# 1997 Washington State Cougars football team

The 1997 Washington State Cougars football team was an American football team that represented Washington State University in the Pacific-10 Conference (Pac-10) during the 1997 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their ninth season under head coach Mike Price, the Cougars went 10–1 in the regular season (7–1 in Pac-10), won the conference championship, lost to #1 Michigan in the Rose Bowl, and outscored their opponents 483 to 296. They played their home games on campus at Martin Stadium in Pullman, Washington, and were ninth in the final rankings.
The team's statistical leaders included Ryan Leaf with 3,968 passing yards, Michael Black with 1,181 rushing yards, and Chris Jackson with 1,005 receiving yards. Freshman defensive back Lamont Thompson led the team with 6 interceptions.
The Rose Bowl appearance was the first for Washington State in 67 years; the next was five years later.
Leaf decided to forgo his remaining season of eligibility (1998) and entered the 1998 NFL draft, where he was the second overall selection.

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| August 30 | 12:30 pm | UCLA | | Martin StadiumPullman, WA | ABC | W 37–34 | 26,000 |
| September 13 | 3:30 pm | at No. 23 USC | | Memorial ColiseumLos Angeles, CA | FSN | W 28–21 | 51,655 |
| September 20 | 9:30 am | at Illinois* | No. 19 | Memorial StadiumChampaign, IL | ESPN2 | W 35–22 | 47,131 |
| September 27 | 2:00 pm | Boise State* | No. 15 | Martin StadiumPullman, WA | | W 58–0 | 34,131 |
| October 4 | 1:00 pm | at Oregon | No. 15 | Autzen StadiumEugene, OR | | W 24–13 | 43,516 |
| October 18 | 2:00 pm | California | No. 13 | Martin StadiumPullman, WA | | W 63–37 | 35,739 |
| October 25 | 12:30 pm | Arizona | No. 10 | Martin StadiumPullman, WA | ABC | W 35–34 $^{OT}$ | 31,137 |
| November 1 | 7:00 pm | at No. 20 Arizona State | No. 10 | Sun Devil StadiumTempe, AZ | FSN | L 31–44 | 73,644 |
| November 8 | 2:00 pm | Southwestern Louisiana* | No. 16 | Martin StadiumPullman, WA | | W 77–7 | 32,345 |
| November 15 | 2:00 pm | Stanford | No. 14 | Martin StadiumPullman, WA | | W 38–28 | 40,306 |
| November 22 | 12:30 pm | at No. 20 Washington | No. 11 | Husky StadiumSeattle, WA (Apple Cup) | ABC | W 41–35 | 74,268 |
| January 1, 1998 | 2:00 pm | vs. No. 1 Michigan* | No. 8 | Rose BowlPasadena, CA (Rose Bowl) | ABC | L 16–21 | 101,219 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from AP Poll released prior to the gameAll times are in Pacific time ||||||||

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking — = Not ranked :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | Final |
| AP | — | — | — | — | 19 | 15 | 15 | 12 | 13 | 10 | 10 | 16 | 14 | 11 | 10 | 8 | 8 | 9 |
| Coaches Poll | — | — | — | — | 20 | 14 | 15 | 12 | 13 | 10 | 10 | 15 | 13 | 11 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 9 |

## Game summaries
### UCLA

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Bruins (0–0) | 7 | 7 | 13 | 7 | 34 |
| • Cougars (0–0) | 3 | 27 | 7 | 0 | 37 |
UCLA took a 14-3 lead early in the second quarter, but Washington State exploded for 27 unanswered points to end the half. The Cougars led by as many as 16 on two occasions, but clung to just a 3-point lead late in the game. UCLA had a 4th and goal from the one-yard line with 2:50 remaining, but the Cougars stood tall to emerge victorious.

### At No. 23 USC

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • Cougars (1–0) | 7 | 14 | 0 | 7 | 28 |
| No. 23 Trojans (1–0) | 0 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 21 |
Washington State defeated No. 23 USC in Los Angeles for the first time since 1957.

### At Illinois

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • No. 19 Cougars (2–0) | 7 | 0 | 7 | 21 | 35 |
| Fighting Illini (0–2) | 0 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 22 |

### Boise State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Broncos (2–2) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| • No. 15 Cougars (3–0) | 14 | 17 | 17 | 10 | 58 |

### At Oregon

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • No. 15 Cougars (4–0) | 7 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 24 |
| Ducks (3–1) | 0 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 13 |

### At No. 20 Arizona State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 10 Cougars (7–0) | 0 | 7 | 10 | 14 | 31 |
| • No. 20 Sun Devils (5–2) | 7 | 17 | 0 | 20 | 44 |
After trailing 24–0 midway through the second quarter, Washington State rallied to take a 25–24 lead early in the fourth quarter. After Arizona State answered with a touchdown, the Cougars were driving again. However, the Cougars were doomed by two late fumbles that were both returned for touchdowns.

### Vs. No. 1 Michigan (Rose Bowl)

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 8 Cougars (10–1) | 7 | 0 | 6 | 3 | 16 |
| • No. 1 Wolverines (11–0) | 0 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 21 |

## Awards and honors

* Ryan Leaf – Sammy Baugh Trophy, Pac-10 Offensive Player of the Year, All-American, Third in Heisman Trophy voting
* Leon Bender – All-American
* Mike Price – Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Award, Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year, Home Depot Coach of the Year Award, Sporting News College Football Coach of the Year, Pac-10 Coach of the Year

## NFL draft

Four Cougars were selected in the 1998 NFL draft; quarterback Ryan Leaf was taken second overall.
| Player | Position | Round | Overall | Franchise |
| Ryan Leaf | QB | 1 | 2 | San Diego Chargers |
| Leon Bender | DT | 2 | 31 | Oakland Raiders |
| Dorian Boose | DT | 2 | 56 | New York Jets |
| Jason McEndoo | T | 7 | 197 | Seattle Seahawks |