1997 Washington State Cougars football team
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The 1997 Washington State Cougars football team was an American football team that represented Washington State University in the Pacific-10 Conference (Pac-10) during the 1997 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their ninth season under head coach Mike Price, the Cougars went 10–1 in the regular season (7–1 in Pac-10), won the conference championship,[1] lost to #1 Michigan in the Rose Bowl,[2][3][4] and outscored their opponents 483 to 296.[5][6] They played their home games on campus at Martin Stadium in Pullman, Washington, and were ninth in the final rankings.
1997 Washington State Cougars football | |
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Pac-10 co-champion | |
Conference | Pacific-10 Conference |
Ranking | |
Coaches | No. 9 |
AP | No. 9 |
Record | 10–2 (7–1 Pac-10) |
Head coach |
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Offensive coordinator | Jim McDonell (4th season) |
Offensive scheme | Spread |
Defensive coordinator | Bill Doba (4th season) |
Base defense | 4–3 |
Home stadium | Martin Stadium |
Seasons |
Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Team | W | L | W | L | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 9 Washington State + | 7 | – | 1 | 10 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 5 UCLA + | 7 | – | 1 | 10 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 14 Arizona State | 6 | – | 2 | 9 | – | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 18 Washington | 5 | – | 3 | 8 | – | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Arizona | 4 | – | 4 | 7 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
USC | 4 | – | 4 | 6 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Oregon | 3 | – | 5 | 7 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Stanford | 3 | – | 5 | 5 | – | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
California | 1 | – | 7 | 3 | – | 8 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Oregon State | 0 | – | 8 | 3 | – | 8 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The team's statistical leaders included Ryan Leaf with 3,968 passing yards, Michael Black with 1,181 rushing yards, and Chris Jackson with 1,005 receiving yards.[7] Freshman defensive back Lamont Thompson led the team with 6 interceptions.[8]
The Rose Bowl appearance was the first for Washington State in 67 years;[1][9] the next was five years later.[10][11]
Leaf decided to forgo his remaining season of eligibility (1998) and entered the 1998 NFL draft,[12][13] where he was the second overall selection.[14][15][16]