1955 Washington State Cougars football team
American college football season
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The 1955 Washington State Cougars football team was an American football team that represented Washington State College during the 1955 college football season. In his fourth and final year, head coach Al Kircher led the team to a 1–7–2 record, 1–5–1 in the Pacific Coast Conference (PCC).[1] They played their three home games on campus at Rogers Field in Pullman.
- Al Kircher (4th season)
| 1955 Washington State Cougars football | |
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| Conference | Pacific Coast Conference |
| Record | 1–7–2 (1–5–1 PCC) |
| Head coach |
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| Home stadium | Rogers Field |
| Conf. | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 4 UCLA $ | 6 | – | 0 | – | 0 | 9 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Oregon State | 5 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 16 Stanford | 3 | – | 2 | – | 1 | 6 | – | 3 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Oregon | 4 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Washington | 4 | – | 3 | – | 1 | 5 | – | 4 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 13 USC | 3 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| California | 1 | – | 5 | – | 1 | 2 | – | 7 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Washington State | 1 | – | 5 | – | 1 | 1 | – | 7 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Idaho | 0 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 2 | – | 7 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Cougars' sole victory was in the Battle of the Palouse over neighbor Idaho in Moscow; the Vandals had won the previous year in Pullman,[2] which was their first win in the series in 29 years.[3]
Days after the season ended, Kircher was relieved of his duties with a year remaining on his five-year contract, at $12,500 per year.[4][5][6] He opted to stay in Pullman and acquired a motel-restaurant, the Hilltop Lodge, in early 1956.[7][8][9] His successor was Jim Sutherland,[10][11] the Cougars' head coach for eight seasons, through 1963.[12][13][14]
Schedule
| Date | Opponent | Site | Result | Attendance | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 17 | at No. 13 USC | L 12–50 | 35,051 | [15] | |
| September 24 | at Kansas* | L 0–13 | 19,000 | [16] | |
| October 1 | No. 7 UCLA | L 0–55 | 19,000 | [17] | |
| October 8 | at California | T 20–20 | 33,000 | [18] | |
| October 15 | at Idaho | W 9–0 | 13,000 | [19][20][21] | |
| October 22 | at Oregon State | L 6–14 | 17,000 | [22] | |
| October 29 | at Pacific (CA)* | L 0–30 | 12,000 | [23] | |
| November 5 | Oregon |
| L 0–35 | 9,000 | [24] |
| November 12 | San Jose State* |
| T 13–13 | 1,600 | [25] |
| November 19 | at Washington | L 7–27 | 30,000 | [26] | |
NFL draft
Two Cougars were selected in the 1956 NFL draft, which was 30 rounds and 360 selections.
| Player | Position | Round | Overall | Franchise |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arnie Pelluer | End | 16 | 192 | Los Angeles Rams |
| Al Paulson | Back | 23 | 276 | Los Angeles Rams |
