After a 11-2 record last year, losing again to the Huskies in the Apple Cup, and losing QB Gardner Minshew II after last year, the Cougars are in a bit of an interesting spot this year. Unless you are one of the top programs like Bama, Ohio State, Clemson, etc., losing your starting QB is never ideal. Losing your starting QB in an area where the Cougars play doesn’t help either with the weather conditions. To be fair, there is a good amount of players returning but I think Washington State football will still be playing second fiddle to the Huskies for the best college football team in the state of Washington for this season. Let’s take a look at the schedule for the Cougars this year first.
- August 31 – New Mexico State
- September 7 – Northern Colorado State
- September 13 – @ Houston
- September 21 – UCLA
- September 28 – @ Utah
- October 12 – @ Arizona State
- October 19 – Colorado
- October 26 – @ Oregon
- November 9 – @ Cal
- November 16 – Stanford
- November 23 – Oregon State
- November 30 – @ Washington
*December 6 – Pac -12 Championship Game*
(Bold indicates Pac – 12 game)
Losing Gardner at QB is a big loss for the Cougars and right now I would say there is no precise say on who the starter in Week 1 will be. Splitting reps between two QB’s early in the season can hinder an offense so it will be interesting to see how Washington State plans to attack this season at QB. On a positive side for the offense, a lot of the team is built around players that have been around the team for a while. But again, the lack of not knowing who the starting QB is I think is going to be a big hindrance for the Cougars. The Pac-12 is in an interesting position where there are a lot of question marks for a lot of the teams in the conference and I think the Cougars are one of those teams as well. However, the Cougars will have Calvin Jackson Jr., whom of which I think will emerge to carry an offensive load for the team (assuming he and whomever the starting QB will be are on the same page). He is a little undersized as a wideout but it is becoming something that you are seeing a little more frequently at both the college and pro level.
With the best pass rush in the Pac-12 last year, I think this Cougars defensive front is going to continue to be a strong pass rush again. With a strong defensive front, WSU can at least compete with most teams in the Pac-12 but they will still need to be able to put up points on the board. However, if the defensive front can cause turnovers and shorten the field for the Cougar offense, this makes it easier on whoever is playing at QB1. If the pass rush can generate enough of a push to be one of the best just like they were last year this also is going to make it easier on the DB’s as well which will hopefully turn to turnovers for the defense. Nnamdi Oguyao, Misiona Aiolupotea-Pei, and Willie Rodgers I think will be the cornerstone and the legitimate foundation for the defense. With all of them playing on the d-line again, this is going to help push the Cougars defensive front to be one of the best in the Pac-12 along with the nation.
Although I think the Cougars can have one of the best defenses in the nation, I think the offense will struggle and ultimately affect the Cougars a good amount. I think this team will drop off a little bit this year (again mainly to losing Minshew) and will finish with a 7-5 record. The wins I have them getting are over New Mexico State, Northern Colorado State, Houston, UCLA, Colorado, Cal, and Oregon State. Unfortunately for Cougar fans, that means another Apple Cup loss to the Huskies in the last week of the season. I don’t think this team has the firepower to be that “surprise” team but they have a defense that can make some noise for them.
What are your expectations for the Cougars this year?
Written by Tyler Pastorius
