American college football season
The 1953 Stanford Indians football team represented Stanford University in the 1953 college football season . The team was led by Chuck Taylor in his third year, and by quarterback Bobby Garrett , who would win the season's W. J. Voit Memorial Trophy as most outstanding player on the Pacific Coast, and was selected by the Cleveland Browns as the first pick of the NFL draft at the end of the season.
The team played their home games at Stanford Stadium in Stanford, California .[ 1]
Schedule
Date Opponent Rank Site Result Attendance September 19 Pacific (CA) * L 20–25
September 26 Oregon Stanford Stadium Stanford, CA W 7–0
October 3 Illinois * L 21–3332,737
October 10 at Oregon State W 21–08,005
October 17 No. 4 UCLA Stanford Stadium Stanford, CA W 21–2045,000
October 24 at Washington No. 20 W 13–741,234
October 31 Washington State No. 17 Stanford Stadium Stanford, CA W 48–1918,500
November 7 at No. 17 USC No. 11 L 20–2379,015
November 14 San Jose State * No. 16 Stanford Stadium Stanford, CA (rivalry ) W 54–0
November 21 California No. 16 T 21–2191,500
*Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
Game summaries
California
1
2 3 4 Total
Bears
0
7 7 7
21
Indians
0
7 14 0
21
Scoring summary 2 STAN Sam Morley 5 yard-pass from Bobby Garrett (Garrett kick)STAN 7–0
2 CAL Don Whyte 8-yard run (Paul Larson kick) Tied 7–7
3 STAN Barry Smith recovered fumble in end zone (Garrett kick) STAN 14–7
3 STAN Garrett 54-yard interception return (Garrett kick) STAN 21–7
3 CAL Larson 19-yard run (Larson kick) STAN 21–14
4 CAL Al Talley 3-yard run (Larson kick) Tied 21–21
With a win in the Big Game , Stanford would earn a berth in the 1954 Rose Bowl . California had not lost a Big Game since 1946, and this game was no exception: California intercepted quarterback Garrett five times and scored twice late to force a 21–21 tie. The tie, coupled with UCLA's victory over rival USC, denied the Indians a second Rose Bowl appearance in three years.[ 2] [ 3]
Players drafted by the NFL
[ 4]
References
Venues Bowls & rivalries Culture & lore People Seasons National championship seasons in bold