1968 Washington State Cougars football team
1968 Washington State Cougars football | |
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Conference | Pacific-8 Conference |
Record | 3–6–1 (1–3–1 Pac-8) |
Head coach |
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Home stadium | Rogers Field, Joe Albi Stadium |
Seasons |
| Conf | Overall | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 4 USC $ | 6 | – | 0 | – | 0 | 9 | – | 1 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 15 Oregon State | 5 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 7 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Stanford | 3 | – | 3 | – | 1 | 6 | – | 3 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
California | 2 | – | 2 | – | 1 | 7 | – | 3 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Oregon | 2 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 4 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
UCLA | 2 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 3 | – | 7 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Washington State | 1 | – | 3 | – | 1 | 3 | – | 6 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Washington | 1 | – | 5 | – | 1 | 3 | – | 5 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The 1968 Washington State Cougars football team was an American football team that represented Washington State University in the Pacific-8 Conference (Pac-8) during the 1968 NCAA University Division football season. In their first season under head coach Jim Sweeney, the Cougars compiled a 3–6–1 record (1–3–1 in Pac-8, seventh), and outscored their opponents 189 to 188.[1][2] The final two games were shutout victories.
The team's statistical leaders included Jerry Henderson with 1,586 passing yards, Richard Lee Smith with 326 rushing yards, and Johnny Davis with 421 receiving yards.[3]
The Cougars won a second straight Apple Cup from rival Washington, shutting out the Huskies 24–0 in Spokane.[4] This was the last time that this rivalry game was played on natural grass.[5] WSU played only five conference games, missing California and USC. Of the Cougars' five home games, three were played in Spokane.
Sweeney was hired in early January; he was previously the head coach for five seasons at Montana State in Bozeman.[6][7][8] He retained alumnus Laurie Niemi on the staff, but Niemi died from cancer at age 42 in February.[9][10][11]
Schedule
Date | Opponent | Site | Result | Attendance | Source |
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September 21 | Idaho* | W 14–7 | 23,612 | [12] | |
September 28 | at No. 8 UCLA | L 21–31 | 41,759 | [13][14] | |
October 5 | Utah* |
| L 14–17 | 16,503 | |
October 12 | at Arizona State* | L 14–41 | 36,226 | ||
October 19 | No. 14 Stanford |
| T 21–21 | 15,700 | |
October 26 | Oregon State![]() |
| L 8–16 | 20,781 | [15][16] |
November 2 | at Arizona* | L 14–28 | 31,400 | ||
November 9 | at Oregon | L 13–27 | 23,000 | [17][18][19] | |
November 16 | at San Jose State* | W 46–0 | 8,450 | [20] | |
November 23 | Washington |
| W 24–0 | 31,986 | [21][22] |
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Roster
1968 Washington State Cougars football team roster | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Players | Coaches | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Offense
| Defense
| Special teams
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- Source:[23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30][31]
NFL/AFL draft
One Cougar was selected in the 1969 NFL/AFL draft.
Player | Position | Round | Overall | Franchise |
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Steve Van Sinderen | Tackle | 7 | 172 | San Francisco 49ers |
[32][33]
References
- ^ "1968 Washington State Cougars Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved October 25, 2016.
- ^ "2016 Media Guide" (PDF). WSUCougars.com. Washington State Cougars Athletics. p. 76. Retrieved October 25, 2016.
- ^ "1968 Washington State Cougars Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved October 25, 2016.
- ^ Brown, Bruce (November 25, 1968). "Cougars plan talent hunt after stunning Husky foe". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). p. 29.
- ^ "Good weather but soft field seen for test". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). November 22, 1968. p. 19.
- ^ Missildine, Harry (January 6, 1968). "New WSU coach Sweeney faces task with optimism". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. 10.
- ^ "Omen indicates fortune of Cougars may brighten". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). January 6, 1968. p. 13.
- ^ "Sweeney new head football coach at Washington State University". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). January 6, 1968. p. 9.
- ^ "Laurie Niemi dies of cancer at 42". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). February 20, 1968. p. 16.
- ^ "Cancer claims Niemi; ex-Cougar dies at 42". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). February 20, 1968. p. 16.
- ^ "Ex-football star dies of cancer". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). February 20, 1968. p. 1.
- ^ Wilson, Mike (September 22, 1968). "Jerry Henderson passes Cougars by Vandals". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). p. 10.
- ^ Brown, Bruce (September 28, 1968). "Cougars buck big odds". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). p. 10.
- ^ Brown, Bruce (September 30, 1968). "Home game next for WSU after solid UCLA showing". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). p. 17.
- ^ "Enyart paces Beavers' win". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). October 27, 1968. p. 1B.
- ^ "Preece, Enyart help Beavers spoil Cougars' Homecoming". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). October 27, 1968. p. 15.
- ^ Uhrhammer, Jerry (November 10, 1968). "Olson's passes, runs trip WSU". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). p. 1B.
- ^ Missildine, Harry (November 10, 1968). "Eric Olson guides Oregon to 27–13 win over Cougars". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. 1, sports.
- ^ "Olson sparks UO to win over WSU". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. November 10, 1968. p. 12.
- ^ "WSU find formula, beats Spartans 46-0". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. November 17, 1968. p. 10.
- ^ "Cougars clobber UW". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. November 24, 1968. p. 2B.
- ^ Ashmun, Chuck (November 24, 1968). "Cougars surprise Huskies with Grenda, win 2nd straight". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). p. 12.
- ^ "WSU vs. Idaho". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). (probable starting lineups, rosters). September 20, 1968. p. 16.
- ^ "Transplanted Battle of Palouse matches WSU-Idaho at Spokane". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). September 21, 1968. p. 11.
- ^ "Cougars vs. Redskins: probable offensive starters". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). October 5, 1968. p. 11.
- ^ "Indians vs. Cougars: probable starters". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). October 19, 1968. p. 13.
- ^ "WSU vs. Oregon State". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). (probable offensive starters, rosters). October 25, 1968. p. 17.
- ^ "Probable lineups". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). November 8, 1968. p. 3B.
- ^ "Huskies-Cougars: probable starters". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). November 23, 1968. p. 12.
- ^ Ashmun, Chuck (November 23, 1968). "Cougars, Huskies to play for Big Apple Trophy". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). p. 10.
- ^ "2008 Football media guide" (PDF). Washington State University Athletics. 2008. pp. 172–191. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
- ^ "San Diego, Dallas pull surprises in annual football player draft". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. January 29, 1969. p. 11.
- ^ "17 are selected from NW area". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). January 30, 1969. p. 24.
External links
- Game program: Idaho vs. WSU at Spokane – September 21, 1968
- Game program: Utah at WSU – October 5, 1968
- Game program: Stanford vs. WSU at Spokane – October 19. 1968
- Game program: Oregon State at WSU – October 26, 1968
- Game program: Washington vs. WSU at Spokane – November 23, 1968