The 1987 Washington State Cougars football team was an American football team that represented Washington State University in the Pacific-10 Conference (Pac-10) during the 1987 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their first season under head coach Dennis Erickson, the Cougars compiled a 3–7–1 record (1–5–1 in Pac-10, ninth), and were outscored 356 to 238.[1][2] Home games were played on campus at Martin Stadium in Pullman, Washington.
The team's statistical leaders included Timm Rosenbach with 2,446 passing yards, Richard Calvin with 822 rushing yards, and Steve Broussard with 701 receiving yards.[3]
After nine years as WSU head coach, Jim Walden departed for Iowa State in the Big Eight Conference in late 1986,[4][5][6] and was succeeded by Erickson, who returned to the Palouse in January 1987 after just one season at Wyoming; he had led neighboring Idaho for the previous four years.[7][8][9] Wyoming visited Pullman in the second week of the season, a 15-point Cougar victory.[10][11][12]
Schedule
Date | Opponent | Site | Result | Attendance | Source |
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September 5 | Fresno State* | | W 41–24 | 22,971 | [13] |
September 12 | Wyoming* | - Martin Stadium
- Pullman, WA
| W 43–28 | 24,151 | [10][11][12] |
September 19 | at No. 19 Michigan* | | L 18–44 | 103,521 | [14] |
September 26 | at Colorado* | | L 17–26 | 43,527 | [15] |
October 10 | Stanford | - Martin Stadium
- Pullman, WA
| L 7–44 | 31,538 | [16] |
October 17 | at Arizona State | | L 7–38 | 70,341 | [17] |
October 24 | Arizona | - Martin Stadium
- Pullman, WA
| W 45–28 | 22,269 | [18] |
October 31 | at USC | | L 7–42 | 24,834 | [19] |
November 14 | Oregon | - Martin Stadium
- Pullman, WA
| L 17–31 | 14,089 | [20] |
November 21 | at Washington | | L 19–34 | 74,038 | [21] |
November 28 | vs. California | | T 17–17 | 54,000 | [22] |
- *Non-conference game
- Homecoming
- Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
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Roster
1987 Washington State Cougars football team roster
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Players
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Coaches
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Offense
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Defense
Pos. |
# |
Name |
Class
|
DE
|
87
|
Marvin Adams
|
Sr
|
LB
|
55
|
Tuineau Alipate
|
Jr
|
DE
|
76
|
Ivan Cook
|
Jr
|
DT
|
97
|
Tim Downing
|
So
|
LB
|
57
|
Brian Forde
|
Sr
|
DE
|
96
|
Randy Gray
|
So
|
CB
|
41
|
James Hasty
|
Sr
|
DE
|
93
|
Chris Hiller
|
Sr
|
SS
|
19
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Artie Holmes
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Jr
|
CB
|
18
|
Shawn Landrum
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Jr
|
DB
|
10
|
Jay Languein
|
So
|
SS
|
42
|
Ron Lee
|
Jr
|
LB
|
40
|
Maury Metcalf
|
Jr
|
DB
|
37
|
Roosevelt Noble
|
So
|
DT
|
75
|
Tony Savage
|
So
|
LB
|
21
|
Neti Ulaga'ono
|
FS
|
29
|
Vernon Todd
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Jr
|
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Special teams
Pos. |
# |
Name |
Class
|
PK
|
4
|
Kevin Adams
|
Sr
|
P
|
45
|
Rob Myers
|
So
|
|
- Head coach
- Coordinators/assistant coaches
- Legend
- (C) Team captain
- (S) Suspended
- (I) Ineligible
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[23][24]
NFL draft
Two Cougars were selected in the 1988 NFL draft.
[25][26]
References
- ^ "1987 Washington State Cougars Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved October 24, 2016.
- ^ "2016 Media Guide" (PDF). WSUCougars.com. Washington State Cougars Athletics. p. 77. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 21, 2016. Retrieved October 24, 2016.
- ^ "1987 Washington State Cougars Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved October 24, 2016.
- ^ "Walden denies seeking job". Spokane Chronicle. (Washington). November 21, 1986. p. 21.
- ^ Devlin, Vince (December 16, 1986). "It's official: Walden's gone". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. B1.
- ^ Condotta, Bob (December 15, 1986). "Iowa State hires WSU's Walden". Idahonian. (Moscow). p. 1.
- ^ Grummert, Dale (January 8, 1987). "Erickson sets lofty goals for Cougars". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). p. C1.
- ^ Condotta, Bob (January 7, 1987). "Denny's dream comes true". Idahonian. (Moscow). p. 1.
- ^ Weaver, Dan (January 8, 1987). "Erickson followed his heart to WSU". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. C1.
- ^ a b Jacobson, Bryan (September 12, 1987). "Cougs, Cowboys are carbon copy". Idahonian. (Moscow). p. 1D.
- ^ a b "WSU deals Cowboys 43-28 loss". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. September 13, 1987. p. 6B.
- ^ a b Jacobson, Bryan (September 14, 1987). "Tough week for WSU's Erickson". Idahonian. (Moscow). p. 1B.
- ^ "Cougars maul Fresno State". Tri-City Herald. September 6, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "U-M passes Wash. St. examination". The Bay City Times. September 20, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Washington State beaten at Colorado, 26–17". The Columbian. September 27, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Stanford ruins WSU homecoming with a 44–7 thrashing of Cougars". The Columbian. October 11, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Arizona State shuts down Cougars". The Bellingham Herald. October 18, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Cougars claw Wildcats, 45–28". Tri-City Herald. October 25, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Webster stars as Trojans drown Cougars". Sunday News Chronicle. November 1, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Mistakes unravel WSU in 31–17 loss to Oregon". The Daily Herald. November 15, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Washington wins 'Apple Bowl'". The Tampa Tribune-Times. November 22, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Field goal lifts California to 17–17 tie with Cougars". The Olympian. November 29, 1987. Retrieved January 18, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Oregon outlook: matchups". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). November 14, 1987. p. 4C.
- ^ "Cougar roster". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). November 21, 1987. p. B2.
- ^ "WSU's Hasty taken by Jets in 3rd round". Idahonian. (Moscow). staff and wire reports. April 25, 1988. p. 3B.
- ^ "New Orleans takes Forde in 7th". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). staff and wire reports. April 26, 1988. p. C3.
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