1959 Washington State Cougars football team

The 1959 Washington State Cougars football team was an American football team that represented Washington State University as an independent during the 1959 college football season.^[1] In their fourth season under head coach Jim Sutherland, the Cougars compiled a 6–4 record and outscored their opponents 177 to 121.^[2][3]

1959 Washington State Cougars football
Conference	Independent
Record	6–4
Head coach	Jim Sutherland (4th season)
Home stadium	Rogers Field Memorial Stadium (Spokane)
Seasons ← 1958 1960 →

1959 NCAA University Division independents football records

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 1 Syracuse			–					11	–	0	–	0
No. 12 Penn State			–					9	–	2	–	0
Oregon			–					8	–	2	–	0
Detroit			–					6	–	4	–	0
Holy Cross			–					6	–	4	–	0
Miami (FL)			–					6	–	4	–	0
Oklahoma State			–					6	–	4	–	0
No. 20 Pittsburgh			–					6	–	4	–	0
Washington State			–					6	–	4	–	0
Boston College			–					5	–	4	–	0
Pacific (CA)			–					5	–	4	–	0
Air Force			–					5	–	4	–	1
Navy			–					5	–	4	–	1
Army			–					4	–	4	–	1
No. 17 Notre Dame			–					5	–	5	–	0
Boston University			–					4	–	5	–	0
Florida State			–					4	–	6	–	0
San Jose State			–					4	–	6	–	0
Texas Tech			–					4	–	6	–	0
Dayton			–					3	–	7	–	0
Marquette			–					3	–	7	–	0
Oregon State			–					3	–	7	–	0
Colgate			–					2	–	7	–	0
Idaho			–					1	–	9	–	0
Villanova			–					1	–	9	–	0
Rankings from AP Poll

The team's statistical leaders included Mel Melin with 526 passing yards, Keith Lincoln with 670 rushing yards, and Gail Cogdill with 531 receiving yards.^[4] The Cougars had only three home games this season: the season opener in Spokane (at night) and two on campus in Pullman.

This was the first season after the disbandment of the Pacific Coast Conference,^[1] and the first as "Washington State University."^[5][6] After three years as an independent, WSU became the sixth member of the AAWU in 1962.^[7]

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 19	8:00 p.m.	California	Memorial Stadium Spokane, WA	L 6–20	24,850	[8][9]
September 26		at San Jose State	Spartan Stadium San Jose, CA	W 30–6	15,500	[10]
October 3	1:30 p.m.	at Oregon	Hayward Field Eugene, OR	L 6–14	16,800	[11][12][13]
October 10		at Pacific (CA)	Pacific Memorial Stadium Stockton, CA	W 20–12	15,500
October 17		at Stanford	Stanford Stadium Stanford, CA	W 36–19	28,500
October 24	2:00 p.m.	Idaho	Rogers Field Pullman, WA (Battle of the Palouse)	W 27–5	19,200	[14][15]
October 31		at Oregon State	Parker Stadium Corvallis, OR	W 14–0	17,601	[16][17]
November 14	1:30 p.m.	No. 14 Oregon	Rogers Field Pullman, WA	L 6–7	15,500	[18][19][20][21]
November 21		at No. 14 Washington	Husky Stadium Seattle, WA (rivalry)	L 0–20	56,000	[22][23]
November 26		at Houston	Houston Stadium Houston, TX	W 32–18	6,000	[24]
Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Pacific time

NFL draft

Two Cougars were selected in the 1960 NFL draft, which was 20 rounds and 240 selections.

Player	Position	Round	Overall	Franchise
Gail Cogdill	End	6	63	Detroit Lions
Don Ellersick	Back	6	66	Los Angeles Rams

^[25][26]