re: How did you 80s baws watch games?

Night and day until today. With that said everyone should listen to a game on radio from start to finish sometime.

The 70s were more challenging that the 80s (and I'm sure the 60s.50s..etc) were ,too. During the regular season there was one option: ABC. About half of the time there would be one 'national game.' It might be Georgia-Florida, or it might be UCLA-California or Penn State vs NC State. That was it.Over the decade they started doing more double headers with the 'national game' and then regional games. Plus, a team could only be on TV twice a year and from time to time three times in two years.

As for radio if you have a game program from the last few years you'll see that maybe 10 stations carry LSU football. In the 1970s and 80s if you still have a program from then and look at the radio page, there must have been close to 50 stations in Louisiana carrying LSU football (sponsored by your independent Texaco dealer, State Farm,,,,from Bossier City to Bogalusa, State Farm is there.. and Ground Pati', hungry? Ground Pati' ) Even with WWL and the station in Shreveport most small towns had a station that carried the Tigers (and it was simliar in other states with Alabama,Tennessee,Georgia,etc). In fact, LSU was truck drivers favorite or second favorite team.A lot of truck drivers would listen to LSU night games on WWL and then listen to the "The Chuck Wagon Gang" an all night country and gospel music show . (imagine on the way home from Tiger Stadium hearing Gospel music instead of Hanny )

One more thing about radio in the 1970s (and a little in to the 80s) was "The Pick of Dixie" radion network. It was pretty clever and for those of us without satellite radio I wish there was still a version. Much like how someone mentioned how "MizLou TV" worked this was similar. A collection of stations across the Southeast would tie in to the broadcast of the 'home team's crew of a game across the South. This was only at night so at ton of LSU games were broadcast with John Ferguson and Walter Hill) Every now and then there would be a Miss State,Tulane or Miami game.

80s opened up for TV more. Oklahoma and Georgia sued the NCAA and won forcing more TV games and school say so. ESPN started in 1979 but would show games two to three days later on delay.USA network did that to an extent. In 1982 CBS started showing games in addition to ABC. Also WTBS showed a few live games at night generally involving an SEC team. In 1984 WTBS began the 'SEC Game of the Week' which evolved into Jefferson-Pilot and other companies.

Free

Young people today thinks listening to the game on the radio was some great hardship. It was actually awesome. LSU's radio guys were pretty good. Caught the game on WWL, 100.7 (the old LSU tiger radio), 98.1 the Eagle, and even o 96.9 KZMZ in Alexandria. Point is, several radio stations across the state carried it, so you could hear it at the deer camp, at home, or out on the road.
Many fond memories sitting around a campfire with the men and listening to the game.

Living in Michigan in the mid 70's, I had to go out and sit in my car with the engine running to stay warm in freezing weather, and listened to the New Orleans station that was strong enough to reach Michigan. Looking back, I can't believe I actually did that every Saturday night during the season.