1959 San Francisco 49ers season

NFL team season

1959 San Francisco 49ers season

Owner| Victor Morabito
General manager| Louis Spadia
Head coach| Red Hickey
Home stadium| Kezar Stadium
Results
Record| 7–5
Division place| 3rd (tied) NFL Western
Playoffs| Did not qualify

* <- 1958
* 49ers seasons
* 1960 ->

The 1959 San Francisco 49ers season marked the team's 10th year in the NFL, their 13th overall, and their first with head coach Red Hickey.

Coming off a 6–6–0 record in 1956, they were attempting to improve their record and qualify for the playoffs. However, they ended the season without qualifying for the playoffs. After starting the season 6–1, they lost 4 out of their last 5 games and ended with a 7–5 record, missing the playoffs for the second straight year.

## Offseason

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### Draft

[edit]

Main article: 1959 NFL Draft

1959 San Francisco 49ers draft

Round  | Pick  | Player  | Position  | College  | Notes
1  | 5  | Dave Baker * | DB | Oklahoma |
1  | 8  | Dan James | T | Ohio State |
2  | 17  | Bob Harrison | LB | Oklahoma  |
3  | 29  | Eddie Dove * | DB  | Colorado |
4  | 41  | Monte Clark | T  | USC |
5  | 54  | Frank Geremia | T  | Notre Dame |
6  | 66  | Tony Bavaro | T  | Holy Cross |
7  | 74  | Don Rogers | C | South Carolina |
7  | 78  | Daniel Colchico | DE | San Jose State |
8  | 90  | Lew Aken | E | Vanderbilt |
9  | 102  | Bobby Joe Green | P | Florida |
10  | 114  | Bronko Nagurski Jr. | T  | Notre Dame  | Signed with Hamilton Tiger Cats (CFL)
11  | 126  | Jack Hayes | B | Trinity (TX) |
12  | 138  | Bill Korutz | C  | Dayton |
13  | 150  | Bill Lopasky | G | West Virginia | Made roster in 1961
14  | 162  | Mike Dukes | LB  | Clemson |
15  | 174  | Joe Belland | B  | Arizona State |
16  | 186  | Bob Cook | B  | Idaho State |
17  | 198  | Jerome Jurczak | C  | Benedictine |
18  | 210  | Jack Cowley | T  | Trinity (TX)  |
19  | 222  | Tom Osborne | WR | Hastings |
20  | 234  | Toby Deese | T  | Georgia Tech |
21  | 246  | Luther Carr | B  | Washington |
22  | 258  | Burnio McQueen | E  | North Carolina A&T |
23  | 270  | Bruce Dollahan | T  | Illinois |
24  | 282  | Craig Chudy | E  | UCLA |
25  | 294  | Roy Gee | G  | Trinity (TX)  |
26  | 306  | Ed Young | E  | Louisville |
27  | 318  | Mel Semenko | T  | Colorado  |
28  | 330  | Mike McCluskey | B  | Washington  |
29  | 342  | Jack Bolton | T  | Puget Sound |
30  | 354  | Bob Carter | T  | Denver |
Made roster * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

[1]

## Schedule

[edit]

For the 1959 season the 49ers offered seats on either a reserved or general admission basis. Reserved seats were priced at $3.75 for preseason games and $4.50 for the regular season, while general admission tickets were sold for $2.50 regardless of whether the game was preseason or regular. [2] Reserved tickets for the full season were cost $27 plus 30 cents handling.[2]

Week  | Date  | Opponent  | Result  | Record  | Venue  | Attendance  | Recap  | Sources

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1  | September 27  | Philadelphia Eagles | W 24–14  | 1–0  | Kezar Stadium | 41,697  | Recap |
2  | October 4  | Los Angeles Rams | W 34–0  | 2–0  | Kezar Stadium  | 56,028  | Recap |
3  | October 11  | at Green Bay Packers | L 20–21  | 2–1  | City Stadium | 32,150  | Recap |
4  | October 18  | at Detroit Lions | W 34–13  | 3–1  | Briggs Stadium  | 52,585  | Recap |
5  | October 25  | Chicago Bears | W 20–17  | 4–1  | Kezar Stadium  | 59,045  | Recap |
6  | November 1  | Detroit Lions | W 33–7  | 5–1  | Kezar Stadium  | 59,064  | Recap |
7  | November 8  | at Los Angeles Rams | W 24–16  | 6–1  | L.A. Memorial Coliseum | 94,276  | Recap |
8  | November 15  | at Chicago Bears | L 3–14  | 6–2  | Wrigley Field | 42,157  | Recap |
9  | November 22  | at Baltimore Colts | L 14–45  | 6–3  | Memorial Stadium | 56,007  | Recap |
10  | November 29  | at Cleveland Browns | W 21–20  | 7–3  | Cleveland Stadium | 53,763  | Recap |
11  | December 5 | Baltimore Colts | L 14–34  | 7–4  | Kezar Stadium  | 59,075  | Recap |
12  | December 13  | Green Bay Packers | L 14–36  | 7–5  | Kezar Stadium  | 55,997  | Recap |
Note: Intra-conference opponents are in bold text.

## Standings

[edit]

NFL Western Conference

* view
* talk
* edit

| W | L | T | PCT | CONF | PF | PA | STK
Baltimore Colts | 9  | 3  | 0  | .750  | 9–1  | 374  | 251  | W5
Chicago Bears | 8  | 4  | 0  | .667  | 6–4  | 252  | 196  | W7
San Francisco 49ers | 7  | 5  | 0  | .583  | 5–5  | 255  | 237  | L2
Green Bay Packers | 7  | 5  | 0  | .583  | 6–4  | 248  | 246  | W4
Detroit Lions | 3  | 8  | 1  | .273  | 2–8  | 203  | 275  | L1
Los Angeles Rams | 2  | 10  | 0  | .167  | 2–8  | 242  | 315  | L8

Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.
NFL Eastern Conference

* view
* talk
* edit

| W | L | T | PCT | CONF | PF | PA | STK
New York Giants | 10  | 2  | 0  | .833  | 8–2  | 284  | 170  | W4
Philadelphia Eagles | 7  | 5  | 0  | .583  | 6–4  | 268  | 278  | L1
Cleveland Browns | 7  | 5  | 0  | .583  | 6–4  | 270  | 214  | W1
Pittsburgh Steelers | 6  | 5  | 1  | .545  | 6–4  | 257  | 216  | W1
Washington Redskins | 3  | 9  | 0  | .250  | 2–8  | 185  | 350  | L5
Chicago Cardinals | 2  | 10  | 0  | .167  | 2–8  | 234  | 324  | L6

Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.

## Roster

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### Staff / Coaches

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1959 San Francisco 49ers staff |

Front office

* Team Owner - Victor Morabito
* General manager – Louis Spadia

Head coaches

* Head coach - Frankie Albert

Offensive coaches

* Chief of Offense / Offensive Coordinator - Red Hickey
* Offensive Line – Bill Johnson

|  |  | Defensive coaches

* Defensive Assistant – Phil Bengtson

Special teams coaches

* None - N/A

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### Players

[edit]

1959 San Francisco 49ers roster

Quarterbacks

*   * 14 Y.A. Tittle
*   * 12 John Brodie

Running backs

*   * 26 Lenny Lyles HB
*   * 28 C.R. Roberts HB
*   * 34 Joe Perry FB
*   * 39 Hugh McElhenny HB
*   * 43 Tom McCormick HB
*   * 24 J. D. Smith

Wide receivers

*   * 22 Joe Arenas
*   * 27 R.C. Owens FL
*   * 85 Bill Jessup

Tight ends

*   * 86 Clyde Conner E
*   * 87 Fred Dugan E
*   * 84 Billy Wilson

| Offensive linemen

*   * 52 Karl Rubke
*   * 53 Frank Morze C
*   * 66 John Wittenborn LG
*   * 64 Ted Connolly LG
*   * 76 John Gonzaga LT
*   * 68 Lou Palatella RG
*   * 78 John Thomas LT
*   * 79 Bob St. Clair RT
*   * 77 Bruce Bosley

Defensive linemen

*   * 63 Monte Clark
*   * 75 Ed Henke
*   * 72 Bill Herchman
*   * 74 Henry Schmidt DE
*   * 70 Charlie Krueger
*   * 87 Charley Powell
*   * 73 Leo Nomellini

|  | Linebackers

*   * 50 Jerry Tubbs MLB
*   * 52 Karl Rubke LB
*   * 54 Bob Harrison
*   * 55 Matt Hazeltine
*   * 33 Clancy Osborne

Defensive backs

*   * 20 Bill Stits
*   * 25 Dave Baker DB
*   * 29 Billy Atkins FS
*   * 80 Jerry Mertens
*   * 40 Abe Woodson DB
*   * 42 Jimmy Ridlon DB
*   * 44 Eddie Dove FS
*   * 47 Dicky Moegle

Special teams

*   * 36 Tommy Davis P/K

| Reserve lists

* Vacant

rookies in italics

Source:

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "1959 San Francisco 49ers Draftees". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved February 24, 2022.
2. ^ a b E.J. O'Malley, "Purchasing NFL Tickets: A Guide to Ticket Information," Sports Forecast, vol. 2, no. 2. Chicago: E.J. O'Malley Publishing Co., 1959; p. 78.

## External links

[edit]

* 1959 San Francisco 49ers season stats

* v
* t
* e

San Francisco 49ers

* Founded in 1946
* Based and headquartered in Santa Clara, California

Franchise|

* Franchise
* Team history
* Coaches
* All-time roster
* Seasons
* Logo and uniform history
* Starting quarterbacks
* Draft history (First-round draft picks)
* Broadcasters
* Retired numbers

Stadiums|

* Kezar Stadium
* Candlestick Park
* Levi's Stadium
* State Farm Stadium
* Three games played due to the COVID-19 pandemic

Culture|

* 49er Faithful
* Sourdough Sam
* San Francisco 49ers Gold Rush
* West Coast offense
* The Pigskin Priest
* KGO
* KNBR
* Mr. Relevant

Lore|

* 2019 NFC Championship Game
* The Catch (II)
* Joe Cool
* Million Dollar Backfield
* Snowball Game
* No Punt Game
* Fútbol Americano
* Harbaugh Bowl
* The Tip
* Jet Chip Wasp

Rivalries|

* Arizona Cardinals
* Dallas Cowboys
* Green Bay Packers
* Oakland Raiders (former)
* Los Angeles Rams
* New York Giants
* Seattle Seahawks

Key figures|

* Eddie DeBartolo
* Denise DeBartolo York
* Jed York
* John York
* Gideon Yu

Division championships (22)|

* 1970
* 1971
* 1972
* 1981
* 1983
* 1984
* 1986
* 1987
* 1988
* 1989
* 1990
* 1992
* 1993
* 1994
* 1995
* 1997
* 2002
* 2011
* 2012
* 2019
* 2022
* 2023

Conference championships (8)|

* 1981
* 1984
* 1988
* 1989
* 1994
* 2012
* 2019
* 2023

League championships (5)|

* 1981 (XVI)
* 1984 (XIX)
* 1988 (XXIII)
* 1989 (XXIV)
* 1994 (XXIX)

Current league affiliations|

* League: National Football League (1950–present)
* Conference: National Football Conference
* Division: West Division

Former league affiliation|

All-America Football Conference (1946–1949)

* v
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* e

San Francisco 49ers seasons

* 1946
* 1947
* 1948
* 1949
* 1950
* 1951
* 1952
* 1953
* 1954
* 1955
* 1956
* 1957
* 1958
* 1959
* 1960
* 1961
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* 1963
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Bold indicates Super Bowl victory
Italics indicates Super Bowl appearance

* v
* t
* e

1959 NFL season

| Eastern Conference| Chi Cardinals | Philadelphia| Baltimore| Green Bay | Western Conference

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Cleveland | Pittsburgh| Chi Bears| Los Angeles
New York | Washington| Detroit| San Francisco

* 1959 NFL draft
* NFL championship
* Pro Bowl

*[W]: Wins
*[L]: Losses
*[T]: Ties
*[PCT]: Winning percentage
*[CONF]: Win–Loss record within their conference
*[PF]: Points For (Total points scored)
*[PA]: Points Against (Total points allowed)
*[STK]: Current Winning or Losing Streak
*[HB]: Halfback
*[FB]: Fullback
*[FL]: Flanker
*[E]: End
*[C]: Center
*[LG]: Left guard
*[LT]: Left tackle
*[RG]: Right guard
*[RT]: Right tackle
*[DE]: Defensive end
*[MLB]: Middle linebacker
*[LB]: Linebacker
*[DB]: Defensive back
*[FS]: Free safety
*[P/K]: Punter / kicker
*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template