| 1979 Sugar Bowl | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| 45th edition National Championship Game | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date | January 1, 1979 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Season | 1978 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Stadium | Louisiana Superdome | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Location | New Orleans, Louisiana | ||||||||||||||||||||
| MVP | Barry Krauss (Alabama LB) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Favorite | Alabama by 1 point[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Referee | Bill Jennings (Big Eight) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Attendance | 76,824 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| United States TV coverage | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Network | ABC | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Announcers | Keith Jackson, Frank Broyles | ||||||||||||||||||||
The 1979 Sugar Bowl was the 45th edition of the college football bowl game, played at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana, on Monday, January 1. Part of the 1978–79 bowl game season, it matched the top-ranked Penn State Nittany Lions (11–0) and the #2 Alabama Crimson Tide (10–1) of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). A hard-fought 14–7 victory gave Alabama head coach Bear Bryant his fifth national championship.[2][3][4][5][6][7]
The game marked the official debut of Alabama's "Big Al" costumed elephant mascot.
- ^ "The Latest Line". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. January 1, 1979. p. 34.
- ^ Underwood, John (January 8, 1979). "The rising of the Tide". Sports Illustrated. p. 10.
- ^ "Alabama No. 1?". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. January 2, 1979. p. 29.
- ^ Levy, Paul (January 2, 1979). "Nittany Lions fall into Bear trap, 14-7". Milwaukee Sentinel. p. 1, part 2.
- ^ Browning, Al (January 2, 1979). "Tide winner in Sugar Bowl 'war'". Tuscaloosa News. (Alabama). p. 1.
- ^ Parascenzo, Marino (January 2, 1979). "Penn State loses bid for national crown". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. p. 15.
- ^ Franke, Russ (January 2, 1979). "Lions miss national crown by six inches". Pittsburgh Press. p. B3.