COUG FOOTBALL: Recap and highlights: Washington
State Cougars fire on all cylinders in 59-24 victory over Eastern Washington
Eagles
UPDATED: Sat., Sept. 15, 2018, 9:29
p.m.
NCAA FOOTBALL
At Martin Stadium, Pullman
FINAL
WSU 59 –EWU 24
➤ Friday,
Sept. 21: Washington State Cougars at USC Trojans, 7:30 p.m. PDT TV: ESPN
PULLMAN – In seven years under Mike
Leach, the Cougars have built a potent offense, strengthened their defense and,
a more recent development, have gradually transformed Martin Stadium into a
considerably difficult place to win a football game if you aren’t wearing
crimson and grey.
Eastern Washington visited and won
here in 2016, but the Pullman venue and its primary tenant aren’t quite as
vulnerable as they were two years ago and on Saturday the Eagles became the
ninth straight visiting team to walk out of Martin Stadium with a loss after
WSU dominated its FCS visitor 59-24 in front of a sellout crowd.
The Cougars (3-0) bring their
unbeaten record to No. 16 USC on Friday for their Pac-12 opener in Los Angeles
while the Eagles (2-1) host Cal Poly on Saturday in Cheney.
WSU’s offense didn’t have trouble
getting off the ground Saturday and, unlike in the previous game against San
Jose State, the Cougars were able to put points on the board in each of the
four quarters, with 14 in the first, 14 in the second, 7 in the third and 17 in
the fourth.
Cougar quarterback Gardner Minshew
passed for a career-high 470 yards, beating his previous best of 463 set last
season while playing at East Carolina, and threw two touchdown passes while
completing 45-of-57 (78 percent) throws.
His preferred target, sophomore
receiver Tay Martin, also had a career night, catching 13 passes for 149 yards
and a touchdown.
On only six carries, junior running
back James Williams managed to get into the end zone for three rushing
touchdowns and his freshman counterpart, Max Borghi, added another midway
through the fourth quarter.
The Cougars never trailed in the
game, but EWU posted its biggest threat in the third quarter, twice closing the
gap to 11 points. The Eagles could’ve cut WSU’s lead to one possession on a
44-yard field goal from Roldan Alcobendas, but a holding penalty negated the
kick and forced EWU to punt.
Minshew led an important eight-play,
99-yard touchdown drive with 4:37 left in the third quarter to reestablish an
18-point WSU lead and Jahad Woods came up with a key interception later in the
period, giving the Cougar offense the ball back on EWU’s 27-yard line with :35
to go in the third. – Theo Lawson
Difference makers: James Williams
scores a trio of touchdowns in Washington State’s blowout win
Difference makers from Washington
State’s 59-24 victory over Eastern Washington | Read more »
TV Take: Washington State provided
plenty of highlights for Pac-12 Networks to replay in 59-24 win over Eastern
Washington
There is an argument to be made
instant replay is the most significant invention in the history of football. At
least the broadcast part of it. | Read more »
First quarter
Q1 9:27 – WSU 7, EWU 0: The Cougs
strike first in this one. After Gardner Minshew finds Tay Martin up the seam
for a 22-yard gain tho the EWU 1-yard line, James Williams pounds it in for 6
for the Cougs. Minshew threw for 59 yards on the drive, with Jamire Calvin his
favorite target. Calvin had 38 yards on the 7-play, 68-yard drive.
The drive was set up by Jalen
Thompson’s interception of EWU QB Gage Gubrud. Peyton Pelluer applied the
pressure as Gubrud threw.
Q1 6:09 – WSU 7, EWU 0: The defenses
are trading punches.
Q1 1:45 – WSU 14, EWU 0: Gardner
Minshew caps an 8-play drive with a 14-yard TD pass to Easop Winston. Minshew
is up to 181 yards passing for the game. He threw for all 83 yards on the
drive.
Second quarter
Q2 12:11 – WSU 14, EWU 3: Roldan
Alcobendas is good on a 37-yard field goal. EWU QB Gage Gubrud threw for 50
yards on the 60-yard drive. Gubrud is up to 59 yards passing.
Q2 12:11 – WSU 21, EWU 3: Cougars
returner Travell Harris takes the EWU kickoff 100 yards for the score. It was
the redshirt freshman’s first career touchdown.
Q2 10:24 – WSU 21, EWU 3: The Cougars
get their second interception of the game, this time it’s Darrien Molton with
the pick of Gage Gubrud’s long pass.
Q2 2:17 – WSU 28, EWU 3: James
Williams finishes WSU’s 98-yard drive with authority, powering in on a 2-yard
run to push the Cougs advantage to 25. A tough pass interference call on the
Eagles on WSU’s 3rd-and-goal attempt set up Williams’ score.
Q2 0:39 – WSU 28, EWU 10: Gage Gubrud
finds Andrew Boston for the 26-yard touchdown as the Eagles chip away at the
Cougs’ lead. Tamarick Pierce picked up 34 yards on the ground for EWU on the
drive. Gubrud is up to 98 yards passing for the game.
Halftime reads
Some fans must choose between family,
team ties as Washington State Cougars host Eastern Washington Eagles
With a proximity of only 80 miles
between the two schools, the sellout crowd of nearly 33,000 at the Washington
State-Eastern Washington football game had dozens of fans whose families have
allegiances to both schools. | Read more »
Sellout crowd on hand for regional
battle between Washington State, Eastern Washington
WSU reported ticket sales at 32,952,
which makes Saturday’s game the 13th sellout at Martin Stadium since the
beginning of the 2012 season. It comes one week after the Cougars announced an
attendance figure of just 26,141 for the home opener against San Jose State –
an 8 p.m. start time in Pullman. | Read more »
Third quarter
Q3 11:41 – WSU 28, EWU 17: The Eagles
open the second half with a 9-play, 75-yard touchdown drive. Gage Gubrud, who
threw for 50 yards and ran for 4 more on the drive, found Zach Eagle wide open
on the sideline for the 34-yard touchdown pass.
Q3 8:58 – WSU 28, EWU 17: EWU’s
Roldan Alcobendas sees his 44-yard field goal taken off the board for a holding
penalty on the Eagles. After the 5-yard setback the Eagles decided to punt.
Alcobendas, who also handles the Eags’ punting, saw his punt downed at the WSU
1-yard line.
Q3 3:54 – WSU 35, EWU 17: James
Williams gets his third touchdown of the game, this one an 8-yard carry, as
Washington State completes an 8-play, 99-yard drive. WSU QB Gardner Minshew
threw for 91 yards on the drive. He is up to 354 yards through the air.
Q3 4:37 – WSU 35, EWU 24: The Eagles
respond to WSU’s long TD drive with 6 of their own. A Gage Gubrud 44-yard
touchdown pass to Dennis Merritt cuts the the Cougars lead back down to 11.
Q3 1:05 – WSU 35, EWU 24: Jahad Woods
makes the defensive play of the game, so far. The WSU linebacker hauls in an
acrobatic interception of Gage Gubruds short pass to give the Cougs the ball
deep in EWU territory.
Fourth quarter
Q4 14:05 – WSU 38, EWU 24: WSU kicker
Blake Mazza makes a 44-yard field goal to push the Cougs’ lead to two
touchdowns.
Q4 9:47 – WSU 45, EWU 24: Gardner
Minshew throws his second touchdown of the game, this one to Tay Martin on a
21-yard jumpball up the sideline.
Q4 8:24 – WSU 52, EWU 24: Max Borghi
scampers in for a 6-yard touchdown run. The Cougars benifited from a EWU fumble
on their kick return. WSU has 24 points off of EWU turnovers in this one.
Q4 1:21 – WSU 59, EWU 24: Trey
Tinsley hits Robert Lewis for the 6-yard touchdown pass. East Valley High-alum
Rodrick Fisher caught his first pass on the drive.
Pregame
WSU O-Line: The big boys up front for
the Cougs are looking to keep a clean pocket for QB Gardner Minshew again
tonight. Theo Lawson with more on WSU’s sackless streak:
UPDATE: The Cougars gave up a sack.
Two, in fact, during their third drive of the game.
A nice tribute: A bouquet of flowers
was placed on the 3-yard line at Martin Stadium before the game. Late WSU QB
Tyler Hilinski wore No. 3. He was honored before last week’s game against San
Jose State.
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WSU football
TV Take: Washington State provided
plenty of highlights for Pac-12 Networks to replay in 59-24 win over Eastern
Washington
Spokane Spokesman-Review
By Vince Grippi
There is an argument to be made that
instant replay is the most significant invention in the history of football. At
least the broadcast part of it.
In a game with many 30-second pauses,
filling the time with replays helped make football America’s favorite game.
But its most-recent advancements,
like super-slow motion and the replay review, has added a Dr. Jekyll to
replays’ Mr. Hyde.
Both were on display on the Pac-12
Network’s broadcast of Saturday night’s Washington State 59-24 win over
visiting Eastern Washington.
What they saw …
No one can accuse the Pac-12 Networks
of showing too few replays, which is great for viewers – unless there is the
occasional moment when the beginning of a play is missed.
The abundant replays are also good
for the broadcast crew.
Play-by-play voice Guy Haberman is
adept at setting up what happened, and Ryan Leaf, the former Washington State
quarterback, didn’t back down no matter what the play showed.
Leaf pointed out the good, like each
of Gage Gubrud’s three touchdown passes or the key block on Travell Harris’
100-yard kickoff return for Washington State. He also pointed out the bad in
most cases, highlighting a stiff-arm by WSU receiver Easop Winston before a
touchdown pass arrived as well as a possible uncalled hold on an Eastern.
That is also part of replay’s
influence, the ability of viewers to criticize every flag or nonflag.
Replay highlighted two first-half
spots that were off by a couple of yards. It didn’t show a holding call that
took away a 53-yard touchdown pass for Washington State.
And it also allowed Leaf and Haberman
many opportunities to discuss the physical nature of Washington State’s
defensive backfield.
Late in the game, Haberman and Leaf
discussed an incomplete pass that featured aggressive hand-fighting by Marcus
Strong.
“That’s pass interference,” Leaf
said, then explained why.
Thanks to replay, he had multiple
chances to do that.
What we saw …
One person we didn’t see or hear enough
was Cindy Brunson, especially in the second half.
Too often the sideline reporter is
little more than an appendix, someone whose job seems to be nothing more than
running after coaches as they leave the field at halftime.
That’s shouldn’t be Brunson’s role.
She puts more emphasis on the reporter part.
TV Take: Pac-12’s Cindy Brunson, Ryan
Leaf make returns to Martin Stadium
When Andy Grammer’s song, “Back
Home,” resonated through Martin Stadium Saturday night during the second
quarter of Washington State’s easy win over San Jose State, it had special
meaning for one member of the Pac-12 Network broadcast crew. | Read more »
The initial example of this came in
the first quarter. Washington State was on a defensive roll, seemingly
bothering Gubrud with its blitzes.
After another stop, the defense was
on the sidelines. Brunson listened to what was being said.
Brunson relayed to the viewers
linebacker coach Ken Wilson’s message to the group, talking about Eastern’s
formations and what the Cougars were going to do differently.
“Let’s really confuse this
quarterback,” Brunson quoted Wilson as saying.
As Eastern rallied, Eagles’ coach
Aaron Best had a decision to make in the third quarter. Either try a long field
goal or punt. After a timeout, he decided to punt.
Brunson told the viewers the why
behind the decision. Best trusted the group that had started to give WSU fits
with an aggressive mentality starting in the second quarter.
“Go get me that ball back,” Best told
his defense.
The Cougars went on a 99-yard drive
capped by James Williams’ 8-yard run.
And Leaf questioned the passive
defensive scheme all the way down the field.
“I just can’t get over they’re
bringing three every time and sitting eight back there,” said the former
quarterback, pointing out more than once the Eagles’ lack of pressure. “That
just hasn’t worked for them.”
This was only Leaf’s second game as
an analyst and it showed at times.
With less than 5 minutes left in the
first half, WSU quarterback Gardner Minshew threw one of his rare incompletions,
mainly because two Cougar receivers were standing right next to each other.
Immediately, Leaf pointed out the problem, explaining a mesh route and how it
wasn’t run correctly.
Two plays later, a 19-yard pass to
Jamire Calvin, Leaf gushed about the WSU receivers.
“These receivers are in the right
place at all times,” he said. “That’s why Gardner Minshew has so much
confidence in where they are going to be.”
It can’t be both.
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
Some fans must choose between family,
team ties as Washington State Cougars host Eastern Washington Eagles
UPDATED: Sat., Sept. 15, 2018, 8:35
p.m.
By Ryan Collingwood
Spokane S-R
Sellout crowd on hand for regional
battle between Washington State, Eastern Washington
PULLMAN – Add Kevin Bacon to the list
of proud Eastern Washington graduates.
The longtime Mead resident and banker
isn’t a Hollywood actor, but he has no problem adjusting roles.
Before his son, freshman wide
receiver Lucas Bacon, walked on to Washington State’s football team this fall,
his allegiance had been to his alma matter and the Washington Huskies.
He was proudly wearing crimson on
Saturday, though.
Hours before kickoff between
Washington State and Eastern Washington at Martin Stadium in Pullman, Kevin and
about a dozen relatives donned WSU jerseys with the No.82 at a tailgate party –
Lucas’ number, with the surname Bacon across the back.
Kevin’s brother, Kent Bacon, also
graduated from EWU and was wearing one of the jerseys. Kent would occasionally
pull up the jersey and flash his undershirt – a red Eagles T-shirt.
“I am an Eagle, but now I’m also a
Coug. We’re here to support Lucas,” Kevin said. “It’s been fun. I am glad these
two programs play each other now.”
Kent agreed.
“The gap between (Washington State
and EWU) has closed a bit,” Kent said. “Growing up in the 1980s, it was a huge
gap.”
Lucas Bacon set Mead High School receiving
records last fall and was recruited by both EWU and WSU, Kevin said.
“Doing the EWU and WSU thing has been
a big transition for the family,” Kevin said said. “But it’s been fun to come
down to Pullman.”
With a proximity of only 80 miles
between the two schools, the sellout crowd of nearly 33,000 had dozens of fans
whose families have allegiances to both schools.
The stepmother of former Washington
State and New Orleans Saints safety Steve Gleason, a Gonzaga Prep graduate
whose inspirational fight against ALS started the Team Gleason Foundation, was
proudly donning red and black Saturday.
Jackie Gleason, an EWU graduate and
elementary school teacher, wore EWU gear as her husband and Steven Gleason’s
father, Mike, sported a 1998 WSU Rose Bowl sweatshirt.
“The Gleasons are a house divided for
a day,” joked Jackie Gleason.
Before the game, Jackie said she
received text messages from her WSU alum daughters, including “Go Cougs!” and
the “Eagles are going down.”
Jackie, now 65, said football wasn’t
as big of a deal at EWU when she attended. Now that the program has been a
consistent FCS Top 25 program, she said she’s enjoyed following the Eagles’
ascension.
“It’s very exciting,” Jackie said.
“The whole family is a Coug family, so it’s great to see EWU compete with them
now.”
EWU and WSU have faced each other
just three times in the modern football era, beginning in 2012. Longtime EWU
radio man and former standout WSU safety Paul Sorensen never faced the Eagles
when he played in the early 1980s.
Sorenson, an All-American who went on
to have a short stint in the NFL, was the man of the hour prior to kickoff
Saturday. He was chosen to wave the Cougar flag, an honor often reserved for
WSU’s most accomplished alums.
He wore both EWU and WSU shirts.
“To wave the flag in front of your
peers and old teammates, to see how much change WSU has gone through … it’s
awesome,” Sorensen said.
Sorenson, who has more than 30 years
of combined radio service between WSU and EWU, said he has a hard time picking
between the two schools.
“I pull for EWU and I pull for WSU,”
he said, “I know that sounds like a wimpy answer, but I like both schools.
There’s such dichotomy between the schools and they’ve grown so much. I
consider myself both an Eagle and Coug and it’s pretty fun.”
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VOLLEYBALL
Game Recap: WSU Volleyball |
September 15, 2018
From WSU Sports Info
Washington State tripped up by East
Tennessee State
Brown posts new career high in
assists in five set match
Next Game:
at Washington
9/20/2018 | 8:00 PM
PAC-12 NETWORKS
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. Washington State volleyball (9-1) fell in a
hard fought five set battle against East Tennessee State in the final match of
the WKU Tournament inside E.A. Diddle Arena.
Set scores for the match were: 23-25,
25-17, 22-25, 25-18, and 13-15.
East Tennessee State took control of
the opening set midway through the competition, generating multiple small runs
to hold a 17-7 advantage over the Cougars. WSU fought back however with a 10-2
run of their own to cut the Bucs' lead down to just two points at 19-17. ETSU
went on to hold down a two point lead for the remainder of the opening set of
play to ultimately win it 25-23 over the Cougars.
Set number two featured just as
intense play as the first, with each program trading points early in the set.
WSU was able to jump ahead of the Bucs with a 5-2 run, fueled by kills from
McKenna Woodford, and Ella Lajos. Washington State continued its' high pace of
play to keep pressure on East Tennessee, and tied up the match at 1-1 after the
25-17 set victory after the final kill from Lajos.
The third set of play saw the Bucs
creating a 5-0 run over WSU early on, to jump out to a 7-3 advantage to begin
the set. The Cougars battled back-and-forth with ETSU throughout most of this
set, until a 5-0 run from the Cougs propelled them to a 20-19 lead over East
Tennessee State, with help from a service ace by Ashley Brown, and kills from
Taylor Mims, and Lajos. ETSU, after trading points with WSU, totaled five
straight to take the set over Washington State at 25-22 by the final point.
The Cougars battled back once again
in this contest, breaking a tie score with the Bucs with a 5-1 run after kills
from Lajos, and Mims surged WSU ahead at 13-11. Washington State maintained a
lead for the rest of the set, sealing the victory with back-to-back kills from
Woodford, to tie up the match at 2-2 overall.
A 4-1 run sparked WSU out to the
early set number five advantage over ETSU as Claire Martin, and Mims provided
the fire power behind the offensive attack. East Tennessee State however was
able to generate small runs throughout the and ultimately take the set at 15-13
for the match victory.
QUOTE” "...All these little
things, a point here, a point there, a missed dig or a missed serve, not
transitioning, all those things add up when you're playing against really good
teams, and of course that's what we pretty much have from here on out, for the
rest of the season when we hit conference play...," Head Coach Jen Greeny
discussed post match, on the outlook for conference play starting next week.
#
