WSU’s Kykiaa Minniss, Morgan Weaver, and Maddy Haro Named
TopDrawerSoccer Top 100
12/11/2018
from WSU Sports Info
Recognized among the
best soccer players in the country, the Washington State University Coug trio
of Mykiaa Minniss, Morgan Weaver, and Maddy Haro have been named
to the TopDrawerSoccer Top-100 list.
Freshman Minniss
proved herself among the best newcomers in the country as she was ranked No. 10
on the Top 100 Freshmen list as well as earning a spot on the Freshmen Best XI
First Team.
Minniss was one of
three Pac-12 players to earn her spot on the Best XI team.
Weaver and Haro are
in the Top 100 list with Weaver checking in at No. 70 while Haro at No. 77.
In her first collegiate soccer season, Minniss was a stalwart in the middle of the Cougars' defense, starting at center back in 19 of 20 games while playing nearly every minute, only missing time briefly due to injury.
In her first collegiate soccer season, Minniss was a stalwart in the middle of the Cougars' defense, starting at center back in 19 of 20 games while playing nearly every minute, only missing time briefly due to injury.
She earned Pac-12
All-Freshman honors for her play throughout the year. Minniss helped lead the
Cougars to five shutouts on the year defensively while giving up just over one
goal per game. The first-year Coug also took home a Pac-12 Defensive Player of
the Week award in August after scoring the game-winner, becoming the first
freshman of the season to earn a weekly award while leading the defense to a
shutout of Minnesota on the road.
For Weaver and Haro, the duo have been linked together all season long as they each earned All-Pac-12 and All-Region honors as the leaders of the Cougars' offense. Weaver finished her junior season with a career-best 13 goals, third most in the Pac-12 and 20th in the nation.
For Weaver and Haro, the duo have been linked together all season long as they each earned All-Pac-12 and All-Region honors as the leaders of the Cougars' offense. Weaver finished her junior season with a career-best 13 goals, third most in the Pac-12 and 20th in the nation.
She earned three
Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week awards, the most of any conference player
on the year. For Haro, the senior defender put together one of the finest
seasons in program history as she posted a WSU record 15 assists to go along
with three goals. Her 15 assists finished second in the nation while pushing
her career total to 22, one short of the Cougars' all-time record.
While Haro departs WSU
due to graduation, the Cougars return Minniss and Weaver in 2019 as well as six
other starters, as WSU looks to push its way to the top of the Pac-12.
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Football: Washington State’s Mike Leach one of six finalists
for George Munger (top coach in college football) Award
Mon., Dec. 10, 2018, 7:47 p.m.
Spokesman-Review/by Theo Lawson
PULLMAN – Mike Leach joined Alabama’s Nick Saban, Notre
Dame’s Brian Kelly and three other coaches as finalists for the George Munger
Award, presented annually to the top coach in college football.
The Washington State coach was named a finalist for the
first time since he arrived in Pullman seven years ago. Joining Leach, Kelly
and Saban were Syracuse’s Dino Babers, UAB’s Bill Clark and Army’s Jeff Monken.
Picked to finish fifth in the Pac-12 North this preseason,
the Cougars went 10-2 in the regular season and matched the highest win total
in program history. WSU can 11 games for the first time by beating Iowa State
in the Alamo Bowl on Dec. 28 in San Antonio.
The Munger Award winner will be announced on Jan. 3. The
honor is voted on by other FBS head coaches and football sports information
directors, Maxwell Football Club members and national media members.
Leach, named the Coach of the Year in the Pac-12 Conference
last week, has led the Cougars to four consecutive bowl games – a first in
school history – and a 36-15 record over the past four seasons after going 9-25
his first three years in charge of the WSU program.
After replacing the Pac-12’s all-time leading passer, Luke
Falk, Leach’s Cougars still led the nation in passing offense at 379.8 yards
per game behind fifth-year graduate transfer quarterback Gardner Minshew.
Leach was also tasked with replacing six assistant coaches
this offseason, including defensive coordinator Alex Grinch. The Cougars
finished No. 39 nationally in scoring offense, at 23 points per game allowed,
and No. 30 in total defense, a
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Five interesting stats from Iowa State football's 2018
regular season
By Alex Halstead, Cougfan.com
But dig a little deeper into Iowa State’s regular season
totals and there are some interesting stats below the surface. The defense
posted eye-popping totals game in and game out, Hakeem Butler came up clutch
when it mattered most and Brock Purdy rushed for more yards than it appears.
Before Iowa State embarks on its trip to the Alamo Bowl
later this month, here are five interesting numbers from the Cyclones’ regular football
season.
1.
Butler coming through in the clutch
The basics of Hakeem Butler’s junior season have been well
told. The Iowa State receiver caught 51 passes for 1,126 yards and nine
touchdowns. His yardage output set Iowa State’s all-time single-season record
and his touchdown total is just one shy of tying Allen Lazard for the single-season
mark in that category. He's also moving up the career lists.
And still, there was more to Butler’s season.
Butler’s yardage coming on just 51 catches is quite
impressive and puts him among the nation’s best averaging 22.1 yards per
reception. But what Butler did with those 51 catches might be the bigger story.
Of Butler’s 51 receptions during the regular season, 41 went for a first down
or touchdown.
Here’s a breakdown of those 41 by down:
1st: 18 first downs, 5 TDs
2nd: 9 first downs, 2 TDs
3rd: 12 first downs, 2 TDs
4th: 2 first downs
Iowa State went after Butler for big gains on early downs,
but he also came through when it mattered most, recording first downs on 12
third down situations. If Butler forgoes his senior season for the NFL the
Cyclones will primarily lose their key first down threat.
2. Montgomery’s efficiency in the backfield
With a modest performance in the Alamo Bowl, running back
David Montgomery will likely set a career-high in rushing in his junior season
to go with an already career-best 12 rushing touchdowns. By and large,
Montgomery’s junior season has already been better than his flashy sophomore
one.
While most of the focus for running backs is on the
surface-level numbers like 100-yard games and rushing yards per game, there is
a bit more at play to measure Montgomery’s impact. In the NFL, some teams shoot
for a rushing efficiency mark of 60 percent, meaning that percentage of runs go
for four-plus yards, a first down or touchdown. Montgomery performed well there
in 2018.
Of Montgomery’s 231 carries during the regular season, 120
went for four or more yards, a first down or a touchdown, good for 51.9 percent
of his runs. When compared to the other Iowa State backs, Montgomery is well
ahead of the pack, even if his sample size is much larger than the others.
David Montgomery: 51.9 percent (120 of 231)
Kene Nwangwu: 42.1 percent (16 of 38)
Johnnie Lang: 36.4 percent (8 of 22)
Sheldon Croney: 28.6 percent (6 of 21)
2.
Milton’s consistent hands
Tarique Milton’s freshman campaign happened rather quietly
considering the production he put up in his first season on the field for the
Cyclones.
Through the regular season, Milton’s 34 catches rank third
on the team and his 417 yards come in second behind only Butler. Ahead of the
Alamo Bowl, Milton is No. 5 on Iowa State’s all-time freshman record list for
both receptions and yards.
But what has stood out about Milton is a less talked about
stat. Milton’s 34 receptions have come on 38 targets, meaning only four passes
have come his way and not ended up as a reception. That’s good for a catch rate
of 89.5 percent, by far the best on the roster with that sample size. While
it’s a smaller sample size, tight end Charlie Kolar caught 11 of 14 targets in
2018.
4. Purdy’s dual-threat ability
The stats for freshman quarterback Brock Purdy (from
Gilbert, Arizona) show 90 rushes for 262 yards, which adds up to 2.9 yards per
carry. But because NCAA statistics take sacks off the quarterback’s rushing
totals, those numbers aren't truly representative of his ground impact.
In reality, Purdy rushed 72 times for 371 yards when
adjusted for sacks, good for a much better 5.2 yards per carry average. That
number won’t go in Iowa State’s record books, but it does give a better
overview of Purdy’s true impact on the Cyclones’ running game. Purdy was the
team’s second-leading rusher behind David Montgomery and figures to be a focal
point going forward.
Here’s a rundown of the 18 sacks that altered the rushing
total:
Oklahoma State: 3 (-6)
West Virginia: 0
Texas Tech: 3 (-19)
Baylor: 1 (-8)
Kansas: 3 (-26)
Texas: 5 (-28)
Kansas State: 1 (-4)
Drake: 2 (-18)
The common theme throughout the 2018 season was that Iowa
State’s defense often held opponents well below both their scoring and total
offense averages. Looking back at the 12-game regular season that mostly held
up.
4
Iowa State held 10 of 12 opponents below their regular
season scoring average and the same number of opponents below their total
offense average. The West Virginia game remains the standpoint performance.
Against the season averages, Iowa State's defense held the Mountaineers 28.3 points
and 368.4 yards below their total season averages.
Here's a look at the entire season:
Team Points Avg. Diff. Yards Avg. Diff.
Iowa 13 31.5 -18.5 271 389.7 -118.7
Oklahoma 37 49.5 -12.5 519 577.9 -58.9
Akron 13 18.9 -6.9 244 294.4 -50.4
TCU 17 24.7 -7.7 299 374.6 -75.6
OK State 42 38.4 +3.6 415 500.0 -85
West Va. 14 42.3 -28.3 152 520.4 -368.4
Texas Tech 31 37.3 -6.3 363 485.2 -122.2
Kansas 3 23.8 -20.8 332 350.8 -18.8
Baylor 14 28.3 -14.3 505 441.7 +63.6
Texas 24 31.3 -7.3 405 415.6 -10.6
K-State 38 22.5 +15.5 428 344.7 +83.3
Drake 24 29.6 -5.6 279 346.1 -67.1
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