1980 Cal Poly Mustangs football team

1980 Cal Poly Mustangs football
1980 Cal Poly Mustangs football
NCAA Division II champion; CCAA champion
NCAA Division II Championship Game—Zia Bowl, W 21–13 vs. Eastern Illinois
Conference	California Collegiate Athletic Association
Ranking
AP	No. 3 (NCAA Division II)
Record	10–3 (2–0 CCAA)
Head coach	Joe Harper (13th season);
Home stadium	Mustang Stadium
	Seasons ← 1979 1981 →

1980 California Collegiate Athletic Association football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
No. 3 Cal Poly $^	2	–	0	–	0	10	–	3	–	0
Cal State Northridge	1	–	1	–	0	5	–	6	–	0
Cal Poly Pomona	0	–	2	–	0	3	–	7	–	0

$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant Rankings from Associated Press poll

The 1980 Cal Poly Mustangs football team represented California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo as a member of the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) during the 1980 NCAA Division II football season. Led by 13th-year head coach Joe Harper, Cal Poly compiled an overall record of 10–3 with a mark of 2–0 in conference play, winning the CCAA title for the fifth consecutive season. The Mustangs advanced to the NCAA Division II Football Championship playoffs, where they shut out Jacksonville State in the quarterfinals, beat Santa Clara in the semifinals, and upset No. 1-ranked Eastern Illinois in the title game, the Zia Bowl played in Albuquerque, New Mexico. During the regular season, two of the Mustangs three losses came at the hands of NCAA Division I-A opponents, Cal State Fullerton and Fresno State. Cal Poly also beat Boise State, the eventual NCAA Division I-AA champion. The Mustangs played home games at Mustang Stadium in San Luis Obispo, California.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 13	at Northern Colorado*		Jackson Field Greeley, CO	W 17–16	1,309	^[1]
September 20	Cal State Fullerton*		Mustang Stadium San Luis Obispo, CA	L 23–30	7,160	^[2]
September 27	at UC Davis*		Toomey Field Davis, CA (rivalry)	W 28–25	8,900–9,000	^[3]
October 4	at Fresno State*		Ratcliffe Stadium Fresno, CA	L 25–31	15,221	^[4]
October 11	at No. 5 Santa Clara*	No. 10	Buck Shaw Stadium Santa Clara, CA	W 42–28	7,200
October 25	Puget Sound*	No. 7	Mustang Stadium San Luis Obispo, CA	W 24–0	6,080	^[5]
November 1	Cal State Northridge	No. 5	Mustang Stadium San Luis Obispo, CA	W 35–6	8,170	^[6]
November 8	at Cal Poly Pomona	No. 4	Claremont Alumni Field Claremont, CA	W 36–0	4,781
November 15	No. 5 (I-AA) Boise State*	No. 4	Mustang Stadium San Luis Obispo, CA	W 23–20	8,330	^[7]
November 22	Sacramento State*	No. 3	Mustang Stadium San Luis Obispo, CA	L 19–24	5,470
November 29	No. 4 Jacksonville State*	No. 3	Mustang Stadium San Luis Obispo, CA (NCAA Division II Quarterfinal)	W 15–0	4,380	^[8]
December 6	No. 7 Santa Clara*	No. 3	Mustang Stadium San Luis Obispo, CA (NCAA Division II Semifinal)	W 38–14	6,650	^[9]
December 13	No. 1 Eastern Illinois*	No. 3	University Stadium Albuquerque, NM (NCAA Division II Championship Game—Zia Bowl)	W 21–13	2,056	^[10]
*Non-conference game Rankings from Associated Press Poll released prior to the game

^[11]^[12]^[13]

Team players in the NFL

The following Cal Poly Mustang players were selected in the 1981 NFL draft.^[14]^[15]

Player	Position	Round	Overall	NFL team
Robbie Martin	Wide receiver	4	100	Pittsburgh Steelers
Louis Jackson	Running back	7	168	New York Giants
Mike Daum	Tackle	7	179	Miami Dolphins

The following finished their college career in 1980, were not drafted, but played in the NFL.

Player	Position	First NFL team
LeCharls McDaniel	Defensive back	1981 Washington Redskins
Mel Kaufman	Linebacker	1981 Washington Redskins

References

^ "Gabriel's Team Bows in Opener". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. September 14, 1980. p. III-18. Retrieved March 31, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
^ Pete Donovan (September 21, 1980). "Titans Off and Running, Win Again". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. p. III-1. Retrieved February 10, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Final 1980 Cumulative Football Statistics Report". National Collegiate Athletic Association. Retrieved May 12, 2022.
^ "'Dogs corral Mustangs, 31–25, with record throng watching". The The Fresno Bee. October 5, 1980. Retrieved November 5, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Cal Poly Poly (sic) Pomona Buried, 93-7". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. October 26, 1980. p. 54. Retrieved March 18, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Azusa Rolls Past Chapman, 51-7". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. November 2, 1980. p. III-1. Retrieved February 21, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "2015 Boise State Football Media Guide". Boise State University Athletics. 2015. p. 157. Retrieved February 14, 2017.
^ "Cal Poly nails Jax". The Anniston Star. November 30, 1980. Retrieved November 29, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Cal Poly SLO Makes It to Division II Final". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. December 7, 1980. p. III-16. Retrieved February 21, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Cal Poly SLO Wins Title". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. December 14, 1980. p. III-15. Retrieved February 21, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Final 1980 Cumulative Football Statistics Report". National Collegiate Athletic Association. Retrieved June 13, 2022.
^ "Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo Yearly Results". Archived from the original on September 1, 2018. Retrieved January 12, 2017.
^ "Cal Poly Football; 2016 Media Guide". Retrieved January 12, 2017.
^ "1981 NFL Draft". Archived from the original on December 21, 2007. Retrieved January 12, 2017.
^ "Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo Players/Alumni". Retrieved January 12, 2017.

[1] "Gabriel's Team Bows in Opener". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. September 14, 1980. p. III-18. Retrieved March 31, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.

[2] Pete Donovan (September 21, 1980). "Titans Off and Running, Win Again". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. p. III-1. Retrieved February 10, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.

[3] "Final 1980 Cumulative Football Statistics Report". National Collegiate Athletic Association. Retrieved May 12, 2022.

[4] "'Dogs corral Mustangs, 31–25, with record throng watching". The The Fresno Bee. October 5, 1980. Retrieved November 5, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.

[5] "Cal Poly Poly (sic) Pomona Buried, 93-7". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. October 26, 1980. p. 54. Retrieved March 18, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.

[6] "Azusa Rolls Past Chapman, 51-7". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. November 2, 1980. p. III-1. Retrieved February 21, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.

[7] "2015 Boise State Football Media Guide". Boise State University Athletics. 2015. p. 157. Retrieved February 14, 2017.

[8] "Cal Poly nails Jax". The Anniston Star. November 30, 1980. Retrieved November 29, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.

[9] "Cal Poly SLO Makes It to Division II Final". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. December 7, 1980. p. III-16. Retrieved February 21, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.

[10] "Cal Poly SLO Wins Title". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. December 14, 1980. p. III-15. Retrieved February 21, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.

[11] "Final 1980 Cumulative Football Statistics Report". National Collegiate Athletic Association. Retrieved June 13, 2022.

[12] "Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo Yearly Results". Archived from the original on September 1, 2018. Retrieved January 12, 2017.

[13] "Cal Poly Football; 2016 Media Guide". Retrieved January 12, 2017.

[14] "1981 NFL Draft". Archived from the original on December 21, 2007. Retrieved January 12, 2017.

[15] "Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo Players/Alumni". Retrieved January 12, 2017.

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v t e Cal Poly Mustangs football
Venues	Alex G. Spanos Stadium (1935–present)
Bowls & rivalries	UC Davis: Battle for the Golden Horseshoe
Culture & lore	Musty the Mustang "Ride High You Mustangs" Mustang Band Cal Poly football team C-46 crash
People	Head coaches NFL draftees
Seasons	1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943–1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
National championship seasons in bold

v t e NCAA Division II football champions
1970s	1973: Louisiana Tech 1974: Central Michigan 1975: Northern Michigan 1976: Montana State 1977: Lehigh 1978: Eastern Illinois 1979: Delaware
1980s	1980: Cal Poly 1981: Southwest Texas State 1982: Southwest Texas State 1983: North Dakota State 1984: Troy State 1985: North Dakota State 1986: North Dakota State 1987: Troy State 1988: North Dakota State 1989: Mississippi College (vacated)
1990s	1990: North Dakota State 1991: Pittsburg State 1992: Jacksonville State 1993: North Alabama 1994: North Alabama 1995: North Alabama 1996: Northern Colorado 1997: Northern Colorado 1998: Northwest Missouri State 1999: Northwest Missouri State
2000s	2000: Delta State 2001: North Dakota 2002: Grand Valley State 2003: Grand Valley State 2004: Valdosta State 2005: Grand Valley State 2006: Grand Valley State 2007: Valdosta State 2008: Minnesota–Duluth 2009: Northwest Missouri State
2010s	2010: Minnesota–Duluth 2011: Pittsburg State 2012: Valdosta State 2013: Northwest Missouri State 2014: CSU–Pueblo 2015: Northwest Missouri State 2016: Northwest Missouri State 2017: Texas A&M–Commerce 2018: Valdosta State 2019: West Florida
2020s	2020: No champion 2021: Ferris State 2022: Ferris State 2023: Harding