1971 Stanford Indians football team

1971 Stanford Indians football
Rose Bowl Champions Pac-8 Champions
Rose Bowl vs. Michigan, W 13–12
Conference	Pacific-8 Conference
Ranking
Coaches	#16
AP	#10
1971 record	9–3 (6–1 Pac-8)
Head coach	John Ralston
Home stadium	Stanford Stadium (c. 85,500, grass)

1971 Pacific-8 football standings
	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
#10 Stanford $	6	–	1	–	0			9	–	3	–	0
#20 USC	3	–	2	–	1			6	–	4	–	1
#19 Washington	4	–	3	–	0			8	–	3	–	0
California	4	–	3	–	0			6	–	5	–	0
Oregon State	3	–	3	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Oregon	2	–	4	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Washington State	2	–	5	–	0			4	–	7	–	0
UCLA	1	–	4	–	1			2	–	7	–	1
$ – Conference champion Rankings from AP Poll

The 1971 Stanford Indians football team represented Stanford University during the 1971 college football season.

Season

The previous season, the Indians had won the Pac-8 conference and the 1971 Rose Bowl behind Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Jim Plunkett. With the core of the "Thunderchickens" defense, led by Jeff Siemon and Pete Lazetich, returning, and under the steady leadership of former backup quarterback Don Bunce, the Indians defended the conference title and went on to upset #4 Michigan in the 1972 Rose Bowl.^[1][2]

Following the season, Stanford head coach John Ralston resigned to become head coach of the NFL Denver Broncos.^[3] Stanford hired defensive assistant coach Jack Christiansen to replace Ralston.^[4]

Schedule

Date	Opponent^#	Rank^#	Site	Result
September 11	at Missouri*	#19	Faurot Field • Columbia, MO	W 19–0
September 18	at Army*	#13	Michie Stadium • West Point, NY	W 38–3
September 25	Oregon	#13	Stanford Stadium • Stanford, CA	W 38–17
October 2	#19 Duke*	#10	Stanford Stadium • Stanford, CA	L 3–9
October 9	at #11 Washington	#19	Husky Stadium • Seattle WA	W 17–6
October 16	at USC	#15	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum • Los Angeles, CA	W 33–18
October 23	Washington State	#10	Stanford Stadium • Stanford, CA	L 23–24
October 30	at Oregon State	#17	Parker Stadium • Corvallis, OR	W 31–24
November 6	UCLA	#12	Stanford Stadium • Stanford, CA	W 20–9
November 13	San Jose State*	#10	Stanford Stadium • Stanford, CA (Rivalry)	L 12–13
November 20	California	#18	Stanford Stadium • Stanford, CA (74th Big Game)	W 14–0
January 1	vs. #4 Michigan*	#16	Rose Bowl • Pasadena, CA (Rose Bowl)	W 13–12
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP Poll.

Players drafted by the NFL

Player	Position	Round	Pick	NFL Club
Greg Sampson	Tackle	1	6	Houston Oilers
Jeff Siemon	Linebacker	1	10	Minnesota Vikings
Pete Lazetich	Defensive End	2	36	San Diego Chargers
Jackie Brown	Running back	8	202	Oakland Raiders
Don Bunce	Quarterback	12	307	Washington Redskins
Larry Butler	Linebacker	16	406	Atlanta Falcons

^[5]

References

1. Blackman, Frank (December 29, 1999). "Bowled over by the '70s". The San Francisco Examiner. Retrieved June 14, 2012.
2. "Stanford Game-by-Game Results; 1971–1975". College Football Data Warehouse. Retrieved June 14, 2012.
3. "Stanford's Ralston Broncos coach". Sarasota Herald Tribune. January 6, 1972. Retrieved June 20, 2012.
4. "Christiansen accepts job at Stanford". Star-News. January 22, 1972. Retrieved June 20, 2012.
5. "1972 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved June 14, 2012.