NFL
By: Brock Vierra
The Cougars and the proud people of the Palouse are tired of the disrespect and I don’t blame them. Ol’ Crimson continues to fly high as Washington State knocked off #19 Wisconsin last weekend, their second straight win over the Badgers who were ranked on both occasions. Washington State continues to remain unranked, another note in the trend of writing off the team up in Pullman. The Cougars got a much-needed win on national TV as they look for a future home with the Pac-12 conference nearing its demise. I wrote that Jake Dickert is failing a couple of months ago and I know I wasn’t the only one who echoed those sentiments after a poor 2022 campaign. However, he took those words personally and the results are clear as day. Cam Ward is playing up to his NFL First Round hype, Kyle Williams has been a welcomed transfer from UNLV and the defense is aggressive and disciplined. The Cougars are on the rise.
Now aside from football, Pullman is one of the nicest places in the country. They have great weather if you love the cold, isolated from the hustle and bustle of Seattle and it is home to one of the most underrated fan bases in the country. As for the team, they’ve quietly sent a fair amount of players to the league, they have had four first-round QB selections Drew Bledsoe who went first overall, Ryan Leaf and Timm Rosenbach went second overall, and Jack Thompson who went third overall. They’re known for having pass-happy offenses from Mike Price’s spread to Mike Leach’s Air Raid and now they have Ben Arbuckle’s aerial assault courtesy of Western Kentucky. Cam Ward is on pace to put up similar numbers to what Bailey Zappe put up in this same offense and defenses are taking notice.
However, the big challenge lies ahead. In my Pac-12 preview, I ranked Washington State ninth due to the plethora of talent within the conference. They have a layup against Northern Colorado this week before facing one of the best defenses in the Pac-12 in Oregon State. Just like the Cougars, Oregon State is also left unclear about its future in college football. The two remaining Pac-12 members are gonna fight tooth and nail to prove they belong in the Power 5. They have to play at UCLA who has found themselves a star in Dante Moore and to Eugene to play Bo Nix and the Oregon Ducks.
They also play Colorado, the most popular team in college football at the moment and they finish the year in Seattle against arch-rival Washington in what could be the last Apple Cup. Keep in mind that the Cougars planted Ol’ Crimson the last time they played at Husky Stadium so UW is ready to get their revenge and they could also be in the CFP mix at the time. If Washington State is 3-0 after this weekend and they win against Arizona State and Stanford, they would have to win at least two more games to be bowl-eligible. Oregon, Colorado, UCLA, Arizona, Cal, Washington, and Oregon State are no joke.
This team is a team of desperation. Desperate to rewrite last season, desperate to secure Jake Dickert’s future, desperate for a conference title, and desperate for a future. This team will play hard, play tough and make some gambles. Some will pay off, some won’t. At this point, I’m predicting an 8-5 record for Washington State and a bowl appearance. Potentially another Sun Bowl appearance awaits for Washington State but if things go right and they get past Oregon State, we might be looking at this year’s TCU. That is all to be determined in due time, all I can say is well done Jake Dickert, your team is unequivocally one to watch for.
For more CFP content, check out Team NBS Media’s Sunday morning recap show, The Last Word.
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