1980 Garden State Bowl
| 1980 Garden State Bowl | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Date | December 14, 1980 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Season | 1980 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Stadium | Giants Stadium | ||||||||||||||||||
| Location | East Rutherford, New Jersey | ||||||||||||||||||
| MVP | RB Terald Clark (Houston) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Attendance | 41,417 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Payout | US$400,000 | ||||||||||||||||||
The 1980 Garden State Bowl, part of the 1980 bowl game season, took place on December 14, 1980, at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The competing teams were the Navy Midshipmen, which competed as a football independent, and the Houston Cougars, representing the Southwest Conference (SWC). Houston dominated both sides of the ball in their 35–0 shutout of the Midshipmen. Despite playing in eight bowl games after the 1980 Garden State Bowl, this was Houston's last bowl game win until the 2008 Armed Forces Bowl, which marked the end of an eight game, bowl game losing streak.
The 1980 Houston squad finished their regular season 6–5 and tied for second place in the Southwest Conference. The Cougars lost to Arizona State, Miami (FL), Baylor, Texas and Rice. They accepted an invitation to play in the Garden State Bowl against Navy on November 15. The appearance was the first for Houston in the Garden State Bowl and their 10th overall bowl appearance.
The 1980 Navy squad finished their regular season 8–3. The Midshipmen lost to Virginia, Air Force and Notre Dame. They accepted an invitation to play in the Garden State Bowl against Houston on November 15 following their victory over Georgia Tech. The appearance was the first for Navy in the Garden State Bowl and their 8th overall bowl appearance.
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