1968 Washington State Cougars football team

1968 Washington State Cougars football
Conference	Pacific-8 Conference
Record	3–6–1 (1–3–1 Pac-8)
Head coach	Jim Sweeney (1st season)
Home stadium	Rogers Field, Joe Albi Stadium

1968 Pacific-8 Conference football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
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
$ – Conference champion Rankings from AP Poll

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
September 21	Idaho*	Joe Albi Stadium Spokane, WA (Battle of the Palouse)	W 14–7	23,612	[12]
September 28	at No. 8 UCLA	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA	L 21–31	41,759	[13][14]
October 5	Utah*	Rogers Field Pullman, WA	L 14–17	16,503	[15]
October 12	at Arizona State*	Sun Devil Stadium Tempe, AZ	L 14–41	36,226	[16]
October 19	No. 14 Stanford	Joe Albi Stadium Spokane, WA	T 21–21	15,700	[17]
October 26	Oregon State	Rogers Field Pullman, WA	L 8–16	20,781	[18][19]
November 2	at Arizona*	Arizona Stadium Tucson, AZ	L 14–28	31,400	[20]
November 9	at Oregon	Autzen Stadium Eugene, OR	L 13–27	23,000	[21][22][23]
November 16	at San Jose State*	Spartan Stadium San Jose, CA	W 46–0	8,450	[24]
November 23	Washington	Joe Albi Stadium Spokane, WA (Apple Cup)	W 24–0	31,986	[25][26]
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Roster

1968 Washington State Cougars football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class SE 42 Ed Armstrong So FB 32 Del Carmichael Sr QB 10 Hank Grenda Sr OT 73 Dave Golinsky Sr OT 70 Jim Guinn Sr G 76 Ty Hansell Jr C 50 Dave Harris Sr G 62 Jim Hellyer Jr QB 12 Jerry Henderson Sr G 66 Bill McCain Sr QB 11 Rich Olson So HB 21 Richard Smith Jr TE 81 Ron Souza Sr SE 45 Larry Thatcher Sr QB 13 Jack Wigmore So OT 77 Steve Van Sinderen Sr	Defense Pos. # Name Class LB 21 Steve Bartelle Sr DT 71 Dave Berger Jr MG 65 Hank Bendix Jr DT 75 Gary Branson Jr DE 82 Dave Crema Jr LB 58 Terry Durst So CB 26 Greg Field Sr LB 64 Jim Gorton Sr S 31 Jim Peterson Jr CB 23 Rick Reed Sr DB 40 Dick Schultz Sr S 44 Steve Shoun Jr DE 91 J.D. Smith Sr DE 93 Wayne Swayda Sr CB 20 Mark Williams Sr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class PK, P 10 Hank Grenda Sr	Head coach Jim Sweeney (1st year) Coordinators/assistant coaches Sam Jankovich (AHC) Pinky Erickson (freshmen) Jim Erkenbeck (DL) Sonny Holland (OL) Jim Shanley (DB) Don Lindsey (OB) Hugh Campbell (E) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

Source:^{[27][28][29][30][31][32][33][34][35]}

NFL/AFL draft

One Cougar was selected in the 1969 NFL/AFL draft.

Player	Position	Round	Overall	Franchise
Steve Van Sinderen	Tackle	7	172	San Francisco 49ers

^[36][37]

References

1. "1968 Washington State Cougars Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved October 25, 2016.
2. "2016 Media Guide" (PDF). WSUCougars.com. Washington State Cougars Athletics. p. 76. Retrieved October 25, 2016.
3. "1968 Washington State Cougars Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved October 25, 2016.
4. Brown, Bruce (November 25, 1968). "Cougars plan talent hunt after stunning Husky foe". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). p. 29.
5. "Good weather but soft field seen for test". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). November 22, 1968. p. 19.
6. Missildine, Harry (January 6, 1968). "New WSU coach Sweeney faces task with optimism". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. 10.
7. "Omen indicates fortune of Cougars may brighten". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). January 6, 1968. p. 13.
8. "Sweeney new head football coach at Washington State University". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). January 6, 1968. p. 9.
9. "Laurie Niemi dies of cancer at 42". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). February 20, 1968. p. 16.
10. "Cancer claims Niemi; ex-Cougar dies at 42". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). February 20, 1968. p. 16.
11. "Ex-football star dies of cancer". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). February 20, 1968. p. 1.
12. Wilson, Mike (September 22, 1968). "Jerry Henderson passes Cougars by Vandals". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). p. 10.
13. Brown, Bruce (September 28, 1968). "Cougars buck big odds". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). p. 10.
14. Brown, Bruce (September 30, 1968). "Home game next for WSU after solid UCLA showing". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). p. 17.
15. "Utah wins see-saw battle with Cougs". The Bellingham Herald. October 6, 1968. Retrieved September 14, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
16. "Arizona State rolls to 41–14 win over Washington State". The Sacramento Bee. October 13, 1968. Retrieved September 14, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
17. "Stanford escapes with tie". The Spokesman-Review. October 20, 1968. Retrieved September 14, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
18. "Enyart paces Beavers' win". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). October 27, 1968. p. 1B.
19. "Preece, Enyart help Beavers spoil Cougars' Homecoming". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). October 27, 1968. p. 15.
20. "WSU falls to Arizona". Statesman Journal. November 3, 1968. Retrieved September 14, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
21. Uhrhammer, Jerry (November 10, 1968). "Olson's passes, runs trip WSU". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). p. 1B.
22. Missildine, Harry (November 10, 1968). "Eric Olson guides Oregon to 27–13 win over Cougars". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. 1, sports.
23. "Olson sparks UO to win over WSU". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. November 10, 1968. p. 12.
24. "WSU find formula, beats Spartans 46-0". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. November 17, 1968. p. 10.
25. "Cougars clobber UW". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. November 24, 1968. p. 2B.
26. Ashmun, Chuck (November 24, 1968). "Cougars surprise Huskies with Grenda, win 2nd straight". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). p. 12.
27. "WSU vs. Idaho". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). (probable starting lineups, rosters). September 20, 1968. p. 16.
28. "Transplanted Battle of Palouse matches WSU-Idaho at Spokane". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). September 21, 1968. p. 11.
29. "Cougars vs. Redskins: probable offensive starters". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). October 5, 1968. p. 11.
30. "Indians vs. Cougars: probable starters". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). October 19, 1968. p. 13.
31. "WSU vs. Oregon State". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). (probable offensive starters, rosters). October 25, 1968. p. 17.
32. "Probable lineups". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). November 8, 1968. p. 3B.
33. "Huskies-Cougars: probable starters". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). November 23, 1968. p. 12.
34. Ashmun, Chuck (November 23, 1968). "Cougars, Huskies to play for Big Apple Trophy". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). p. 10.
35. "2008 Football media guide" (PDF). Washington State University Athletics. 2008. pp. 172–191. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
36. "San Diego, Dallas pull surprises in annual football player draft". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. January 29, 1969. p. 11.
37. "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