NFL game summary for 12/29/1979:

The Oilers advanced to their second straight AFC championship game on the strength of an opportunistic defense and a near-flawless performance by the offensive unit. First year strong safety Vernon Perry set up 10 of the Oilers' 17 points with a postseason game record of four interceptions and a 57-yard blocked field goal return. Second year quarterback Gifford Nielsen and third year running back Rob Carpenter started for regulars Dan Pastorini and Earl Campbell, who were sidelined with groin injuries. The Oilers intercepted AFC passing leader Dan Fouts five times, including one by J. C. Wilson that led to the game-winning touchdown. Nielsen, making his first NFL postseason start, completed a 47-yard scoring pass to Mike Renfro with 12:55 elapsed in the third period to provide the winning margin. The loss eliminated the AFC West champion Chargers, who were making their first postseason appearance since 1965.

Team stats coming into this game (NFL ranks in parentheses):

Team		Rush Yds/Gm	Pass Yds/Gm	Tot Yds/Gm	Turnovers
Houston Oilers	OFFENSE	160.7  (4)	141.0  (25)	301.7  (22)	32
	DEFENSE	139.1  (17)	172.8  (14)	311.9  (13)	50
San Diego Chargers	OFFENSE	104.2  (27)	245.2  (1)	349.4  (5)	35
	DEFENSE	119.2  (8)	159.3  (7)	278.5  (5)	46

Line: Chargers by 8

Team	1	2	3	4	F
Houston Oilers (13-5-0)	0	10	7	0	17
San Diego Chargers (12-5-0)	7	0	7	0	14

( 0- 7) SD  Clarence Williams 1 yard rush (Mike Wood kick)
( 3- 7) HOU Toni Fritsch 26 yard field goal
(10- 7) HOU Boobie Clark 1 yard rush (Toni Fritsch kick)
(10-14) SD  Lydell Mitchell 8 yard rush (Mike Wood kick)
(17-14) HOU Mike Renfro 47 yard pass from Gifford Nielsen (Toni Fritsch kick)

                     HOU             SD
First Downs:         15              25
Rushes-yards:        40-148          19-63
Yards/rush:          3.7             3.3
Comp-Att-Yd-INT:     10-19-111-1     25-47-333-5
Sacked-yards:        0-0             2-16
Net pass yards:      111             317
Net yards/pass:      5.8             6.5
Total net yards:     259             380
Total plays:         59 (67% run)    68 (27% run)  
Yards/play:          4.4             5.6
Fumbles-lost:        0-0             0-0
Turnovers:           1               5
Penalties-yards:     5-45            6-30

Attendance: 51,192

Passing:
HOU: Gifford Nielsen, 10 of 19 for 111 yards and 1 TD (1 int)
SD: Dan Fouts, 25 of 47 for 333 yards (5 int)

Rushing:
HOU: Rob Carpenter, 18 for 67 yards; Tim Wilson, 11 for 39 yards; Boobie Clark, 9 for 30 yards and 1 TD; Gifford Nielsen, 2 for 12 yards
SD: Clarence Williams, 11 for 30 yards and 1 TD; Lydell Mitchell, 8 for 33 yards and 1 TD

Receiving:
HOU: Rob Carpenter, 4 for 23 yards; Tim Wilson, 3 for 16 yards; Mike Renfro, 1 for 47 yards and 1 TD; Ronnie Coleman, 1 for 13 yards; Mike Barber, 1 for 12 yards
SD: Bob Klein, 5 for 41 yards; Charlie Joiner, 4 for 81 yards; John Jefferson, 4 for 70 yards; Clarence Williams, 4 for 30 yards; Lydell Mitchell, 4 for 26 yards; John Floyd, 3 for 51 yards; Greg McCrary, 1 for 34 yards

Kick returns:
HOU: Carter Hartwig, 2 for 37 yards; Rich Ellender, 1 for 16 yards
SD: Artie Owens, 3 for 60 yards; Hank Bauer, 1 for 24 yards

Punt returns:
HOU: Rich Ellender, 1 for 25 yards
SD: Mike Fuller, 3 for 29 yards

Interceptions:
HOU: Vernon Perry, 4 for 0 yards; J.C. Wilson, 1 for 3 yards
SD: Mike Williams, 1 for 0 yards

Punting:
HOU: Cliff Parsley, 6 for 244 yards
SD: Jeff West, 2 for 64 yards

Field Goals:
HOU: Toni Fritsch, 1/1
SD: Mike Wood, 0/1

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