1966 Washington State Cougars football team

The 1966 Washington State Cougars football team was an American football team that represented Washington State University in the Athletic Association of Western Universities (AAWU) during the 1966 NCAA University Division football season. Led by third-year head coach Bert Clark, the Cougars compiled a 3–7 record (1–3 in AAWU, tie for sixth), and were outscored 211 to 132.^[1][2] Two home games were played on campus at Rogers Field in Pullman, and three at Joe Albi Stadium in Spokane.

1966 Washington State Cougars football
Conference	Athletic Association of Western Universities
Record	3–7 (1–3 AAWU)
Head coach	Bert Clark (3rd season)
Home stadium	Rogers Field Joe Albi Stadium (Spokane)
Seasons ← 1965 1967 →

1966 Athletic Association of Western Universities football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
USC $	4	–	1	–	0			7	–	4	–	0
No. 5 UCLA	3	–	1	–	0			9	–	1	–	0
Oregon State	3	–	1	–	0			7	–	3	–	0
Washington	4	–	3	–	0			6	–	4	–	0
California	2	–	3	–	0			3	–	7	–	0
Oregon	1	–	3	–	0			3	–	7	–	0
Washington State	1	–	3	–	0			3	–	7	–	0
Stanford	1	–	4	–	0			5	–	5	–	0
$ – Conference champion Rankings from AP Poll

The team's statistical leaders included Jerry Henderson with 989 passing yards, Ammon McWashington with 298 rushing yards, and Doug Flansburg with 613 receiving yards.^[3]

The trip to the Houston Astrodome in September included a jet flight, the first for Cougar football.^[4] It was the first college football game played on artificial turf, the majority (baseball outfield) of the AstroTurf was installed two months earlier in July.^[5][6]

After consecutive losses in the Battle of the Palouse,^[7][8] WSU scored two late touchdowns to defeat Idaho 14–7 in the chilly mud at Neale Stadium on October 22;^[9][10][11] the Cougars have not played in neighboring Moscow since.

Washington State defeated Oregon in the final varsity football game at Hayward Field.^[12][13][14] In the rivlary game with Washington at Spokane,^[15][16] the Cougars lost for the eighth straight year.^[17][18][19]

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 17	California	Joe Albi Stadium Spokane, WA	L 6–21	23,300	[20][21][22]
September 23	at Houston*	Houston Astrodome Houston, TX	L 7–21	36,104	[4][23]
October 1	Baylor*	Joe Albi Stadium Spokane, WA	L 14–20	18,500–19,775
October 8	Arizona State*	Rogers Field Pullman, WA	W 24–15	18,700	[24]
October 15	at Utah*	Ute Stadium Salt Lake City, UT	L 15–26	20,051	[25]
October 22	at Idaho*	Neale Stadium Moscow, ID (Battle of the Palouse)	W 14–7	16,500	[9][10][11]
October 29	Oregon State	Rogers Field Pullman, WA	L 13–41	18,500	[26][27]
November 5	at Oregon	Hayward Field Eugene, OR	W 14–13	17,500	[12][13][14][28]
November 12	at Arizona*	Arizona Stadium Tucson, AZ	L 18–28	23,000	[29]
November 19	Washington	Joe Albi Stadium Spokane, WA (Apple Cup)	L 7-19	33,800	[17][18][19]
*Non-conference game Homecoming

Roster

1966 Washington State Cougars football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class FB 32 Del Carmichael Jr OT 78 Greg Elliot Jr SE 80 Doug Flansburg Jr FB 31 Ted Gerela Jr QB 12 Hank Grenda So QB 11 Jerry Henderson So G 67 Robin Larson Sr HB 45 Ammon McWashington Sr G 68 Dave Middendorf Jr QB 15 Dave Petersen Sr HB 40 Glen Shaw So TE 88 Rich Sheron Sr TE 42 Bob Simpson Jr OT 55 Dave Thomas Sr C 52 Ron Vrlicak Sr	Defense Pos. # Name Class MG 60 Jerry Anderson Jr LB 32 Dick Baird Jr DT 72 Burgess Bauder Sr LB 66 Steve Boots Jr S, QB 10 Mike Cadigan Jr DE 85 Craig Goodwin Jr LB 61 Larry Griffith Sr DB 44 Bud Norris Sr S 15 Dave Petersen Sr CB 14 Rick Reed So DE 83 John Thompson Jr MG 78 Bob Trygstad Sr DT 77 Steve Van Sinderen So LB 34 Mark Wicks Jr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class PK 31 Ted Gerela Jr P 84 Jim Engstrom Jr	Head coach Bert Clark (3rd year) Coordinators/assistant coaches Laurie Niemi King Block Red Smith Jim Shanley John Nelson Sam Adams Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

Source:^{[15][30][31][32][33]}

NFL/AFL Draft

Three Cougars were selected in the 1967 NFL/AFL Draft.

Player	Position	Round	Overall	Franchise
Rich Sheron	TE	2	37	New York Jets
Bud Norris	TE	6	138	Miami Dolphins
Bob Trygstad	DT	11	271	Minnesota Vikings

^[34][35]

References

1. "1966 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. "1966 Washington State Cougars Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved October 25, 2016.
4. Spoerhase, Jim (September 23, 1966). "Rugged test seen for Cougars". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). p. 13.
5. "Phils, Astros plan tonight on artificial grass". Reading Eagle. (Pennsylvania). Associated Press. July 19, 1966. p. 23.
6. "Phils find Farrell, turf unfriendly". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. July 20, 1966. p. 3C.
7. "WSU pins hopes on untried soph". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). October 21, 1966. p. 15.
8. Payne, Bob (October 22, 1966). "Name of game is 'Knock': Cougs, Vandals make war". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. 10.
9. Missildine, Harry (October 23, 1966). "Glen Shaw's sprint defeats Vandals". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. 1, sports.
10. Wilson, Mike (October 23, 1966). "WSU scores twice in fourth quarter to beat Idaho". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). p. 12.
11. Spoerhase, Jim (October 24, 1966). "Rally by Cougars trips Idaho 14-7". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). p. 17.
12. Missildine, Harry (November 6, 1966). "Ducks miscount, Cougars win 14-13". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. 1, sports.
13. Uhrhammer, Jerry (November 6, 1966). "Ducks lose count, game". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). p. 1B.
14. Tims, Marvin (November 6, 1966). "Hayward Field ends its days on a sad note". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). p. 1A.
15. "Cougar, Husky seniors in final game". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). (photos). November 19, 1966. p. 1.
16. Missildine, Harry (November 19, 1966). "Do cycles end at seven years? Underdog Cougars seek answer". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. 10.
17. "Fumbling Cougars lose to Huskies". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). November 20, 1966. p. 1, sports.
18. "Four field goals spark Huskies' win". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. November 20, 1966. p. 11.
19. Spoerhase, Jim (November 21, 1966). "Huskies kick Cougars 19-7; talented toe does big job". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). p. 14.
20. "WSU team favored to beat California". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). September 16, 1966. p. 17.
21. Missildine, Harry (September 18, 1966). "Cal whips WSU; Guest scats 108". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. 1, sports.
22. Spoerhase, Jim (September 19, 1966). "Clark faces big chore". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). p. 17.
23. Spoerhase, Jim (September 24, 1966). "WSU eleven downed again; tough Baylor is next foe". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). p. 11.
24. "Sun Devil mistakes help Cougar victory". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. October 9, 1966. p. 1, sports.
25. "Utah beats WSU 26–15". The Sunday Herald. October 16, 1966. Retrieved September 15, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
26. Missildine, Harry (October 30, 1966). "Beavers rip Cougars, Idaho falls". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. 1, sports.
27. Wilson, Mike (October 30, 1966). "Beavers swamp Cougars". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). p. 12.
28. "4th-down failure assists WSU win". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). November 7, 1966. p. 17.
29. "Arizona races past WSU 28–18". The Tacoma News Tribune. November 13, 1966. Retrieved September 15, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
30. Uhrhammer, Jerry (November 4, 1966). "Webfoots have score to settle with WSU". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). p. 3B.
31. "WSU vs. OSU". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). October 28, 1966. p. 13.
32. "WSU vs. UW". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). (probable starters, rosters). November 19, 1966. p. 10.
33. "2008 Football media guide" (PDF). Washington State University Athletics. 2008. pp. 172–191. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
34. "Big Ray's happy with draft result". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). March 15, 1967. p. 15.
35. "Pro grid teams tab hoop stars". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). Associated Press. March 16, 1967. p. 37.

External links

• Game program: California vs. WSU at Spokane – September 17, 1966
• Game program: Baylor vs. WSU at Spokane – October 1, 1966
• Game program: Arizona State at WSU – October 8, 1966
• Game program: WSU at Utah – October 15, 1966
• Game program: Oregon State at WSU – October 29, 1966
• Game program: Washington vs. WSU at Spokane – November 19, 1966