Washington State Cougars

Well Pac-10 fans...this will be my last post on the histories of your beloved teams! What ever will I chat about? Any suggestions? While you think about that one, I will give you a bit of information on the Washington State Cougars.

The Washington State Cougars football team was established in 1893 and has a 492–475–45 (.508) overall record. Located Pullman, Washington, the Washington Cougars play in the Memorial Stadium.

The Cougars home field has the lowest capacity of any Pac-10 stadium, so every game is jam-packed with screaming fans. Currently, Paul Wulff is the head coach for the cougars and was hired in December of 2007. Over the years, the Cougars have established themselves in the conference. The Washington Cougars have participated in many bowl games such as the Rose Bowl, the Aloha Bowl and the Holiday Bowl.

With four conference titles under their belt and a 6-4 bowl record, the Washington State Cougars have done well for themselves over the years. Over the decades, the Washington State Cougars have also accumulated a few rivals such as the Washington Huskies and the Idaho Vandals.

Washington Huskies

The University of Washington Huskies have a prosperous history and a strong future in college football. Since their indictment into the Pacific 10 Conference, the Huskies have won fifteen Pac-10 Championships and seven Rose Bowls, as well as four National Championships. As of 2008, the Washington Huskies’ overall rank is 653-398-50. I could go on and on about their awards, but a I would like to note that the Huskies have the bragging rights to two of the nation’s longest winning streaks and holds the DI-A unbeaten record at 63 consecutive games. Now that is impressive.

Since 1970, 16 of 19 starting quarterbacks have gone onto the NFL and the trend doesn’t look like its ending any time soon. The University of Washington is often referred to as one of the top Quarterback U’s because of this feat by the Huskies. A great victory for the Washington Huskies came in 2009, when they beat Washington State University 30-0 in the Apple Cup. Washington State has always been a big rival, and the Huskies were proud to completely sweep them under the rug.

Check back tomorrow to read the last of this history series. Happy Tuesday!

USC Trojans

The University of South California Trojans football program was established in 1888. With eleven national championships, the USC Trojans have been a football powerhouse in the NCAA. The USC Trojans football tam has also ranked in the top 5 of the final BCS and AP Polls consistently throughout their program history. Currently, the USC Trojans hold a 772–306–54 (.706) overall record.

Due to lack in availability of travel during the first few decades of play, the USC Trojans were not able to go far from home for games. This restriction was the foundation for their current rivalry between UCLA. The rivalry between USC and UCLA is a unique one, because they are they only two Division I-A programs in the major BCS conference that share the same home town. USC and UCLA are a measly ten miles away from each other and, until 1982, they also shared the same stadium. The mere proximity would create tension between any two teams. Often, the game between these two teams determines who is going to the Rose Bowl and have the city bragging rights for the year.

With its heavy hand over many of the other schools, USC has shown to be an outstanding team over the years. This past season, the USC Trojans finished the season with a 9-4 record and beat Boston College in the Emerald Bowl. Unfortunately for them, this past season also marked the end of its seven-year streak of Pac-10 Championship wins and BCS Bowl appearances.

UCLA Bruins

The UCLA Bruins football team has found great success since their inception in 1919. They UCLA Bruins have been ranked in the top ten of the AP Poll at least once in every decade since the 1930s, and their major time of success was in the 1950s under head coach Red Sanders. In 1954, the UCLA Bruins football team made it to the national championships. Red Sanders also let the UCLA Bruins to three conference championships and an overall record of 66-19 in nine years.

When the 1980s and 90s came along, Terry Donahue took position as head coach where he led his football team to a 151-74-8 record, which included 13 bowls games and an NCAA record eight straight bowl wins. Over the years, the Bruins football team has had many outstanding players who have been first-round draft picks, consensus All-Americans and many other major award winners.

The UCLA Bruins football team currently hold a 517–348–37 (.594) record, which is one of the highest in the Pac-10 conference. The Bruins have the privilege to play in the Rose Bowl, which is a National Historic Landmark in Pasadena, California. Their home turf holds an amazing capacity of 92,542, and there is rarely an empty seat in the house during a UCLA Bruins came. Who wouldn’t want to attend a game at the Rose Bowl?

I’ll be back Friday with the USC!

Stanford Cardinals

I am back yet again with the Stanford Cardinals.

The Stanford Cardinals began playing football in 1892, only one year after the University was founded. Over the decades, a large rivalry has developed between Stanford and Cal, after Standford beat them in their first Big Game. This has become one of the oldest rivalry games in college football. Since 1981, Stanford has been known as the Cardinal, changed their name to the Indians from 1930 to 1972. The change came after Standford native American students met with President Richard Lyman, and expressed the insult they felt by the mascot to their culture and heritage.

The Stanford Cardinals have a653-451-52 (.587) record, which is one of the highest in the Pac-10. Though the Cardinals have gone through many coaches since its establishment, the Standford football program's head coach is Jim Harbaugh who has been their for the past three years. As a college football player himself, Harbaugh knows what it takes to succeed and pushes his team on and off the field. Alumni of the Cardinals have won numerous awards, including the Heisman Trophy, and more recently in 2009, the Doak Walker Award. The Standford Cardinals continues to produce amazing players and an outstanding record to make sure to check them out this next season!

Oregon State Beavers

Well I am back, as promised, to tell you the Oregon State Beavers' story.

The Oregon State Beavers have been around since 1893, when the school was known as State Agriculture College (SAC). The son of the school’s president, William Bloss, was the first coach for the Beavers, as well as their quarterback. That would make for an interesting game if it was still allowed for the coach to play on the team.

The SAC team played their first game in November of 1893 on a simple open-lot field surrounded by a fence. That first game, over 500 fans came to cheer on the SAC football team who beat their opponent 62-0. Eventually, in 1897, bleachers were put up for the growing number of people interested in watching.

The “Civil War” game, that I mentioned in my Oregon Ducks blog, is not taken lightly by the Oregon State Beavers either. This rivalry has been long-standing solely due to how close the campuses are (40 miles). The first time the Ducks and Beavers butted heads was in 1894 and have played each other every year since, so over 115 times by now.

The Oregon State Beavers also look forward to playing big time rivals, the Washington Huskies and the Washington State Cougars. Since these schools are so close, the Beaver fans will attend many of the away games.

The huge rivalry that the Beavers have with the Huskies, the Cougars and the Ducks is called the "Northwest Championship". Since 2002, the Oregon State Beavers have won the championship twice and beat all three of their rivals in the same season. Those defeats must have been absolutely epic for the dedicated Beaver fans!

Oregon Ducks

Hello all. I know you have been waiting ever so patiently for today's blog on the Oregon Ducks.

The Oregon Ducks began their football journey in on March 24, 1894 and have accumulated some big time rivals along the way, including the Oregon State Beavers and the Washington Huskies. Apparently these animals don’t get along very well…sorry, bad joke.

At the end of every regular season, the Ducks and the Beavers play each other in the “Civil War.” That is the end all between these two teams and is rotated each year between their home turfs. The rivalry between the Oregon Ducks and the Oregon Beavers is the fourth oldest rivalry in division 1A history.

The Oregon Ducks started their program off strong with a 44-2 win against Albany College and continued with an okay season. The next season, however, the Ducks went undefeated. In 1910, the Oregon Ducks had their largest winning margin when they defeated the University of Puget Sound 115 to 0! After years of successful seasons, the Ducks have participated in numerous bowl games and have won eight conference titles.

The Oregon Ducks have had great players and coaches on their team over the years. Many of their players have even gone on to the NFL and Oregon continues to produce excellence, keeping steady their 552–467–47 (.540) record.

That’s all for now folks. Check back next week to get the Oregon Beaver’s side of the story!