1979–80 NCAA football bowl games

{{Infobox College football bowl games

| season = 1979

| image =

| image_caption =

| regular_season =

| number_of_bowls = 15

| all_star_games =

| bowl_start = December 15, 1979

| bowl_end =
January 1, 1980

| championship_bowl = 1980 Sugar Bowl

| championship_location = Louisiana Superdome,
New Orleans, Louisiana

| champions = Alabama

}}

The 1979–80 NCAA football bowl games were a series of post-season games played in December 1979 and January 1980 to end the 1979 NCAA Division I-A football season. A total of 15 team-competitive games,{{cite web | url=https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/years/1979-bowls.html | title=1979 College Football Bowl Games | access-date=March 3, 2024 | work=Sports Reference }} were played. The post-season began with the Garden State Bowl on December 15, 1979, and concluded on January 1, 1980, with the Orange Bowl.

Schedule

{{cite web|url=http://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/football_records/2022/Bowls.pdf|title=All-Time Bowl-Game Results And Attendance|access-date=April 28, 2024|work=National Collegiate Athletic Association}}

class="wikitable" style="font-size:90%"
Date !Game !Site !TV !Teams !Results
rowspan=2\|{{nowrap\|Dec. 15}} \|Garden State Bowl \|Giants Stadium East Rutherford, New Jersey \|Mizlou \|No. 20 Temple Owls (9–2) California Golden Bears (7–4) \|Temple 28 California 17
Independence Bowl \|State Fair Stadium Shreveport, Louisiana \|TBS \|Syracuse Orangemen (6–5) McNeese State Cowboys (11–0) \|Syracuse 31 McNeese State 7
{{nowrap\|Dec. 21}} \|Holiday Bowl \|Jack Murphy Stadium San Diego, California \|Mizlou \|Indiana Hoosiers (7–4) No. 9 BYU Cougars (11–0) \|Indiana 38 BYU 37
rowspan=3\|{{nowrap\|Dec. 22}} \|Sun Bowl \|Sun Bowl El Paso, Texas \|CBS \|No. 13 Washington Huskies (9–2) No. 11 Texas Longhorns (9–2) \|Washington 14 Texas 7
Liberty Bowl \|Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium Memphis, Tennessee \|ABC \|Penn State Nittany Lions (7–4) No. 15 Tulane Green Wave (9–2) \|Penn State 9 Tulane 6
Tangerine Bowl \|Orlando Stadium Orlando, Florida \|Mizlou \|LSU Tigers (6–5) Wake Forest Demon Deacons (8–3) \|LSU 34 Wake Forest 10
{{nowrap\|Dec. 25}} \|Fiesta Bowl \|Sun Devil Stadium Tempe, Arizona \|NBC \|No. 10 Pittsburgh Panthers (10–1) Arizona Wildcats (6–4–1) \|Pittsburgh 16 Arizona 10
{{nowrap\|Dec. 28}} \|Gator Bowl \|Gator Bowl Stadium Jacksonville, Florida \|ABC \|North Carolina Tar Heels (7–3–1) No. 14 Michigan Wolverines (8–3) \|North Carolina 17 Michigan 15
{{nowrap\|Dec. 29}} \|Hall of Fame Classic \|Legion Field Birmingham, Alabama \|Mizlou \|Missouri Tigers (6–5) No. 16 South Carolina Gamecocks (8–3) \|Missouri 24 South Carolina 14
rowspan=2\|{{nowrap\|Dec. 31}} \|Peach Bowl \|Fulton County Stadium Atlanta, Georgia \|CBS \|No. 19 Baylor Bears (7–4) No. 18 Clemson Tigers (8–3) \|Baylor 24 Clemson 18
Astro-Bluebonnet Bowl \|Astrodome Houston, Texas \|Mizlou \|No. 12 Purdue Boilermakers (9–2) Tennessee Volunteers (7–4) \|Purdue 27 Tennessee 22
rowspan=4\|{{nowrap\|Jan. 1}} \|Cotton Bowl Classic \|Cotton Bowl Dallas, Texas \|CBS \|No. 8 Houston Cougars (10–1) No. 7 Nebraska Cornhuskers (10–1) \|Houston 17 Nebraska 14
Sugar Bowl \|Louisiana Superdome New Orleans, Louisiana \|ABC \|No. 2 Alabama Crimson Tide (11–0) No. 6 Arkansas Razorbacks (10–1) \|Alabama 24 Arkansas 9
Rose Bowl \|Rose Bowl Pasadena, California \|NBC \|No. 3 USC Trojans (10–0–1) No. 1 Ohio State Buckeyes (11–0) \|USC 17 Ohio State 16
Orange Bowl \|Miami Orange Bowl Miami, Florida \|NBC \|No. 5 Oklahoma Sooners (10–1) No. 4 Florida State Seminoles (11–0) \|Oklahoma 24 Florida State 7

class="wikitable" style="font-size:90%"

Date

!Game

!Site

!TV

!Teams

!Results

rowspan=2|{{nowrap|Dec. 15}}

|Garden State Bowl

|Giants Stadium
East Rutherford, New Jersey

|Mizlou

|No. 20 Temple Owls (9–2)
California Golden Bears (7–4)