1977 San Diego State Aztecs football team

American college football season

1977 San Diego State Aztecs football

Conference| Independent
Ranking
Coaches| No. 19
AP| No. 16
Record| 10–1
Head coach|

* Claude Gilbert (5th season)

Home stadium| San Diego Stadium

Seasons

<- 1976

1978 ->

1977 NCAA Division I independents football records

* v
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| Conf. |  |  | Overall

|
|
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Team | W |  | L |  | T |  |  | W |  | L |  | T
No. 1 Notre Dame |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 11  | - | 1  | - | 0
No. 5 Penn State |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 11  | - | 1  | - | 0
Colgate |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 10  | - | 1  | - | 0
North Texas State *  |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 10  | - | 1  | - | 0
No. 16 San Diego State |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 10  | - | 1  | - | 0
Tennessee State |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 8  | - | 1  | - | 1
No. 14 Florida State |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 10  | - | 2  | - | 0
No. 8 Pittsburgh |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 9  | - | 2  | - | 1
East Carolina |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 8  | - | 3  | - | 0
Rutgers |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 8  | - | 3  | - | 0
Army |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 7  | - | 4  | - | 0
Louisville |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 7  | - | 4  | - | 1
Boston College |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 6  | - | 5  | - | 0
Cincinnati |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 5  | - | 4  | - | 2
Georgia Tech |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 6  | - | 5  | - | 0
Memphis State |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 6  | - | 5  | - | 0
Northwestern State |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 6  | - | 5  | - | 0
Syracuse |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 6  | - | 5  | - | 0
William & Mary |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 6  | - | 5  | - | 0
Southern Miss |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 6  | - | 5  | - | 0
Temple |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 5  | - | 5  | - | 1
Hawaii |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 5  | - | 6  | - | 0
Navy |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 5  | - | 6  | - | 0
West Virginia |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 5  | - | 6  | - | 0
South Carolina |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 5  | - | 7  | - | 0
Utah State |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 4  | - | 7  | - | 0
Villanova |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 4  | - | 7  | - | 0
Illinois State |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 3  | - | 7  | - | 1
Virginia Tech |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 3  | - | 7  | - | 1
Miami (FL) |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 3  | - | 8  | - | 0
Richmond |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 3  | - | 8  | - | 0
Tulane |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 3  | - | 8  | - | 0
Air Force |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 2  | - | 8  | - | 1
Holy Cross |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 2  | - | 8  | - | 0
Northeast Louisiana |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 2  | - | 9  | - | 0

* North Texas State (originally 9–2) awarded a forfeit win after Mississippi State was found to be using an ineligible player.[1]

Rankings from AP Poll

The 1977 San Diego State Aztecs football team represented San Diego State University during the 1977 NCAA Division I football season as an independent.

The team was led by head coach Claude Gilbert, in his fifth year, and played home games at San Diego Stadium[note 1] in San Diego, California. They finished the season ranked #16 in the AP Poll and #18 in the UPI Poll, with a record of ten wins and one loss (10–1).

## Schedule

[edit]

Date| Opponent| Rank| Site| Result| Attendance| Source

|
|
|
|
|
|

September 10| Cal State Fullerton| |

* San Diego Stadium
* San Diego, CA

| W 34–17| 41,066| [2]
September 17| at Arizona| |

* Arizona Stadium
* Tucson, AZ

| W 21–14| 42,135| [3]
October 1| Utah State| |

* San Diego Stadium
* San Diego

| W 19–0| 43,161| [4]
October 8| at Fresno State| |

* Ratcliffe Stadium
* Fresno, CA (rivalry)

| L 14–34| 14,114–15,179| [5][6]
October 15| UTEP| |

* San Diego Stadium
* San Diego, CA

| W 49–7| 34,760| [7]
October 22| UNLV| |

* San Diego Stadium
* San Diego, CA

| W 31–7| 39,109| [8]
October 29| Tulsa| |

* San Diego Stadium
* San Diego, CA

| W 41–7| 28,306| [9][10]
November 5| at Pacific (CA)| |

* Pacific Memorial Stadium
* Stockton, CA

| W 29–7| 9,857| [11]
November 12| Long Beach State| |

* San Diego Stadium
* San Diego, CA

| W 33–22| 37,213| [12][13]
November 19| No. 13 Florida State| |

* San Diego Stadium
* San Diego, CA

| W 41–16| 50,453| [14]
December 3| at San Jose State| No. 16|

* Spartan Stadium
* San Jose, CA

| W 37–34| 10,000| [15]

* Homecoming
* Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

[16][17]

## Team players in the NFL

[edit]

The following were selected in the 1978 NFL draft.[18]

Player  | Position  | Round  | Overall  | NFL team

|
|
|
|

Deacon Turner | Running back | 2 | 45 | Cincinnati Bengals
Ron Smith | Wide receiver | 2 | 53 | Los Angeles Rams
Whip Walton | Linebacker | 3 | 75 | Minnesota Vikings
Mike Douglass | Linebacker | 5 | 116 | Green Bay Packers
Terry Jackson | Defensive back | 5 | 120 | New York Giants
Dennis Pearson | Wide receiver | 5 | 125 | Atlanta Falcons

## Team awards

[edit]

Award  | Player

|

Most Valuable Player
(John Simcox Memorial Trophy) | Deacon Turner
Outstanding Offensive & Defensive Linemen
(Byron H. Chase Memorial Trophy) | Scott Bradley, Off
Ed Imo, Def
Team captains
Dr. R. Hardy / C.E. Peterson Memorial Trophy | Joe Davis, Off
Whip Walton, Def
Most Inspirational Player | Tim Delaney,
Ed Imo

[17]

## Notes

[edit]

1. ^ San Diego County Credit Union Stadium (SDCCU Stadium) was known as San Diego Stadium from its opening in 1967 through 1980.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/years/1977-standings.html
2. ^ Dave Distel (September 11, 1977). "San Diego State Tops Titans, 34-17". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. p. III-10. Retrieved January 17, 2017 - via Newspapers.com.
3. ^ "San Diego State shows it belongs". The Daily Breeze. September 18, 1977. Retrieved October 19, 2024 - via Newspapers.com.
4. ^ "Utah State 2015 Football Media Guide" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on September 28, 2018. Retrieved December 9, 2016.
5. ^ "San Diego St. Bows, 34-14". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. October 9, 1977. p. III-16. Retrieved March 31, 2017 - via Newspapers.com.
6. ^ "2024 Fresno State Football Media Guide" (PDF). Fresno State Athletics. p. 121. Retrieved December 19, 2024.
7. ^ "Aztec offemse bombs Miners 49–7". The El Paso Times. October 16, 1977. Retrieved October 19, 2024 - via Newspapers.com.
8. ^ "Nevada Las Vegas 2015 Football Media Guide" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on September 7, 2015. Retrieved December 9, 2016.
9. ^ "Tulsa 2015 Football Media Guide" (PDF). Retrieved December 9, 2016.
10. ^ "Cal Lutheran Makes It Six in a Row". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. October 30, 1977. p. III-13. Retrieved February 24, 2017 - via Newspapers.com.
11. ^ Bill Finley (November 6, 1977). "Aztecs Explode Past U. of Pacific, 29-7". The San Diego Union. San Diego, California. p. H-1. Retrieved January 26, 2017.
12. ^ 49er Football 1978 Media Guide (pamphlet). Long Beach, California: CSULB Athletic Department. 1978.
13. ^ "Cal Lutheran Brawls and Wins". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. November 13, 1977. p. III-14. Retrieved March 16, 2017 - via Newspapers.com.
14. ^ "San Diego State destroys FSU, 41-16". The Orlando Sentinel. Orlando, Florida. November 20, 1977. p. D-1. Retrieved January 17, 2017 - via Newspapers.com.
15. ^ "San Diego finishes 10-1". Independent Press-Telegram. Long Beach, California. December 4, 1977. p. S-5. Retrieved January 17, 2017 - via Newspapers.com.
16. ^ "San Diego State 1977 Schedule". Retrieved December 6, 2016.
17. ^ a b "San Diego State 2016 Football Media Guide". Archived from the original on October 18, 2016. Retrieved December 7, 2016.
18. ^ "1978 NFL Draft". Archived from the original on December 22, 2007. Retrieved December 7, 2016.

* v
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San Diego State Aztecs football

Venues|

* College Field / Aztec Field (1921, 1923–1925, 1927–1928, 1934–1935)
* Navy "Sports" Field (1922, 1926, 1929–1931, 1933–1934)
* Balboa Stadium (1921–1925, 1927–1929, 1932, 1934–1935, 1940–1941, 1945–1947, alternate in several other seasons)
* Aztec Bowl (1936–1942, 1947–1966)
* San Diego Stadium (1967–2019)
* Dignity Health Sports Park (2020–2021)
* Snapdragon Stadium (2022–present)

Bowls & rivalries|

* Bowl games
* Fresno State

People|

* Head coaches
* NFL draftees
* Statistical leaders

Seasons|

* 1921
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National championship seasons in bold
*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
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*[Conf.]: Conference record
*[W]: Wins
*[L]: Losses
*[T]: Ties
*[No.]: Number