during it. Coach Meyer, who had run a pro-style offense with Mike Ford to this point, chose instead to adjust and run an option attack with freshman Lance McIlhenny instead. The adjustment worked, as Texas could not stop what became known as the Mustangs’ “Pony Express” running game of Craig James and eventual NFL Hall of Famer Eric Dickerson.
[4]
Team players in the NFL
References
- ^ "2020 Football Media Guide".
- ^ "SMU rolls over NTSU, 28–9". The Kilgore News Herald. September 14, 1980. p. 7. Retrieved October 28, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "SMU muscles by UTA". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. September 28, 1980. p. B1. Retrieved January 9, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "SMU Shocks Texas Behind James' Running." Palm Beach Post. 1980 Oct 26.
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| Venues | |
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| Bowls & rivalries | |
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| Culture & lore | |
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| People | |
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| Seasons | |
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National championship seasons in bold |
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