After starting off the season gang busters, going 4-0 with two wins against Top-25 opponents, the Cougars have lost four in a row. One of those to an Oregon team that looks unstoppable right now, one to an Arizona team that seems to be giving everyone fits, and this one to the Wildcats in-state rival Arizona State in a game that was close from start to finish, tied up 7-7 at the end of the 1st Qtr with the Sun Devils up by just three points 24-21 at the break. But in the second half and down by ten points, 31-21, Washington State was sitting 4th and 2 at the ASU 14 yard line and opted for the field goal instead of going for it. Janikowski hit it from 31 yards out to make it 31-24 but with Arizona State coming back and scoring a TD just three plays later the Cougars found themselves down 38-24 and sitting 4th and goal at the ASU 17 yard line on the 13th play of their next drive and almost half of the 4th Qtr gone. Janikowski hit another one to make it 38-27 but that was as close as the Cougars would get and with the win, the Sun Devils break a six game losing streak.
Arizona State QB Trenton Bourguet connected on over 70% of his passes for 274 yards without connecting in the end zone or throwing any picks but consistently moving the chains and facilitating their prolific running game in which they rushed 39 times for 235 yards and five TD’s. Junior RB DeCarlos Brooks, back after a three game absence due to injury, and Cameron Skattebo combined for 188 of those yards with both rushing for TD’s, three for Brooks, one for Skattebo, and one for Elijhah Badger. For Washington State Junior QB Cameron Ward hit 70% of his passes, which has been right at his average all season long, for 315 yards, 1 TD, and no interceptions while also rushing 12 times for an additional 35 yards and 2 scores on the ground. Other than Ward, Senior RB Nakia Watson contributed 30 more yards on a day in which the Cougars rushed a total of 21 times for just 88 yards. Washington State got out to a 7-0 lead at the end of a 15 play, 75 yard drive, on their first possession of the game but that’s the last lead they would have all game long.
If the Cougars want to play in a bowl this season they’ll need to shore up a defense that has gotten worse over the season, especially against the run. In their first four weeks, two against ranked teams, they gave up a total of 528 rushing yards and 6 TD’s, an average of 132 yards on the ground and 1.5 TD’s. Over the last four weeks they have allowed 838 yards and 15 TD’s or over 200 yards of rushing a game as well as 3.75 TD’s. If they can get it together they have a favorable schedule the rest of the way that should get them the wins they need to become eligible for a post season bowl game. They have Stanford and Colorado at home, two PAC-12 teams whose defense is worse than their own, and California on the road. If they can play the way they were playing at the beginning of the year they could win all three. After that it’s the Apple Cup, usually played on the Friday after Thanksgiving. This year it will be on the road in Alaska Airline Husky Stadium and sadly could be the end of the popular rivalry that dates back 123 years.