1963 Arizona Wildcats football team

The 1963 Arizona Wildcats football team represented the University of Arizona in the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) during the 1963 NCAA University Division football season. In their fifth season under head coach Jim LaRue, the Wildcats compiled a 5–5 record (2–2 in WAC, tie for third), and were outscored 166 to 136. The team captains were fullback Ted Christy and tackle Jerry Zeman,^[1][2] and their seven home games were played on campus at Arizona Stadium in Tucson.

1963 Arizona Wildcats football
Conference	Western Athletic Conference
Record	5–5 (2–2 WAC)
Head coach	Jim LaRue (5th season)
Assistant coaches	Ron Marciniak Ed Cavanaugh Phil Ramsey Jake Rowden
Captains	Ted Christy (FB) Jerry Zeman (T)
Home stadium	Arizona Stadium
Seasons ← 1962 1964 →

1963 Western Athletic Conference football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 13 Arizona State $	3	–	0	–	0			8	–	1	–	0
New Mexico	3	–	1	–	0			6	–	4	–	0
Arizona	2	–	2	–	0			5	–	5	–	0
Utah	2	–	2	–	0			4	–	6	–	0
Wyoming	2	–	3	–	0			6	–	4	–	0
BYU	0	–	4	–	0			2	–	8	–	0
$ – Conference champion Rankings from Coaches Poll

The team's statistical leaders included Bill Brechler with 550 passing yards, Jim Oliver with 214 rushing yards, and Rickie Harris with 173 receiving yards.^[3]

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 21	Utah State*	Arizona Stadium Tucson, AZ	L 0–43	25,000	^[4]
September 28	BYU	Arizona Stadium Tucson, AZ	W 33–7		^[5]^[6]^[7]
October 5	at Washington State*	Joe Albi Stadium Spokane, WA	L 2–7	18,200	^[8]^[9]^[10]^[11]
October 12	Texas Western*	Arizona Stadium Tucson, AZ	W 13–7	24,300	^[12]
October 19	Oregon*	Arizona Stadium Tucson, AZ	L 12–28	16,000	^[13]^[14]
October 26	at West Texas State*	Kimbrough Memorial Stadium Canyon, TX	W 6–3		^[15]
November 2	Wyoming	Arizona Stadium Tucson, AZ	W 15–7	10,000	^[16]
November 9	Idaho*	Arizona Stadium Tucson, AZ	W 34–7	17,000	^[17]^[18]
November 30	at Arizona State	Sun Devil Stadium Tempe, AZ (rivalry)	L 6–35	41,141	^[19]
December 7	New Mexico	Arizona Stadium Tucson, AZ (rivalry)	L 15–22	17,000	^[20]
*Non-conference game

Season notes

• Arizona’s final two games against their rivals were originally going to be played on November 23 (vs. New Mexico) and November 30 (at Arizona State). However, in the wake of President Kennedy’s murder, all college football games were cancelled on November 23, and the Arizona–New Mexico game was rescheduled for December 7, while the ASU game remained as scheduled on November 30. Ironically, December 7 of the year was the 22nd anniversary of the Pearl Harbor attacks, where a battleship named after Arizona famously sunk. The Wildcats would go on to lose both games.

References

1. "1963 Arizona Wildcats Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved September 6, 2016.
2. "Arizona Football 2016 Media Guide" (PDF). University of Arizona. 2016. pp. 102, 106. Retrieved September 6, 2016.
3. "1963 Arizona Wildcats Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved September 6, 2016.
4. Ferguson, George (September 23, 1963). "Knap's Ag debut 'great'". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). p. D2.
5. Miller, Hack (September 27, 1963). "BYU ready for Arizona". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). p. C1.
6. "Rockies: Arizona, 33–7". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. October 29, 1963. p. 2B.
7. Miller, Hack (September 30, 1963). "Were the Cougars oversold?". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). p. C1.
8. "Wildcats vs. Cougars". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). (rosters). October 5, 1963. p. 1.
9. Johnson, Bob (October 5, 1963). "Cougars favord in game tonight". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). p. 8.
10. Missildine, Harry (October 6, 1963). "Clancy's sparkling spirit wins for Cougars". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. 1, sports.
11. "WSU wins; San Jose next". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). October 7, 1963. p. 11.
12. "Rockies: Arizona, 13–7". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. October 13, 1963. p. 2B.
13. Leutzinger, Dick (October 18, 1963). "How good is Arizona?". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). p. 2B.
14. Leutzinger, Dick (October 20, 1963). "Renfro biggest 'ham' in victory". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). p. 1B.
15. "Arizona, 6–3". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. October 27, 1963. p. 4B.
16. "Arizona nails 15–7 setback on Wyoming". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. November 3, 1963. p. 5B.
17. "Idaho-Arizona din promised". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. November 9, 1963. p. 9.
18. "Arizona wallops Idaho eleven, 34–7". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. November 10, 1963. p. 4B.
19. "Arizona State defeats Arizona". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. December 1, 1963. p. 4B.
20. LeRoy Bearman (December 8, 1963). "Lobos Stop Arizona to Win WAC Crown". Albuquerque Journal. p. F1 – via Newspapers.com.

External links

• Game program: Arizona vs. Washington State at Spokane – October 5, 1963