1979 BC Lions season
Canadian football team season
- ← 1978
- BC Lions seasons
- 1980 →
The 1979 BC Lions finished in third place in the Western Conference with a 9–6–1 record. They appeared in the Western Semi-Final.
Jerry Tagge had a great start to the season and led the Lions to a 6–1–1 record. However, he suffered a catastrophic knee injury mid-season that would end his career. Under sophomore backup Joe Paopao, the Lions lost five, but finished third with a 9-6-1 record, before bowing out to Calgary in the semi-final. The duo threat backfield of Larry Key with 1060 rushing yards & 289 receiving yards and John Henry White with 776 rushing yards & 422 receiving yards help carry the team after Tagge went down.
Key was a CFL All-star, along with Centre Al Wilson (for 5th straight season) and kicker Lui Passaglia who was led the league punting and was 2nd in league scoring.
After the season, "Dirty Thirty" Jim Young retired from football after 13 seasons. He retired as the Lions all-time leading receiver with 9248 yards and 65 touchdowns. Young's receiving yardage record would stand for 31 years.
Norm Fieldgate became the second Lions player to be inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame.
Offseason
CFL Draft
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | School |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Roster
| 1979 BC Lions roster | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Quarterbacks
Running backs
Wide receivers Slotbacks
| Offensive linemen Defensive linemen | Linebackers
Defensive backs Special teams
| Inactive List (1 Game) (9 Game) Practice Roster
Italics indicate Import players | |||
Preseason
| Game | Date | Opponent | Results | Venue | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Score | Record | |||||
Regular season
Season standings
| Team | GP | W | L | T | PF | PA | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Edmonton Eskimos | 16 | 12 | 2 | 2 | 495 | 219 | 26 |
| Calgary Stampeders | 16 | 12 | 4 | 0 | 382 | 278 | 24 |
| BC Lions | 16 | 9 | 6 | 1 | 328 | 333 | 19 |
| Winnipeg Blue Bombers | 16 | 4 | 12 | 0 | 283 | 340 | 8 |
| Saskatchewan Roughriders | 16 | 2 | 14 | 0 | 194 | 437 | 4 |
Season schedule
| Week | Game | Date | Opponent | Results | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Score | Record | ||||||
| 1 | 1 | July 11 | at Saskatchewan Roughriders | W 28–4 | 1–0 | ||
| 2 | 2 | July 17 | vs. Montreal Alouettes | W 25–10 | 2–0 | ||
| 3 | 3 | July 24 | at Winnipeg Blue Bombers | W 19–18 | 3–0 | ||
| 4 | 4 | July 31 | vs. Saskatchewan Roughriders | W 24–15 | 4–0 | ||
| 5 | 5 | Aug 7 | vs. Edmonton Eskimos | T 14–14 | 4–0–1 | ||
| 6 | 6 | Aug 15 | at Calgary Stampeders | L 10–22 | 4–1–1 | ||
| 7 | 7 | Aug 21 | at Hamilton Tiger-Cats | W 22–16 | 5–1–1 | ||
| 8 | 8 | Aug 28 | vs. Calgary Stampeders | W 18–17 | 6–1–1 | ||
| 9 | Bye | ||||||
| 10 | 9 | Sept 9 | at Winnipeg Blue Bombers | W 17–15 | 7–1–1 | ||
| 11 | 10 | Sept 16 | at Edmonton Eskimos | L 8–40 | 7–2–1 | ||
| 12 | 11 | Sept 22 | vs. Toronto Argonauts | W 34–25 | 8–2–1 | ||
| 13 | 12 | Sept 29 | vs. Winnipeg Blue Bombers | W 22–21 | 9–2–1 | ||
| 14 | Bye | ||||||
| 15 | 13 | Oct 14 | at Ottawa Rough Riders | L 26–28 | 9–3–1 | ||
| 16 | 14 | Oct 20 | vs. Calgary Stampeders | L 32–37 | 9–4–1 | ||
| 17 | 15 | Oct 28 | at Saskatchewan Roughriders | L 12–26 | 9–5–1 | ||
| 18 | 16 | Nov 3 | vs. Edmonton Eskimos | L 17–25 | 9–6–1 | ||
Playoffs
West Semi-Final
| Team | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BC Lions | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Calgary Stampeders | 3 | 5 | 29 | 0 | 37 |
Offensive leaders
| Player | Passing yds | Rushing yds | Receiving yds | TD |
| Joe Paopao | 1508 | 16 | 0 | 0 |
| Jerry Tagge | 1131 | 38 | 0 | 0 |
| Larry Key | 1060 | 289 | 9 | |
| John Henry White | 776 | 422 | 5 | |
| Leon Bright | 7 | 569 | 5 | |
| Harry Holt | 51 | 560 | 3 | |
| Al Charuk | 0 | 515 | 3 | |
| Tyrone Gray | 0 | 356 | 1 |
Awards and records
1979 CFL All-Stars
- RB – Larry Key, CFL All-Star
- C – Al Wilson, CFL All-Star
- K – Lui Passaglia, CFL All-Star
References
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