Alabama had split the national title with USC in 1978. The Crimson Tide were ranked #2 to start the new season, so they would open needing at least a little bit of help—it was their old nemesis out west in USC that was ranked #1. The bowl structure of the time meant that the SEC […]
At first it looked like another year to argue over Alabama and USC, the way 1978 ended. Then it looked like a second straight year with co-national champions when Ohio State got in the mix. But in the end, the 1979 college football season proved to be about celebrating Alabama, as the Tide rolled to a second straight national championship, this one outright.
The year in 1979 sports carries a special place in basketball lore, as Michigan State’s Magic Johnson and Indiana State’s Larry Bird met in the NCAA final that drew the highest TV ratings in the history of that event and set the stage for a new era in the NBA. That’s fair enough as the prime story of the year. There are a few things that we shouldn’t lose sight of though.