Standings
| Overall | Conference | Points Per Game | SRS | Polls | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| School | W | L | T | Pct | W | L | T | Pct | Off | Def | SRS | SOS | AP Pre | AP High | AP Rank | Notes |
| Michigan | 10 | 2 | 0 | .833 | 7 | 1 | 0 | .875 | 31.0 | 8.8 | 21.25 | 6.42 | 6 | 3 | 5 | |
| Michigan State | 8 | 3 | 0 | .727 | 7 | 1 | 0 | .875 | 37.4 | 15.5 | 18.39 | 5.48 | 12 | 12 | ||
| Purdue | 9 | 2 | 1 | .792 | 6 | 1 | 1 | .813 | 21.8 | 10.8 | 13.08 | 3.25 | 12 | 13 | ||
| Ohio State | 7 | 4 | 1 | .625 | 6 | 2 | 0 | .750 | 28.3 | 18.0 | 12.99 | 6.40 | 7 | 6 | ||
| Minnesota | 5 | 6 | 0 | .455 | 4 | 4 | 0 | .500 | 19.1 | 24.3 | 0.11 | 2.84 | ||||
| Wisconsin | 5 | 4 | 2 | .545 | 3 | 4 | 2 | .444 | 20.3 | 25.2 | 3.64 | 3.92 | ||||
| Indiana | 4 | 7 | 0 | .364 | 3 | 5 | 0 | .375 | 20.7 | 26.4 | 3.73 | 6.82 | ||||
| Iowa | 2 | 9 | 0 | .182 | 2 | 6 | 0 | .250 | 11.4 | 26.5 | -5.50 | 7.50 | ||||
| Illinois | 1 | 8 | 2 | .182 | 0 | 6 | 2 | .125 | 9.4 | 28.8 | -6.15 | 8.22 | ||||
| Northwestern | 0 | 10 | 1 | .045 | 0 | 8 | 1 | .056 | 8.4 | 40.0 | -13.60 | 7.31 | ||||
3 Bowl Games
- Number in parentheses indicates AP rank at time of bowl game
| Date | Bowl | Pts | Pts | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1979-01-01 | Rose Bowl | Southern California (3) | 17 | Michigan (5) | 10 | Pasadena, CA |
| 1978-12-29 | Gator Bowl | Clemson (7) | 17 | Ohio State (20) | 15 | Jacksonville, FL |
| 1978-12-25 | Peach Bowl | Purdue (17) | 41 | Georgia Tech | 21 | Atlanta, GA |
Award Winners
| Award | Name | School |
|---|---|---|
| Big Ten Coach of the Year | Jim Young | Purdue |
1978 Conference Leaders