About the Alamodome …
WSU has played football games in it
twice before …
THE ALAMODOME, where Washington State and Iowa State will
meet in the 2018 Alamo Bowl football game, opened its doors in 1993.
Twenty-five years later, it played host to its third NCAA Men's Final Four in
2018, and will again in 2025. The dome in January will also play host to some
of the nation's top high school football players with the U.S. Army
All-American Bowl, says Cougfan.
From online sources:
WSU has played two football games in the Alamodome in San
Antonio:
==Dec 31, 1994 ---Washington State 10, Baylor 3==
In the second Alamo Bowl, Washington State held Baylor to
151 yards of total offense. Washington State scored in the first quarter, on a
one-yard touchdown run from halfback Kevin Hicks to take a 7–0 lead. With 1:57
left in the first half, Tony Truant kicked a 37-yard field goal to put the
Cougars up 10–0 at halftime. In the third quarter, Baylor scored its only
points of the game on a 36-yard Jarvis Van Dyke field goal. Chad Davis was
WSU’s quarterback. WSU Coach Mike Price. WSU 1994 season record 8-4.
==Oct 31, 2009 --- Notre Dame 40, WSU 14==
First of the Notre Dame football “Shamrock Series.” Although
held in San Antonio, Notre Dame treated it as a home game. Notre Dame and WSU
starting quarterbacks each threw for two touchdowns. For the Irish it was QB
Jimmy Clausen. For the Cougars it was freshman QB Jeff Tuel, who was 12-of-23
for 104 yards. Both WSU TDs scored on Tuel to Jared Karstetter passes. WSU
Coach Paul Wulff. WSU 2009 season record 1-11.
::::::::::::::::
Edited
version (leaving in WSU related text and deleting non-WSU related text) below from
12/13/2018 “Grip on Sports” posting by Vince Grippi of Spokane S-R:
Grip on Sports: How the heck did Washington State give its
fans such a great football season as a Christmas present?
Thu., Dec. 13, 2018, 8:48 a.m. … by Vince Grippi, Spokane
S-R
A GRIP ON SPORTS • Time is running short. Christmas will be
here before you know it. Heck, it is so close, Washington State has begun
practicing for the Alamo Bowl. Yep, it’s that close. Read on.
••••••••••
• Why does Christmas seem so far away in late-November and
then so close by in mid-December? Time always messes with us, doesn’t it?
Heck, it seems like only yesterday the Cougars were picked
to finish 3-9 or 4-8 by just about everybody and now here they are, 10-2 and
facing a chance to win 11 games in a season for the first time.
Weird, huh?
Not that time passes. That happens. And, as my dad used to
say, it’s better than the alternative. No, what’s weird is the Cougars won 10
games this season.
How the heck did that happen? Let’s examine a few elements
that played into the Cougars success.
• Gardner Minshew. This is the most obvious one. Everyone
knows the Washington State offense revolves around its quarterback. All Mike
Leach offenses have since the Air Raid began. But no one, and I mean that in
the universal sense, knew what the Cougars were getting in Minshew. Probably
not even Minshew himself.
Yes, Leach asked him is he wanted to lead the nation in
passing when he recruited him, but the coach does that with every quarterback
he’s recruiting. That Minshew did it is a testament to how perfect a fit the
transfer turned out to be.
• Peyton Pelleur’s healthy sixth year. Not only did the
inside linebacker earn an extra season from the NCAA, he was able to play in
every game. That was big, even if he isn’t.
We’re talking size here, not stature. See, Pelleur is more
than his abilities, more than his statistics, more than the measurables. He’s
one of those guys that make his teammates better by his presence. It’s not just
the sure tackling or the voice before the snap. He’s so well-respected, his
teammates don’t want to let him down. That leads to extra effort. And a better
unit.
• The offensive line. There were big losses up front
following last season – in more than one way. But the emergence of Abraham
Lucas – a freshman All-American at right tackle – and the two guards vaulted
the line into a place it hadn’t been before. This group rates with some of Mike
Price’s old groups as the Cougars’ best.
• Camaraderie. We’re not talking about the players, though
that’s shown itself throughout the season too. We’re referring to the coaching
staff and some addition by subtraction.
When a handful of assistants left after last season, there
were lamentations and garment-rending among the faithful. But in many cases,
the replacement was an upgrade – or at least not a step back.
Offensive line coach Mason Miller, defensive coordinator
Tracy Claeys and the other newbies to Pullman not only did the job on the
practice field, they also, by all reports, are a tighter group in the offices.
That helps make life more enjoyable for everyone.
• Mike Leach can coach – and recruit. The latter category
might be the most important for long-term success. Heck, there’s no “might”
about it. Leach knows the type of player he needs to succeed. And he is able to
entice enough of those players to come to the Palouse to ensure the Cougars
don’t fall back too far.
Yes, attracting Minshew was a bit lucky. But the depth built
on the offensive line, at wide receiver, in the linebacking corps, that wasn’t
luck. That is a direct result of hard work throughout the last few offseasons.
• Will it continue next season? Hard to say. Quarterback is
still the key position at WSU and no one outside of the program knows who will
develop as the offense’s leader. But remember, Leach seemed to have a prolific
passer emerge each season at Texas Tech. And he seems to have built the same
pipeline here.
………..
WSU: As we mentioned above, Abe Lucas was named to USA
Today’s freshman All-American team. Theo Lawson has a story. … Elsewhere in the
Pac-12, John Canzano takes another look at conference finances, this time
zeroing in on the problems at Oregon State. Funny, the Beavers’ financial woes
are still not as bad as the trouble in Pullman. Maybe that’s why Kirk Schulz
has been asking some tough questions.
…………
The weather isn’t perfect in Pullman, especially considering
the Cougars are preparing for a game in a domed stadium. They will probably be
indoors a lot the next few days, though their indoor practice facility leaves a
lot to be desired. (The surface isn’t the easiest on the legs and the acoustics
aren’t state-of-the-art either.) It’s why, despite the debt problem in
athletics, Pat Chun and Schulz are trying to raise enough money to build a new
indoor facility.
:::::::::::::
WSU football
USA Today tabs Washington State right tackle Abraham Lucas
as Freshman All-American
UPDATED: Wed., Dec. 12, 2018, 6:30 p.m.
By Theo Lawson of Spokane’s Spokesman-Review/S-R
PULLMAN – One week after he was named to the All-Pac-12
Conference second team, Washington State redshirt freshman right tackle Abraham
Lucas continues to rake in postseason recognition.
On Wednesday, Lucas was one of five offensive linemen named
to the USA Today Freshman All-American team. Earlier in the week, Lucas
received the same honor from The Athletic when the website released its
freshman All-American teams.
Lucas started all 12 games on WSU’s offensive line during
the regular season, helping the Cougars reduce their sacks total from 44 in
2017 to 11 in 2018. The Everett native and Archbishop Murray High product
anchored the right side of an offensive line that was named a semifinalist for
the Joe Moore Award – given to the nation’s top offensive line – and was
integral in WSU’s FBS-leading passing totals.
The Cougars led the country in pass completions (443), pass
attempts (628) and passing yards per game (379.8), which means their offensive
line conceded one sack per every 57 pass attempts.
Earlier this season, WSU coach Mike Leach called Lucas “one
of the best offensive linemen in the conference as a freshman,” also noting,
“as long as we’re talking about ceilings, I don’t know where his ceiling is,
but it’s up there pretty good.”
The rookie also earned high praise from veteran teammate
Andre Dillard, a left tackle who was named to the Associated Press All-American
third team on Monday.
“That kid is just some kind of robot or demigod, because
he’s just the most naturally talented, athletic kid I’ve seen since I’ve been
here,” Dillard said in September. “It almost looks effortless.”
Next season, Lucas will have a chance to become the fourth
WSU offensive lineman in five years to earn All-American honors. By doing so,
he’d also make it five consecutive years of a Cougar offensive lineman earning
such recognition. Current Detroit Lions tackle/guard Joe Dahl was an
All-American in 2015, former left guard Cody O’Connell was honored in 2016 and
’17, and Dillard was recognized this season.
::::::::::::::::
Assistant
coach Burdette Greeny honored after he helps lead WSU Volleyball Cougars to NCAA
Sweet Sixteen appearance
From
WSU Sports Info 12/13/2018
MINNEAPOLIS -- Washington State Volleyball Associate Head
Coach Burdette Greeny was named the Division I American Volleyball Coaches
Association Assistant Coach of the Year, as was announced by the AVCA
Thursday.
Greeny, who is in his eighth season with the Cougar
Volleyball program, has been incredibly influential in the success of
Washington State alongside head coach, and wife Jen Greeny. WSU is coming off
three straight consecutive trips to the NCAA Championship Tournament Second
Round, and most recently advanced into the Sweet Sixteen in 2018 after the
Cougars defeated reigning Big Sky Champion Northern Arizona in round one, and
then Tennessee in the round two. WSU earned a No. 16 overall seed in the
tournament this past season as well, insuring that the Cougars would host the
opening two rounds of action inside Bohler Gym for the first time since 1997.
Burdette Greeny has helped lead the recruiting process for
Washington State, as the Cougars have been only one of 15 programs in the
nation to have two Top 25, and one Honorable Mention recruiting class between
2013, and 2015. The 2013 and 2015 recruiting classes are two of the
highest-ranked recruiting classes ever in any sport at WSU. Among Greeny's
Washington State recruits are six PrepVolleyball.com Top 100 players and two
Gatorade State Players of the Year.
Washington State certainly saw a great payoff in the 2018
senior class this season, as all six Cougars were instrumental in the success
of the program. A senior class which featured defensive and serving specialist
in Olivia Coale, and Abby Phillips, to the unstoppable forces of Claire Martin,
and Ella Lajos in the middle, and the offensive firepower on the outside of
Taylor Mims, and McKenna Woodford. Mims, and Woodford each earned All-Pac-12
Team honors, along with Urias, and junior Ashley Brown receiving All-Pac-12
Honorable Mention picks. WSU saw Taylor, McKenna, and Jocelyn each earn AVCA
All-Region selections, and most recently was announced that Mims was named an
AVCA Third Team All-American, and Woodford, and Urias each got an All-American
Honorable Mention nod.
Washington State student-athletes also took care of business
off the court as Olivia Coale, Ella Lajos, Claire Martin, Alexis Dirige, Penny
Tusa, and Woodford were each named Pac-12 All-Academic selections.
The Cougars will now look towards the spring season of 2019
in preparation for the fall, in which WSU has signed six student-athletes to
come into the program and continued to aid in the success of Washington State
Volleyball moving forward.
:::::::::::
SIDs
say Cougs trail far behind Cyclones in bowl ticket sales
By Braden
Johnson 12/13/2018 Cougfan.com
PULLMAN – Iowa State has at least one clear advantage over
WSU ahead of the teams' Alamo Bowl matchup on Dec. 28 (6 p.m. PT).
A WSU sports
information director delivered another ticket sales update for the San
Antonio-based bowl, and the number for the Cougars was, frankly, not wonderful.
WSU has sold about 4,700 tickets out of its 6,000 allotment
and 2,300 over the last week as of Wednesday. CF.C reported the Cougars sold
2,400 tickets within 48 hours of the Dec. 2 announcement.
Michael Green, ISU assistant director for athletic
communications, said on Tuesday the Cyclones have sold more than 13,500
tickets. ISU had to request another small allocation from bowl officials to
accommodate ticket requests.
Athletic Director Jamie Pollard tweeted on Dec. 5 the
Cyclones had already sold out their original 12,000 allotment. Cyclone fans
also filled two charter planes from Iowa to San Antonio less than 24 hours
after the bowl announcement. Pollard tweeted last week the Cyclones had already
sold an additional 1,600 student tickets as well.
WSU’s low sales numbers may stem from fans going through
third-party vendors to purchase tickets. The cheapest reserved seat the WSU
Athletic Department is offering is $80 as of Wednesday. Comparatively, Seat
Geek was selling tickets for $45, Ticketmaster $40 and StubHub $35.
Tickets went on sale through the athletic department on Dec.
3, with Cougar Athletic Fund members and season-ticket holders retaining priority
reservation. The Pac-12 is responsible for subsidizing up to half of any unsold
tickets from school allotments of teams participating in contracted bowls.
The drop-off in sales is stark from WSU’s Holiday Bowl
numbers in 2016. Then-Athletic Director Bill Moos told CF.C the Cougars sold
their entire 7,000 ticket allotment within two days of the game announcement.
Alamo Bowl returns are slightly better than WSU’s 2017
Holiday Bowl appearance to this point. Within 10 days of the Cougars making
tickets for a return trip to San Diego available, WSU had sold 3,330.
The CAF and WSU Alumni Association are teaming up to host a
pre-New Year’s Eve trip to the River Walk. The Alumni Association is hosting
The PreGame — an expansive tailgate — at The Institute of Texan Cultures in San
Antonio. The three-hour event features a fiesta-themed buffet, adult beverages
and cocktails and appearances from President Kirk Schulz and Athletic Director
Pat Chun.
Tickets for CAF members are $124, and non-member tickets are
$139.
To purchase Alamo Bowl tickets through the WSU Athletic
Department, click here. To buy tickets to the alumni association pregame
tailgate, click on link below:
#
