The Green Wave played home games in the Louisiana Superdome.
The team finished with a record of 9–3 and played in the 1979 Liberty Bowl, losing 6–9 to Penn State.
Two members of the Green Wave team were drafted into the National Football League.
The Wave opened the season by smashing Stanford 33-10, spoiling John Elway's collegiate debut.
In the 77th edition of the Battle for the Rag, Tulane beat LSU 24–13 in what was LSU coach Charles McClendon's final regular season game after 18 seasons.