The 1976 Stanford Cardinals football team represented Stanford University in the Pacific-8 Conference during the 1976 NCAA Division I football season. Led by fifth-year head coach Jack Christiansen, the Cardinals were 6–5 overall (5–2 in Pac-8, third) and played home games on campus at Stanford Stadium in Stanford, California
1976 Stanford Cardinals football | |
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Conference | Pacific-8 Conference |
Record | 6–5 (5–2 Pac-8) |
Head coach |
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Defensive coordinator | Norb Hecker (5th season) |
Home stadium | Stanford Stadium |
Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 2 USC $ | 7 | – | 0 | – | 0 | 11 | – | 1 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 15 UCLA | 6 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 9 | – | 2 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Stanford | 5 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 5 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
California | 3 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Washington | 3 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Washington State | 2 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 3 | – | 8 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Oregon | 1 | – | 6 | – | 0 | 4 | – | 7 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Oregon State | 1 | – | 6 | – | 0 | 2 | – | 10 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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After a disappointing season that started at 1–4,[1][2] Christiansen was fired the day before the last game of the season, the Big Game at Cal;[3] he coached that final game, which Stanford rallied to win in the final two minutes.[4][5]
With two seasons remaining on a five-year contract (at $27,500 annually),[3] Christiansen did not have a losing season at Stanford, was 30–22–3 (.573) overall, and 22–12–1 (.643) in conference. The Cardinals had five Pac-8 wins in each of his last four seasons, finishing no lower than third.
Bill Walsh, the offensive coordinator of the NFL's San Diego Chargers, was hired as head coach in December,[6][7][8] and led Stanford for the next two seasons, both ending with bowl wins.
Schedule
editDate | Opponent | Site | Result | Attendance |
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September 11 | at No. 10 Penn State* | L 12–15 | 61,325 | |
September 18 | at No. 1 Michigan* | L 0–51 | 103,741 | |
September 25 | San Jose State* | W 28–23 | 51,000 | |
October 2 | at Army* | L 20–21 | 30,382 | |
October 9 | at No. 5 UCLA | L 20–38 | 50,894 | |
October 16 | Washington |
| W 34–28 | 36,000 |
October 23 | at Washington State | W 22–16 | 24,300 | |
October 30 | Oregon State |
| W 24–3 | 30,500 |
November 6 | No. 4 USC |
| L 24–48 | 76,500 |
November 13 | at Oregon | W 28–17 | 18,000 | |
November 20 | at California | W 27–24 | 76,780 | |
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Roster
edit- OT Gary Anderson
- QB Guy Benjamin
- LB Gordy Ceresino
- QB Mike Cordova
- QB Steve Dils
- WR James Lofton
- WR Tony Hill
- DE Duncan McColl
- PK Mike Michel
- QB Turk Schonert
NFL draft
editFive Cardinals were selected in the 1977 NFL draft.
Player | Position | Round | Overall | Franchise |
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Tony Hill | WR | 3 | 62 | Dallas Cowboys |
Duncan McColl | DE | 4 | 97 | Washington Redskins |
Mike Michel | K | 5 | 113 | Miami Dolphins |
Gary Anderson | OL | 10 | 263 | Detroit Lions |
Mike Cordova | QB | 11 | 286 | Philadelphia Eagles |
References
edit- ^ "Pacific-8 Conference". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). (standings). October 10, 1976. p. 1C.
- ^ "Bruins intercept Cards, 38-20". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). UPI. October 10, 1976. p. 6C.
- ^ a b "'Chris' is sacked; a Card first". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). UPI. November 20, 1976. p. 1B.
- ^ "Late fumble produces Card win". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. November 21, 1976. p. D2.
- ^ "Late Stanford touchdown beats California, 27-24". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. November 21, 1976. p. 6C.
- ^ "Bill Walsh named Card grid mentor". Lodi News-Sentinel. (California). UPI. December 13, 1976. p. 14.
- ^ "Stanford hires Walsh". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. December 13, 1976. p. 3C.
- ^ "Walsh ready to go". Lodi News-Sentinel. (California). UPI. December 14, 1976. p. 6.
- ^ "Stanford Game-by-Game Results; 1976–1980". College Football Data Warehouse. Archived from the original on April 7, 2013. Retrieved February 21, 2013.
- ^ "Cardinals vs. Cougars". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). (rosters). October 23, 1976. p. 13.
- ^ "The lineups". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). November 13, 1976. p. 1B.
External links
edit- Game program: Stanford at Washington State – October 23, 1976