1980 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football team information
American college football season
1980Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football
OVC champion
Conference
Ohio Valley Conference
Ranking
AP
No. 5
Record
9–1 (6–1 OVC)
Head coach
Jimmy Feix (13th season)
Captain
Bryan Gray, Ricky Gwinn, Pete Walters
Home stadium
Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium
Seasons
← 1979
1981 →
1980 Ohio Valley Conference football standings
v
t
e
Conf
Overall
Team
W
L
T
W
L
T
No. 5 Western Kentucky $
6
–
1
–
0
9
–
1
–
0
No. T–3 Eastern Kentucky ^
5
–
2
–
0
10
–
3
–
0
No. T–10 Murray State
5
–
2
–
0
9
–
2
–
0
Austin Peay
5
–
2
–
0
7
–
4
–
0
Akron
2
–
4
–
1
3
–
7
–
1
Morehead State
2
–
5
–
0
4
–
7
–
0
Middle Tennessee
2
–
5
–
0
2
–
8
–
0
Tennessee Tech
1
–
6
–
0
4
–
7
–
0
$ – Conference champion
^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant
Rankings from Associated Press poll
The 1980 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football team represented Western Kentucky University as a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) during the 1980 NCAA Division I-AA football season. Led by 14th-year head coach Jimmy Feix, the Hilltoppers compiled and overall record of 9–1 with a mark of 6–1 in conference play, winning the OVC title. However, Western Kentucky was not selected for the NCAA Division I_AA Football Championship playoffs. Instead, the OVC's second-place finisher, Eastern Kentucky, was invited despite the fact that Western had beaten them earlier in the season. This perceived snub was a factor in Western Kentucky's decision to leave the OVC in 1982.[1] The Hilltoppers finished the season ranked fifth in final Associated Press poll.[2]
The team's captains were Bryan Gray, Ricky Gwinn, and Pete Walters.[3] Western Kentucky's roster included future National Football League (NFL) players Pete Walters, Davlin Mullen, John Newby, Phil Rich, Troy Snardon, Brad Todd, Donnie Evans, Ray Farmer, Ronnie Fishback, Tom Fox, Paul Gray, Ricky Gwinn, Ron Hunter, Lamont Meacham, and Mike Miller. Walters and Tim Ford were named to All-American teams and Feix was named OVC Coach of the Year for the third time. The All-Conference Team included Barry Bumm, Evans, Farmer, Jerry Flippin, Gwinn, Lamont Meacham, Rich, Snardon, and Walters.[4]
^1982 WKU Football Media Guide retrieved April 8, 2020.
^"Final Division I-AA poll". Clarion-Ledger. Jackson, Mississippi. November 24, 1987. p. D1. Retrieved May 15, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
^"WKU Football 2021 Media Guide" (PDF). Bowling Green, Kentucky: Western Kentucky University. p. 179. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
^2017 OVC Football Media Guide, retrieved 30 April 2020
and 27 Related for: 1980 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football team information
The WesternKentuckyHilltoppers and Lady Toppers are the athletic teams that represent WesternKentucky University (WKU), located in Bowling Green, Kentucky...
list of seasons completed by the WesternKentucky college football program. The Hilltoppers represent the WesternKentucky University (WKU) in Conference...
avoid confusion with teams of other schools such as the WesternKentuckyHilltoppers. John Gill, an assistant coach on the footballteam who later served...
The Eastern Kentucky Colonels are the intercollegiate athletic teams of Eastern Kentucky University (EKU), located in Richmond, Kentucky, in intercollegiate...
college football head coaching record of 116–95–3. In his final year at WesternKentucky, he led the 2002 Hilltoppers to an NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship...
Tennessee Blue Raiders footballteam of Middle Tennessee State University and WesternKentuckyHilltoppersfootballteam of WesternKentucky University. Fans...
programs, including the Kentucky Wildcats, the WesternKentuckyHilltoppers, and the Louisville Cardinals. The Wildcats, Hilltoppers, and Cardinals are among...
2014, Brohm was promoted to head coach of the WesternKentuckyHilltoppers. As head coach, he led the team to three bowl games, winning two of them. In...
original on September 17, 2008. Retrieved February 12, 2013. "WesternKentuckyHilltoppersFootball Schedules and Future Schedules". fbschedules.com. Retrieved...
attention of officials at WesternKentucky who offered him the coaching position at the college. He became WesternKentuckyHilltoppers basketball coach in...
Baptist Huskies and used his last year of eligibility with the WesternKentuckyHilltoppers, where he set the FBS season records for passing yards and passing...
fourth round of the 2003 NFL Draft. He played college football at Indiana University and WesternKentucky. Johnson was a standout for Ballard High School,...
State WesternKentucky The Battle for the Red Belt is an American college football rivalry between the WesternKentuckyHilltoppersfootballteam of Western...
football rivalries have historically been with the Eastern Kentucky Colonels and the WesternKentuckyHilltoppers. The rivalry with the Hilltoppers began...
faced off against the archrival WesternKentuckyHilltoppers on the road in Bowling Green, Kentucky. The Hilltoppers won the rivalry game 59-20 and went...
not have a football program. The modern era of Albany football began in 1970, when the school restored football as a club sport. The team was upgraded...
1957 to 1967, compiling a record of 57–39–7. His 1963 WesternKentuckyHilltoppersfootballteam went undefeated, winning the Ohio Valley Conference conference...
– October 5, 2014) was an American football player and coach. He served as head football coach at WesternKentucky University 1968 to 1983, compiling...
measure of a successful program. In addition to UK and UofL, the WesternKentuckyHilltoppers are also a historically successful basketball program. In 2011...
Global Information
