1973 UC Riverside Highlanders football team

1973 UC Riverside Highlanders football
Conference	California Collegiate Athletic Association
Record	8–2 (3–1 CCAA)
Head coach	Wayne Howard (2nd season)
Offensive coordinator	Ron McBride (2nd season)
Defensive coordinator	Tom Gadd (2nd season)
Home stadium	Highlander Stadium
Seasons ←  1972 1974  →

1973 California Collegiate Athletic Association football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 8/9 Cal Poly $	4	–	0	–	0			9	–	1	–	0
UC Riverside	3	–	1	–	0			8	–	2	–	0
Cal State Fullerton	1	–	3	–	0			7	–	4	–	0
Cal Poly Pomona	1	–	3	–	0			4	–	6	–	1
Cal State Northridge	1	–	3	–	0			2	–	9	–	0
$ – Conference champion Rankings from AP/UPI small college polls

The 1973 UC Riverside Highlanders football team represented the University of California, Riverside as a member of the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) during the 1973 NCAA Division II football season. Led by Wayne Howard in his second and final season as head coach, UC Riverside compiled an overall record of 8–2 with a mark of record of 3–1 in conference play, placing second in the CCAA. The team outscored by its opponents 317 to 172 for the season. The Highlanders played home games at Highlander Stadium in Riverside, California.

Howard finished his tenure at UC Riverside with an overall record of 17–3, for a .850 winning percentage.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 15		at San Diego *	Torero Stadium San Diego, CA	W 20–16
September 22		at UC Davis *	Toomey Field Davis, CA	L 3–28	6,400	[1]
September 29		Cal Poly	Highlander Stadium Riverside, CA	L 17–26	3,500	[2]
October 6		at Cal State Northridge	Devonshire Downs Northridge, CA	W 28–20	2,000	[3]
October 13		Redlands *	Highlander Stadium Riverside, CA	W 37–0
October 20		Cal Poly Pomona	Highlander Stadium Riverside, CA	W 45–14	4,000	[4]
October 27	7:30 p.m.	at Long Beach State *	Veterans Stadium Long Beach, CA	W 33–16	1,417
November 3		at Cal State Fullerton	Santa Ana Stadium Santa Ana, CA	W 20–10	3,619	[5]
November 10		at Cal State Los Angeles *	Campus Field Los Angeles, CA	W 38–14	1,200	[6]
November 17		United States International *	Highlander Stadium Riverside, CA	W 76–28
*Non-conference game All times are in Pacific time

^[7]

Team players in the NFL

The following UC Riverside players were selected in the 1974 NFL draft. ^{[8] [9] [10]}

Player	Position	Round	Overall	NFL team
Frank Johnson	Tackle	4	102	Los Angeles Rams
Derek Williams	Defensive back	9	221	Los Angeles Rams

The following finished their college career in 1973, were not drafted, but played in the NFL.

Player	Position	First NFL team
Michael Basinger	Defensive end	1974 Green Bay Packers

References

1. "Final 1973 Cumulative Football Statistics Report (UC Davis)". National Collegiate Athletic Association . Retrieved May 12, 2022.
2. "Long Beach State Still Without Win -- Ties North Texas St., 0-0". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. September 30, 1973. p. III-14. Retrieved February 8, 2017– via Newspapers.com.
3. "Houston's 442 Yards Rushing Through Aztecs Net 14-9 Win". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. October 7, 1973. p. III-14. Retrieved February 22, 2017– via Newspapers.com.
4. "Final 1973 Cumulative Football Statistics Report (Cal Poly Pomona)". National Collegiate Athletic Association . Retrieved May 25, 2022.
5. Earl Gustkey (November 4, 1973). "Aztecs Rally for 27-27 Tie With San Jose St". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. p. III-11. Retrieved February 8, 2017– via Newspapers.com.
6. "Diablos Bow to Riverside". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. November 10, 1973. p. III-6. Retrieved February 13, 2017– via Newspapers.com.
7. "Final 1973 Cumulative Football Statistics Report (UC Riverside)". National Collegiate Athletic Association . Retrieved May 30, 2025.
8. "1974 NFL Draft". Archived from the original on December 21, 2007. Retrieved February 23, 2017.
9. "California-Riverside Players/Alumni" . Retrieved March 17, 2017.
10. "Draft History: California-Riverside" . Retrieved March 18, 2017.