1979 Houston Oilers (NFL) |
| 2nd place • American Football Conference • Central Division • 11-5-0 .688 |
| SCORES | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Day | Date | Opponent | Score | Location | Venue | Attendance | |||
| AFC Wild Card Playoff | |||||||||
| Sun | 12/23/1979 | H | Denver Broncos | 13-7 | W | Houston, TX | Astrodome | 48776 | |
| AFC Divisional Playoff | |||||||||
| Sat | 12/29/1979 | A | San Diego Chargers | 17-14 | W | San Diego, CA | San Diego Stadium | 51192 | |
| AFC Championship | |||||||||
| Sun | 1/6/1980 | A | Pittsburgh Steelers | 13-27 | L | Pittsburgh, PA | Three Rivers Stadium | 50475 | |
| ROSTER | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | No | Pos | Ht | Wt | Age | College | GP | GS |
| Jesse Baker | 75 | DE | 6-5 | 271 | 22 | Jacksonville State | 3 | 0 |
| Mike Barber | 86 | TE | 6-3 | 237 | 26 | Louisiana Tech | 3 | 3 |
| Steve Baumgartner | 63 | LB | 6-7 | 245 | 28 | Purdue | 3 | 0 |
| Elvin Bethea | 65 | RDE | 6-3 | 255 | 33 | North Carolina A&T State | 3 | 3 |
| Gregg Bingham | 54 | LILB | 6-1 | 227 | 28 | Purdue | 3 | 3 |
| Robert Brazile | 52 | ROLB | 6-4 | 238 | 26 | Jackson State | 3 | 3 |
| Ken Burrough | 00 | WR | 6-3 | 215 | 31 | Texas Southern | 3 | 2 |
| Earl Campbell | 34 | RB | 5-11 | 238 | 24 | Texas | 2 | 2 |
| Rob Carpenter | 26 | RB | 6-1 | 226 | 24 | Miami (Ohio) | 3 | 1 |
| David Carter | 58 | LOG | 6-2 | 260 | 26 | Western Kentucky | 3 | 3 |
| Rich Caster | 88 | WR | 6-5 | 228 | 31 | Jackson State | 3 | 3 |
| Boobie Clark | 42 | RB | 6-2 | 245 | 30 | Bethune-Cookman | 3 | 0 |
| Ronnie Coleman | 47 | RB | 5-10 | 197 | 28 | Alabama A&M | 3 | 0 |
| Curley Culp | 78 | MG | 6-1 | 265 | 33 | Arizona State | 3 | 3 |
| Bill Currier | 20 | DB | 6-0 | 193 | 24 | South Carolina | 3 | 0 |
| Andy Dorris | 69 | LDE | 6-4 | 248 | 28 | New Mexico State | 3 | 3 |
| Rich Ellender | 85 | WR | 5-11 | 171 | 22 | McNeese State | 3 | 0 |
| Ed Fisher | 60 | ROG | 6-3 | 249 | 30 | Arizona State | 3 | 3 |
| Toni Fritsch | 16 | K | 5-7 | 188 | 34 | none | 3 | 0 |
| Leon Gray | 74 | LOT | 6-3 | 261 | 28 | Jackson State | 3 | 3 |
| Jeff Groth | 81 | WR | 5-10 | 172 | 22 | Bowling Green State | 3 | 0 |
| Carter Hartwig | 36 | DB | 6-0 | 203 | 23 | Southern California | 3 | 0 |
| Conway Hayman | 70 | ROT | 6-3 | 255 | 30 | Delaware | 3 | 3 |
| Daryl Hunt | 50 | LB | 6-3 | 243 | 23 | Oklahoma | 3 | 0 |
| Charles Jefferson | 21 | DB | 6-0 | 178 | 22 | McNeese State | 2 | 0 |
| Ken Kennard | 71 | MG | 6-2 | 255 | 25 | Angelo State | 2 | 0 |
| Carl Mauck | 55 | C | 6-3 | 242 | 32 | Southern Illinois | 3 | 3 |
| Guido Merkens | 12 | QB-WR | 6-1 | 200 | 24 | Sam Houston State | 3 | 0 |
| Gifford Nielsen | 14 | QB | 6-4 | 205 | 25 | Brigham Young | 3 | 1 |
| Cliff Parsley | 18 | P | 6-1 | 211 | 25 | Oklahoma State | 3 | 0 |
| Dan Pastorini | 7 | QB | 6-3 | 205 | 30 | Santa Clara | 2 | 2 |
| Vernon Perry | 32 | SS | 6-2 | 211 | 26 | Jackson State | 3 | 3 |
| Tom Randall | 68 | OG | 6-5 | 245 | 23 | Iowa State | 3 | 0 |
| George Reihner | 64 | OG | 6-4 | 263 | 24 | Penn State | 1 | 0 |
| Mike Reinfeldt | 37 | FS | 6-2 | 192 | 26 | Wisconsin-Milwaukee | 3 | 3 |
| Mike Renfro | 82 | WR | 6-0 | 189 | 24 | Texas Christian | 3 | 1 |
| Conrad Rucker | 87 | TE | 6-3 | 260 | 25 | Southern University | 3 | 0 |
| Greg Stemrick | 27 | RCB | 5-11 | 178 | 28 | Colorado State | 3 | 3 |
| Mike Stensrud | 67 | DT | 6-5 | 280 | 23 | Iowa State | 3 | 0 |
| Art Stringer | 53 | RILB | 6-1 | 223 | 25 | Ball State | 3 | 3 |
| Ted Thompson | 51 | LB | 6-1 | 218 | 26 | Southern Methodist | 3 | 0 |
| Morris Towns | 76 | OT | 6-4 | 263 | 25 | Missouri | 2 | 0 |
| Ted Washington | 59 | LOLB | 6-1 | 250 | 31 | Mississippi Valley State | 3 | 3 |
| J.C. Wilson | 33 | LCB | 6-0 | 177 | 23 | Tampa; Pittsburgh | 3 | 3 |
| Tim Wilson | 45 | RB | 6-3 | 235 | 25 | Maryland | 3 | 3 |
| SCORING BY QUARTERS | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Totals | 10 | 20 | 7 | 6 | 43 |
| Opponents Totals | 17 | 14 | 7 | 10 | 48 |
| TEAM STATS | TOP | 1ST DOWNS | FDR | FDP | FDX | 3RD DOWN EFFICIENCY | 4TH DOWN EFFICIENCY | PEN | PENY |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Totals | 29:51 | 41 | 19 | 18 | 4 | 18/44 40.9% | 0/1 0.0% | 2 | 19 |
| Opponents Totals | 30:09 | 64 | 22 | 39 | 3 | 24/45 53.3% | 0/1 0.0% | 18 | 134 |
| SCORING | TD | X1 | X1A | PCT | FG | FGA | PCT | SAF | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Toni Fritsch | 0 | 4 | 4 | 100.0 | 5 | 5 | 100.0 | 0 | 19 |
| Earl Campbell | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | ||
| Boobie Clark | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | ||
| Vernon Perry | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | ||
| Mike Renfro | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | ||
| Team Totals | 4 | 4 | 4 | 100.0 | 5 | 5 | 100.0 | 0 | 43 |
| Opponents Totals | 6 | 6 | 6 | 100.0 | 2 | 5 | 40.0 | 0 | 48 |
| FIELD GOALS | MADE | ATT | PCT | 1-19 | 20-29 | 30-39 | 40-49 | 50+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Toni Fritsch | 5 | 5 | 100.0 | 0/0 | 4/4 | 1/1 | 0/0 | 0/0 |
| OWN | 5 | 5 | 100.0 | 0/0 | 4/4 | 1/1 | 0/0 | 0/1 |
| OPP | 2 | 5 | 40.0 | 0/0 | 1/2 | 1/1 | 0/1 | 0/1 |
| RUSHING | ATT | YDS | AVG | LG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rob Carpenter | 34 | 126 | 3.7 | 11 | 0 |
| Tim Wilson | 23 | 69 | 3.0 | 14 | 0 |
| Earl Campbell | 33 | 65 | 2.0 | 9 | 1 |
| Boobie Clark | 9 | 30 | 3.3 | 11 | 1 |
| Gifford Nielsen | 2 | 12 | 6.0 | 14 | 0 |
| Ronnie Coleman | 2 | 5 | 2.5 | 4 | 0 |
| Rich Caster | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Team Totals | 104 | 307 | 3.0 | 14 | 2 |
| Opponents Totals | 87 | 336 | 3.9 | 25 | 3 |
| PASSING | ATT | COM | PCT | INC | YDS | Y/ATT | Y/COM | LG | TD | TD% | INT | INT% | TS | YL | NYP | RTG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dan Pastorini | 46 | 27 | 58.7 | 17 | 352 | 7.7 | 13.0 | 44 | 0 | 0.0 | 2 | 4.3 | 2 | 20 | 332 | 64.8 |
| Gifford Nielsen | 24 | 13 | 54.2 | 9 | 129 | 5.4 | 9.9 | 47t | 1 | 4.2 | 2 | 8.3 | 0 | 0 | 129 | 48.8 |
| Team Totals | 70 | 40 | 57.1 | 26 | 481 | 6.9 | 12.0 | 47t | 1 | 1.4 | 4 | 5.7 | 2 | 20 | 461 | 59.3 |
| Opponents Totals | 104 | 57 | 54.8 | 40 | 696 | 6.7 | 12.2 | 34 | 3 | 2.9 | 7 | 6.7 | 11 | 78 | 618 | 57.2 |
| RECEIVING | REC | YDS | AVG | LG | TD | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tim Wilson | 14 | 129 | 9.2 | 41 | 0 | ||
| Rob Carpenter | 12 | 72 | 6.0 | 14 | 0 | ||
| Ronnie Coleman | 4 | 100 | 25.0 | 41 | 0 | ||
| Mike Renfro | 4 | 99 | 24.8 | 47t | 1 | ||
| Mike Barber | 3 | 51 | 17.0 | 31 | 0 | ||
| Earl Campbell | 2 | 18 | 9.0 | 11 | 0 | ||
| Guido Merkens | 1 | 12 | 12.0 | 12 | 0 | ||
| Team Totals | 40 | 481 | 12.0 | 47t | 1 | ||
| Opponents Totals | 57 | 696 | 12.2 | 3 |
| INTERCEPTIONS | INT | YDS | AVG | LG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vernon Perry | 5 | 75 | 15.0 | 75t | 1 |
| Gregg Bingham | 1 | 15 | 15.0 | 15 | 0 |
| J.C. Wilson | 1 | 3 | 3.0 | 3 | 0 |
| Mike Reinfeldt | 0 | 8 | 8 | 0 | |
| Team Totals | 7 | 101 | 14.4 | 75t | 1 |
| Opponents Totals | 4 | 12 | 3.0 | 12 | 0 |
| PUNTING | NO | YDS | AVG | LG | BL | TB | I20 | RYDS | NYDS | NET |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cliff Parsley | 15 | 580 | 38.7 | 50 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 62 | 518 | 34.5 |
| Team Totals | 15 | 584 | 38.9 | 50 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 62 | 522 | 34.8 |
| Opponents Totals | 11 | 483 | 43.9 | 66 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 75 | 408 | 37.1 |
| PUNT RETURNS | NO | FC | YDS | AVG | LG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rich Ellender | 9 | 2 | 75 | 8.3 | 25 | 0 |
| Team Totals | 8 | 2 | 75 | 9.4 | 25 | 0 |
| Opponents Totals | 8 | 1 | 62 | 7.8 | 17 | 0 |
| KICKOFF RETURNS | NO | FC | YDS | AVG | LG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rich Ellender | 5 | 63 | 12.6 | 19 | 0 | |
| Carter Hartwig | 4 | 76 | 19.0 | 26 | 0 | |
| Rob Carpenter | 1 | 4 | 4.0 | 4 | 0 | |
| Team Totals | 10 | 143 | 14.3 | 26 | 0 | |
| Opponents Totals | 12 | 249 | 20.8 | 27 | 0 |
| SACKS | NO | YDS |
|---|---|---|
| Andy Dorris | 4.5 | 33.5 |
| Elvin Bethea | 2.0 | 14.0 |
| Curley Culp | 2.0 | 14.0 |
| Mike Stensrud | 1.0 | 8.0 |
| Ken Kennard | 1.0 | 5.0 |
| Ted Washington | 0.5 | 3.5 |
| Team Totals | 11.0 | 78.0 |
| Opponents Totals | 2.0 | 20.0 |
| FUMBLES | NO | LOST | OWN | OPP | REC | YDS | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Earl Campbell | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| David Carter | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Rich Ellender | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Guido Merkens | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mike Renfro | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Team Totals | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Opponents Totals | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 0 |
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| Last Updated: July 18, 2025 |