1953 California Golden Bears football team
American college football season
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The 1953 California Golden Bears football team was an American football team that represented the University of California, Berkeley in the Pacific Coast Conference (PCC) during the 1953 college football season. Under seventh-year head coach Pappy Waldorf, the Golden Bears compiled an overall record of 4–4–2 (2–2–2 in PCC, fourth).[1][2] Home games were played on campus at California Memorial Stadium in Berkeley, California.
- Pappy Waldorf (7th season)
| 1953 California Golden Bears football | |
|---|---|
| Conference | Pacific Coast Conference |
| Record | 4–4–2 (2–2–2 PCC) |
| Head coach |
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| Home stadium | California Memorial Stadium |
| Conf. | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 5 UCLA $ | 6 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 8 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 19 Stanford | 5 | – | 1 | – | 1 | 6 | – | 3 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| USC | 4 | – | 2 | – | 1 | 6 | – | 3 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| California | 2 | – | 2 | – | 2 | 4 | – | 4 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Washington State | 3 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 4 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Oregon State | 3 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 3 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Washington | 2 | – | 4 | – | 1 | 3 | – | 6 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Oregon | 2 | – | 5 | – | 1 | 4 | – | 5 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Idaho | 0 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 1 | – | 8 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The 1953 season is partially associated with a recruiting scandal involving star freshman quarterback Ronnie Knox. In order to have Knox enroll at the university, the California football booster club promised him that Knox's step father to be hired as a scout, his high school coach would be hired as an assistant coach, and that Knox himself would be given a job writing for a local newspaper and also be paid $500 per year by the booster club.[3] Knox enrolled at Cal but California's administration found out and made sure that the benefits would not be provided. After one year at Cal, Knox transferred to University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).[3]
Schedule
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site | Result | Attendance | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 19 | No. 20 Baylor* | No. 14 | L 0–25 | 34,000 | [4] | |
| September 26 | at Oregon State | No. 14 | W 26–0 | 13,442 | [5] | |
| October 3 | No. 6 Ohio State* |
| L 19–33 | 47,000 | [6] | |
| October 10 | at No. 20 Penn* | W 40–0 | 52,000 | [7] | ||
| October 17 | San Jose State* | No. 16 |
| W 34–14 | 39,000 | [8] |
| October 24 | No. 11 USC |
| L 20–32 | 78,000 | [9] | |
| October 31 | at No. 10 UCLA | L 7–20 | 70,073 | [10] | ||
| November 7 | Washington |
| W 53–25 | 36,000 | [11] | |
| November 14 | Oregon |
| T 0–0 | 24,000 | [12] | |
| November 21 | at No. 16 Stanford | T 21–21 | 92,500 | [13] | ||
