| Sport | College football |
|---|---|
| First meeting | November 29, 1900 Tie, 5–5 |
| Latest meeting | September 20, 2025 Washington, 59–24 |
| Next meeting | September 5, 2026 inSeattle |
| Stadiums | Husky Stadium Martin Stadium |
| Trophy | Governor's Trophy (1934–c.1946) Apple Cup Trophy (since 1963) |
| Statistics | |
| Meetings total | 117 |
| All-time series | Washington leads, 77–34–6 (.684)[1] |
| Largest victory | Washington, 51–3 (2000) |
| Longest win streak | Washington, 8 (1959–1966, 1974–1981) |
| Current win streak | Washington, 1 (2025) |
TheApple Cup is an Americancollege footballrivalry game between theUniversity of WashingtonHuskies andWashington State UniversityCougars, the two largest universities in the state ofWashington. Both were members of thePac-12 Conference until2024.
First played in1900, 125 years ago,[2][3][4] the matchup was traditionally the final game of the regular season for both teams and generally took place on the Saturday precedingThanksgiving. With the NCAA's extension of the regular season to twelve games in2006, the game is often played at a later date. From 2011 to 2023, it was most commonly held on the Friday after Thanksgiving.[5] As a non-conference game for the first timein 63 years, the 2024 edition was played early in the season, on September 14 atLumen Field in Seattle.[6]
Since1946, the game has been held in odd years inSeattle atHusky Stadium (except2011 and2024, both atLumen Field), while Washington State has hosted during even years atRogers Field (1946, 1948, 1954) andMartin Stadium (since1982) inPullman, andJoe Albi Stadium inSpokane. The games ineastern Washington from 1935 to 1948, all in Pullman, were held in mid-October. The exception was in1945, when two games were played: the first in Seattle in mid-October, and the second in Pullman in late November.[7][8][9] Starting in 2024, Seattle is scheduled to host in even years and Pullman in odd years.
First awarded in1963,[10] the Apple Cup Trophy is presented to the winner by the state'sgovernor at the conclusion of the game.

The teams played for theGovernor's Trophy starting in 1934.[11][12][13] This bronze shield was made by sculptorDudley Pratt and donated and awarded by GovernorClarence D. Martin, an alumnus of the University of Washington and the namesake ofPullman'sMartin Stadium.[11][13] The winners for the years 1934–1939 are etched on the shield.[13] The trophy was awarded until at least 1946.[14][15]
In 1963 theBig Apple Trophy was donated to the competition by theWashington Apple Commission,[16] emblematic ofWashington's national reputation as a major producer ofapples. This award was colloquially referred to as theApple Cup,[17] which later came tometonymically refer to the game itself. In 1989 the apple was recognized as Washington'sstate fruit[18] during the state'scentennial celebration.
When the college football regular season was lengthened from eleven to twelve games in2006, there was a movement to change the date of the game from the Saturday beforeThanksgiving to the weekend following, which would have allowed a bye week for both teams during the season. In 2006, both teams played twelve straight weeks without a bye, leaving the two teams noticeably fatigued. The 2007 game was played on the Saturday after Thanksgiving for the first time; but the 2008 game was returned to the Saturday before the holiday.
The media joked that the2008 game won by the Cougars in Pullman was the "Crapple Cup" and "full of worms," becauseWSU (1–10) hosted winlessUW (0–10).[19] The game returned to the Saturday after Thanksgiving in 2009 in Seattle. The 2011 game in Seattle was moved to CenturyLink Field to allow an early start on the renovation of Husky Stadium.
From 1950 through 1980 (except for 1954),[20] the WSU home games in the series were played in Spokane atJoe Albi Stadium (Memorial Stadium until 1962). The Cougars won three of these fifteen games (1958,1968,1972). In 1910, the WSU home game in Spokane was played at Recreation Park (47°40′05″N117°22′05″W / 47.668°N 117.368°W /47.668; -117.368).
The first game in 1900 resulted in a 5–5 tie. The series has been played continuously since 1945, when there were two games, one in Seattle and one in Pullman. The 2020 game was cancelled due to theCOVID-19 pandemic, as Washington State did not have enough eligible scholarship players available.[21]
| Washington victories | Washington State victories |
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| Head coach | Team | Games | Seasons | Wins | Losses | Ties | Pct. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ralph Welch | Washington | 4 | 1945–1947 | 3 | 1 | 0 | .750 |
| Howard Odell | Washington | 5 | 1948–1952 | 2 | 3 | 0 | .400 |
| John Cherberg | Washington | 3 | 1953–1955 | 1 | 2 | 0 | .333 |
| Darrell Royal | Washington | 1 | 1956 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 |
| Jim Owens | Washington | 18 | 1957–1974 | 12 | 6 | 0 | .667 |
| Don James | Washington | 18 | 1975–1992 | 13 | 5 | 0 | .722 |
| Jim Lambright | Washington | 6 | 1993–1998 | 4 | 2 | 0 | .667 |
| Rick Neuheisel | Washington | 4 | 1999–2002 | 4 | 0 | 1.000 | |
| Keith Gilbertson | Washington | 2 | 2003–2004 | 1 | 1 | .500 | |
| Tyrone Willingham | Washington | 4 | 2005–2008 | 1 | 3 | .250 | |
| Steve Sarkisian | Washington | 5 | 2009–2013 | 4 | 1 | .800 | |
| Chris Petersen | Washington | 6 | 2014–2019 | 6 | 0 | 1.000 | |
| Bob Gregory(interim) | Washington | 1 | 2021 | 0 | 1 | .000 | |
| Kalen DeBoer | Washington | 2 | 2022–2023 | 2 | 0 | 1.000 | |
| Jedd Fisch | Washington | 2 | 2024–present | 1 | 1 | .500 |
| Head coach | Team | Games | Seasons | Wins | Losses | Ties | Pct. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phil Sarboe | Washington State | 6 | 1945–1949 | 2 | 4 | 0 | .333 |
| Forest Evashevski | Washington State | 2 | 1950–1951 | 1 | 1 | 0 | .500 |
| Al Kircher | Washington State | 4 | 1952–1955 | 2 | 2 | 0 | .500 |
| Jim Sutherland | Washington State | 8 | 1956–1963 | 2 | 6 | 0 | .250 |
| Bert Clark | Washington State | 4 | 1964–1967 | 1 | 3 | 0 | .250 |
| Jim Sweeney | Washington State | 8 | 1968–1975 | 3 | 5 | 0 | .375 |
| Jackie Sherrill | Washington State | 1 | 1976 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .000 |
| Warren Powers | Washington State | 1 | 1977 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .000 |
| Jim Walden | Washington State | 9 | 1978–1986 | 3 | 6 | 0 | .333 |
| Dennis Erickson | Washington State | 2 | 1987–1988 | 1 | 1 | 0 | .500 |
| Mike Price | Washington State | 14 | 1989–2002 | 3 | 11 | 0 | .214 |
| Bill Doba | Washington State | 5 | 2003–2007 | 3 | 2 | .600 | |
| Paul Wulff | Washington State | 4 | 2008–2011 | 1 | 3 | .250 | |
| Mike Leach | Washington State | 8 | 2012–2019 | 1 | 7 | .125 | |
| Jake Dickert | Washington State | 4 | 2021–2024 | 2 | 2 | .500 | |
| Jimmy Rogers | Washington State | 1 | 2025 | 0 | 1 | .000 |
NEW TROPHY: [...] the Apple Cup Trophy which will be awarded each year to the winner in the cross-state football game. The Huskies won first possession of the cup by downing the Cougars, 16–0.
A "Governor's Trophy" for the Washington–Washington State football struggle. That was the announcement made yesterday by University of Washington officials who said that such a cup had been donated by Governor Martin. The game will be played in Seattle on November 24.
The "Big 'W' Stick"—center of an annual college feud between University of Washington and Washington State college students—will not be taken to Pullman [...] Instead, the governor's trophy, donated last year by Gov. Clarence D. Martin to end the threat of annual riots over the stick, will be presented to the winning school
Victor in tomorrow's game will take over possession of the Governor's Trophy, an award offered by former Governor Clarence Martin to be held by the winner of the annual Washington–W.S.C. game.
Who will get the first bite? The Big Apple Trophy, a new award symbolizing rivalry and competition between Washington State University and the University of Washington football teams. The perpetual trophy will be presented for the first time Saturday after the Husky–Cougar Homecoming game by Sun Dodgers, men's spirit organization. TheWashington Apple Commission donated the trophy.
The Big Apple Trophy, symbolic of victory in the Washington–Washington State football series, will go on the line today when the two teams play in Spokane. [...] Donated by the Washington State Apple Commission last year,
The official fruit of the state of Washington is the apple.