1985 Cal Poly Mustangs football team

1985 Cal Poly Mustangs football
1985 Cal Poly Mustangs football
Conference	Western Football Conference
Record	4–7 (2–3 WFC)
Head coach	Jim Sanderson (4th season);
Home stadium	Mustang Stadium
	Seasons ← 1984 1986 →

The 1985 Cal Poly Mustangs football team represented California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo as a member of the Western Football Conference (WFC) during the 1985 NCAA Division II football season. Led by fourth-year head coach Jim Sanderson, Cal Poly compiled an overall record of 4–7 with a mark of 2–3 in conference play, placing fourth in the WFC. The team was outscored by its opponents 303 to 266 for the season. The Mustangs played home games at Mustang Stadium in San Luis Obispo, California.

1985 Western Football Conference standings
v t e	Conf.					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
No. 15 Santa Clara $	4	–	0	–	1	8	–	2	–	1
No. 19 Sacramento State	4	–	1	–	0	8	–	3	–	0
Portland State	2	–	2	–	1	4	–	5	–	1
Cal Poly	2	–	3	–	0	4	–	7	–	0
Cal Lutheran	1	–	4	–	0	6	–	5	–	0
Cal State Northridge	1	–	4	–	0	4	–	7	–	0

$ – Conference champion Rankings from NCAA Division II Football Committee poll

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 14	North Dakota State*		Mustang Stadium San Luis Obispo, CA	W 35–29	6,485	^[1]
September 21	at Cal State Hayward*	No. 6	Pioneer Stadium Hayward, CA	L 17–28	1,119
September 28	at Fresno State*		Bulldog Stadium Fresno, CA	L 10–59	32,536	^[2]
October 5	No. T–7 UC Davis*		Mustang Stadium San Luis Obispo, CA (rivalry)	L 21–34	5,104
October 12	No. T–14 Santa Clara		Mustang Stadium San Luis Obispo, CA	L 6–12	4,024
October 19	Saint Mary's*		Mustang Stadium San Luis Obispo, CA	W 44–0	4,246
October 26	at Cal State Northridge		Devonshire Downs Northridge, CA	W 34–21	5,335	^[3]
November 2	at No. T–19 Sacramento State		Hornet Stadium Sacramento, CA	L 27–28	5,012
November 9	Portland State		Mustang Stadium San Luis Obispo, CA	W 34–21	2,590	^[4]
November 16	at Boise State*		Bronco Stadium Boise, ID	L 14–42	12,212	^[5]
November 23	at Cal Lutheran		Mt. Clef Field Thousand Oaks, CA	L 24–29	1,230	^[6]
*Non-conference game Rankings from NCAA Division II Football Committee Poll released prior to the game

The following Cal Poly Mustang players were selected in the 1986 NFL draft.^[9]^[10]^[11]

Player	Position	Round	Overall	NFL team
Sal Cesario	Tackle	12	328	New York Jets

↑ Horn, Steve (September 15, 1985). "No. 1 Bisons stung by Mustangs, 35-29". Santa Maria Times. p. 17. Retrieved April 30, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
↑ "Southland". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. September 29, 1985. p. III-18. Retrieved April 2, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
↑ "Saturday's Late Summaries". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. October 28, 1985. p. III-22. Retrieved April 2, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
↑ "Saturday's Late Summaries". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. November 10, 1985. p. III-18. Retrieved April 2, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
↑ "Southland". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. November 17, 1985. p. III-17. Retrieved April 2, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
↑ "Southland". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. November 24, 1985. p. III-21. Retrieved April 2, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
↑ "Final 1985 Cumulative Football Statistics Report (Cal Poly)". National Collegiate Athletic Association. Retrieved September 24, 2024.
↑ "History (1915–2023)" (PDF). Cal Poly Athletics. p. 25. Retrieved May 26, 2025.
↑ "1986 NFL Draft". Archived from the original on December 21, 2007. Retrieved January 12, 2017.
↑ "Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo Players/Alumni". Retrieved January 12, 2017.
↑ "Draft History: Cal Poly – S.L.O." Archived from the original on December 1, 2017. Retrieved March 18, 2017.