Former Washington State Cougars football coach Bill Doba has died at the age of 85.
Doba spent 19 seasons coaching the Cougars, serving as a linebackers coach, assistant head coach, and defensive coordinator before eventually taking over as the head coach in 2003.
Doba helped captain some of the greatest defenses in program history, including the 1994 Palouse Posse defense that held opponents to an average of 12.1 points per game, good for third in the country. In 1997, Doba and Washington State won
a share of the Pac-10, earning their first appearance in the Rose Bowl in 67 years. They’d return again in 2002, splitting another Pac-10 title. Following that 2002 season, Doba would be handed the reins to the program after Mike Price left for the Alabama job.
Under Doba, the 2003 Cougars finished with a 9-3 record and a thrilling 28-20 win over #5 Texas in the Holiday Bowl. The Cougars’ remarkable 2003 season earned Doba a share of the 2003 Pac-10 Coach of the Year honor, which he split with USC’s Pete Carroll.
He also led the Cougars to Apple Cup victories in 2004, 2005, and 2007. He finished his five-year tenure as head coach with a record of 30-29.
Doba arrived in Pullman after bouncing around the state of Indiana as a high school coach before a six-season stop as an assistant at Indiana University under the legendary Lee Corso. He spent three seasons at Purdue after that, then two seasons at The Citadel before accepting a position under Price at Washington State.
Our thoughts are with the Doba family.
