1963 Stanford Indians football team

1963 Stanford Indians football
Big Game Champions
Conference Athletic Association of Western Universities
1963 record 3–7–0 (1–4 AAWU)
Head coach John Ralston (1st year)
Home stadium Stanford Stadium
1963 AAWU football standings
Conf     Overall
Team W   L   T     W   L   T
Washington † 4 – 1 – 0     6 – 5 – 0
USC 3 – 1 – 0     7 – 3 – 0
UCLA 2 – 2 – 0     2 – 8 – 0
Washington State 1 – 1 – 0     3 – 6 – 1
California 1 – 3 – 0     4 – 5 – 1
Stanford 1 – 4 – 0     3 – 7 – 0
† – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1963 Stanford Indians football team represented Stanford University in the 1963 NCAA football season. The team was led by new head coach John Ralston. Ralston succeeded Jack Curtice, who had been fired at the end of the previous season.[1] The team played their home games at Stanford Stadium in Stanford, California.[2]

Schedule

Date Opponent# Rank# Site Result
September 21 San Jose State* Stanford Stadium • Stanford, CA W 29–13  
September 28 Oregon* Stanford Stadium • Stanford, CA L 7–36  
October 5 UCLA Stanford Stadium • Stanford, CA L 9–10  
October 12 at Rice* Rice Stadium • Houston, TX L 13–23  
October 19 at Washington Husky Stadium • Seattle, WA L 11–19  
October 26 Notre Dame* Stanford Stadium • Stanford, CA (Rivalry) W 24–14  
November 2 at Oregon State* Parker Stadium • Corvallis, OR L 7–10  
November 9 at USC Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum • Los Angeles, CA L 11–25  
November 16 Washington State* Stanford Stadium • Stanford, CA L 15–32  
November 30[a 1] California Stanford Stadium • Stanford, CA (66th Big Game) W 28–17  
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll.
  1. ↑ Rescheduled from November 23 following the Kennedy assassination.

Game notes

California

1 234Total
Bears 3 0140 17
• Indians 0 31213 28

The 66th Big Game was scheduled for November 23, but after the assassination of John F. Kennedy, like nearly all sporting events, the game was canceled and rescheduled for the following week.[3] Stanford was winless in the conference coming in to the game, and following a California punt return for a touchdown, were behind their rival 17–9 late in the second half. But the Indians fought back, scoring the last 19 points in the game on two touchdowns and two field goals to win the game.[4]

Players drafted by the NFL/AFL

Player Position Round Pick NFL/AFL Club[b 1]
Steve Thurlow Running back 2 25 New York Giants
Bob Nichols Tackle 9/18 122/142 Pittsburgh Steelers/Houston Oilers[b 2]
Dick Leeuwenburg Tackle 11/17 154/134 Chicago Bears/Houston Oilers[b 3]
Marv Harris Linebacker 13 175 Los Angeles Rams

[5][6]

  1. ↑ AFL Draft selections shown in italics.
  2. ↑ Signed with Pittsburgh.
  3. ↑ Signed with Chicago.

References

  1. ↑ "Coach Jack Curtice fired by Stanford". The News and Courier. November 27, 1962. Retrieved November 14, 2013.
  2. ↑ "Stanford Game-by-Game Results; 1963–1967". College Football Data Warehouse. Retrieved November 22, 2011.
  3. ↑ Migdol, Gary (1997). Stanford: Home of Champions. Champaign, Illinois: Sports Publishing LLC. p. 140. ISBN 1-57167-116-1.
  4. ↑ "Stanford defeats California by 28–17". The Register-Guard. December 1, 1963. Retrieved November 14, 2013.
  5. ↑ "1964 NFL Draft". Retrieved November 25, 2013.
  6. ↑ "1964 AFL Draft". Retrieved November 25, 2013.