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Apple Cup

Cougar snarling
Winter 2020

The Butch Brawl

The plan seemed simple enough: launch Kenyon “Ken” Bement into the air at just the right moment so the Cougs could reclaim their cougar.

University of Washington fans had stolen it more than a decade earlier. And Bement and his friends on the Yell Squad decided enough was enough. It was time to bring the stuffed cougar mascot back home to Pullman.

They spread the word through the student section of the stands at Husky Stadium during the rainy, muddy Apple Cup on November 12, 1932. And almost everything went according to plan.

“The basic idea is to pick up Ken—he’s the smallest of the cheerleaders—and, as the Huskies parade by at halftime with the stuffed cougar, he’s going to go up … » More …

Apple Cup 2012
Spring 2013

One happy ending

It was the biggest comeback in Apple Cup history. The Cougs were down by 18 points going into the fourth quarter last November. The team dug deep, persevered, and achieved a 31-28 victory in overtime, behind the running of senior Carl Winston III, and the play of every defensive and offensive WSU player on the field. Jubilant Cougar fans poured onto the field after the win to celebrate with Coach Mike Leach and the team.

Read a full recap of the 2012 Apple Cup and see more photos at the WSU Athletics website.

Photos by Shelly Hanks. ©2013 Washington State University

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Video: Apple Cup revisited

The state’s greatest rivalry hit a landmark November 2007, when the 100th game in 108 years was played between Washington State University and the University of Washington. For a glimpse of our history, we dipped into WSU’s archives and found photos, film, and colorful programs for this historic contest. See a touchdown from 1910 and film footage of a game in 1923. Check out the chilled cheerleaders of 1950 and the mustachioed players of 1970. And hear the Cougar fight song as you’ve never heard it before.

On the web

Read “One Hundred Apple Cups”

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Winter 2007

One Hundred Apple Cups

The first contest between cross-state rivals Washington State and the University of Washington took place on a muddy field in Seattle in November 1900. The Washington Agricultural College “Farmers,” as we were known then, made the 290-mile trek from Pullman to Seattle to play the UW “Sun Dodgers” in the pouring rain. The match ended in a five-to-five tie.

Because the two teams will play their 100th game together this year, we thought we’d take a look back at the history of that long relationship.

Meeting up with the UW just after the turn of the century was a spotty endeavor. After the first five … » More …