SAN ANGELO – The Angelo State athletic department has announced that the 1978 Ram football national championship team will be the lone inductee into the ASU Athletics Hall of Honor second induction ceremony of 2015.
This will be the second team honored in the Angelo State Athletics Hall of Honor history. The first was the 1957 Ram national championship basketball team. The 1978 Ram football team's induction will help transition the induction ceremony from the spring into the fall in conjunction with a home football game every year. This fall's induction ceremony will be held on Friday, Oct. 30 at the C.J. Davidson at the Houston Harte University Center.
The 1978 Ram team will become just the second team inducted into Hall of Honor. ASU went 14-0 in 1978 and defeated Elon College in the NAIA championship game 34-14 to secure the first football national championship in school history.It was the first NAIA playoff appearance for the Rams and the first Lone Star Conference football title in school history. The Rams won the conference title by going 7-0 and winning a tough battle with Texas A&I 21-19. ASU held a 21-7 lead with 14:36Â left to play in the fourth quarter. The Javelinas scored twice but tried for two after both touchdowns and failed.
The 14 wins are the most wins in a single season in ASU history and the 1978 team is the only team to go undefeated in a season. Â
Two players Jerry Aldridge, Clayton Weishuhn and three coaches Jim Hess, Jerry Vandergriff and Mike Martin from that team are currently in the Hall of Honor.
The 1978 Rams staff included head coach, Jim Hess, assistant coaches Jerry Vandergriff, Mike Martin, Harold Mayo, Si Southall, graduate assistants Howard Wells, Tim Clarke, Lynn Leonard and head athletic trainer Randy Matthews.
1978 Results
| Angelo State | 42 | Central State (Okla.) | 13 |
| Angelo State | 40 | Eastern New Mexico | 0 |
| Angelo State | 42 | Sam Houston State | 13 |
| Angelo State | 14 | East Central Oklahoma | 7 |
| Angelo State | 15 | S.F. Austin State* | 3 |
| Angelo State | 33 | Abilene Christian* | 8 |
| Angelo State | 38 | Howard Payne* | 22 |
| Angelo State | 21 | Texas A&I* | 19 |
| Angelo State | 29 | Southwest Texas State* | 6 |
| Angelo State | 44 | Sam Houston State* | 17 |
| Angelo State | 35 | East Texas State* | 14 |
| Angelo State | 32 | Oregon College# | 0 |
| Angelo State | 35 | Western State (Colo.) # | 3 |
| Angelo State | 34 | Elon (N.C.)## | 14 |
*- Lone Star Conference Game
# - NAIA Playoff Games
## - NAIA National Championship Game
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