Cougars Travel To No. 15 Stanford For Saturday Night Meeting on ESPN

COUGARS HEAD TO NO. 15 STANFORD FOR SATURDAY NIGHT MATCHUP
Washington State (2-2, 1-0 Pac-12) hits the road to face No. 15 Stanford University (3-1, 2-1 Pac-12) Saturday at 7:30 p.m. on ESPN.

NEXT WEEK
The Cougars return home to host UCLA next Saturday for homecoming. Kickoff is at 7:30 p.m. on either ESPN or ESPN2.

ABOUT WSU-STANFORD SERIES
Washington State is looking to snap an eight-game skid to Stanford who lead the all-time series 40-25-1. The Cardinal have claimed the last four meetings in Stanford including a 34-17 contest in 2014. WSU's last win over Stanford came in 2007, 33-17 in Pullman and the last win in Stanford came in 2006, 36-10. Last season, the Cougars dropped a 30-28 decision in Pullman after a potential game-winning field goal attempt missed wide right as time expired.

COLLEGE GAMEDAY RECORD
Dating back to the beginning of the 2004 season, ESPN's College GameDay has had the WSU flag appear throughout the show. The streak is now at 183 after last week's appearance at Clemson. Two flags – Ol' Crimson and Gray – have been flown in the background of the GameDay set by dozens of friends and alumni. The Gray flag was added in 2014 after Whitey was retired in honor of Steve Gleason's "No White Flags." WSU recognized the GameDay flag wavers in a pregame ceremony prior to the Montana State game in 2010. In addition to the flags that fly, there is a traveling flag signed by the holders after each episode. The traveling flag is retired after each season, the first of which is hanging in WSU's Alumni Center.

COUGAR QUICK HITS
TEAM
•  WSU has recorded two straight games with 200+ rushing yards for the first time since 2005
•  WSU's 11 rushing touchdowns in 2016 are fifth-most in the Pac-12, all three RB each scored twice vs. Oregon
•  WSU has seen 14 players make their debuts in 2016 including six true freshmen
•  WSU's last win over a ranked team came last season (at #18 UCLA)
•  WSU is seeking first win over a Top-15 team since 2003 (vs. #5 Texas in Holiday Bowl)
•  WSU owns a 10-3 record when forcing multiple turnovers under defensive coordinator Alex Grinch
•  WSU enters the week second in the country in punt coverage
•  WSU recorded a sell out in the season-opener and against Oregon, now owns nine sellouts since coach Mike Leach arrived at WSU in 2012, only one sellout in the five seasons prior

INDIVIDUAL
•  QB Luke Falk is the FBS active career leader in passing yards-per-game (360.0)
•  WR Gabe Marks owns the WSU record for career receptions (256), fourth-most in Pac-12 history
•  Marks ranks third among all active FBS receivers in career receptions and second in career touchdowns
•  Marks owns eight career games with 10+ receptions, the most in WSU history
•  WR River Cracraft owns a catch in 33 consecutive games, ninth-longest current streak in the country
•  WR Robert Lewis owns a catch in 28 straight games, Marks has a catch in 20 straight
•  PR Kaleb Fossum is fourth in the Pac-12 in with a 7.7 punt return average

YOUNG COUGS TAKE THE FIELD
Washington State has seen 14 players make their debuts in 2016 with 11 players recording their first career start including nine on defense. Six true freshmen have played for the Cougars including Isaiah Johnson-Mack (WR), Frederick Mauigoa (OL), Derek Moore (DE), Dezmon Patmon (WR), Marcus Strong (CB) and Jalen Thompson (S). Thompson has started all four games while redshirt-junior left guard Cody O'Connell has also started the first four games, the first career starts for him. Last season, the Cougars saw 23 players make their debuts and 11 make their first career start while 14 freshmen contributed including seven true freshmen.

FALK CONTINUES TO RACK UP THE NUMBERS (Pages 16-17)
Quarterback Luke Falk has picked up where he left off from 2015, as one of the leading quarterbacks in the country. Falk opened the season with 418 yards and four touchdowns against Eastern Washington, followed with 480 yards and four more scores at Boise State, nearly leading WSU to a fourth-quarter comeback. He added three more touchdown passes in the win over Idaho and threw for 371 yards in the win over Oregon. Falk enters the week fourth in the country in passing yards per game (373.8),  No. 20 in passing touchdowns (12) and second in completion percentage (.743). Last season, Falk finished the year with a school-record ten 300-yard games and five 400-yard games. Falk owns 17 career 300-yard games, second-most in WSU history, the fourth-most touchdown passes (63) and passing yards (7,920).

FALK'S FOURTH-QUARTER COMEBACKS
Luke Falk is no stranger to leading fourth-quarter comebacks, owning five fourth-quarter comebacks in his career including four last season. The first came in 2014 at Oregon State, WSU trailed early in the fourth and Falk led a pair of scoring drives for a 39-32 victory. Earlier this season, trailing by four with 1:31 remaining at Rutgers, Falk leading WSU on a 10-play, 90-yard drive capped by an 8-yard touchdown pass to River Cracraft with 13 seconds remaining. In the win at Oregon, Falk led WSU on a pair of scoring drives late in the fourth quarter that erased a 10-point deficit and sent the game into overtime after an eight-yard touchdown pass to Dom Williams with one second remaining. In overtime, Falk rushed for a touchdown and then threw for another before the Cougar defense picked off a pass in the second overtime to clinch the win. Against Arizona State, trailing 24-17 to start the fourth quarter, Falk led the Cougars on three touchdown drives (73, 99 and 75 yards) in the quarter, capping each one with touchdown throws to post a 38-24 victory. His last one came at No. 18 UCLA, trailing by three with 1:09 remaining, Falk led the Cougars on a seven-play 75-yard drive, capped by a 21-yard touchdown pass to Gabe Marks with three seconds remaining to knock off the Bruins.

NATIONAL RECOGNITION FOR LUKE LAST SEASON
Last season, Luke Falk was a Manning Award Watch List, a Davey O'Brien Quarterback Award Semifinalist, one of 15 "Players to Watch" for The Walter Camp Football Foundation 2015 Player of the Year award and was one of three finalists for the Burlsworth Trophy, given to the nation's top player who started his career as a walk-on. The Walter Camp Player of the Year award is the fourth-oldest college football award in the nation. The Davey O'Brien Award is presented annually to the nation's best college quarterback and is the nation's oldest and most prestigious national quarterback award. Falk was one of 17 semifinalists and  earned a spot on the Davey O'Brien Award "Great 8" Performance of the Week five times this season. Falk led the FBS in passing yards-per-game (380.5), was third in total offense (370.9), and tied for fourth in passing touchdowns (38) and fifth in passing yards (4,566). In Pac-12 play, Falk averaged 399.5 passing yards-per-game, completed 69.9 percent of his passes and threw 28 touchdowns against seven interceptions and also rushed for two scores. Earlier in the season, Falk was named the Walter Camp National FBS Player of the Week (the first Cougar to receive the honor since the 2004 season), the Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week three times and the Maxwell Award Player of the Week.

NEW LOOK LINE
The offensive line has a new look to it this season after the departure of three-year starters Joe Dahl at left tackle and Gunner Eklund at left guard who combined for 79 starts. Dahl capped his career earning All-Pac-12 honors and was a fifth-round draft choice by the Detroit Lions. The Cougars returned a trio of starters in center Riley Sorenson (25 starts), right guard Eduardo Middleton (29 starts) and right tackle Cole Madison (25 starts) who have started next to one another for the past two seasons. Taking over at left tackle is redshirt-sophomore Andre Dillard who appeared at left tackle in three games last year, made his collegiate debut in the second half at No. 18 UCLA and went on to start against Colorado and at Washington. At left guard, redshirt-junior Cody O'Connell is in his first season as a starter after playing on the field goal team all of last season.

COUGAR OFFENSIVE LINE "BONE" AWARDS  
Each week, Washington State coaches give out the "Bone" award to the offensive lineman who performs the best during the previous game. Left guard Cody O'Connell has claimed the first two  "Bone" awards after the wins over Idaho and Oregon. The awards in 2016: Eastern Washington: None; at Boise State: None; Idaho: Cody O'Connell; Oregon: Cody O'Connell

OFFENSIVE LINE BULKED UP
Not only have the Cougars produced big offensive numbers, leading the country in passing the past two seasons, WSU has produced bigger offensive linemen. The size of the front five has gone up each season with the 2016 offensive line averaging 322.6 pounds. Last season, the Cougars averaged nearly 310 lbs after averaging 288.6 in 2012, 288.2 in 2013 and 309.4 lbs in 2014.

ALL-PURPOSE BACKS
The Cougar running backs have elevated their games with back-to-back 200-yard games and enter the week seventh in the Pac-12 in rushing (161.2) and No. 22 in the country in yards-per-carry (5.4). The trio of redshirt-juniors Jamal Morrow and Gerard Wicks, and redshirt-freshman James Williams each own a 100-yard effort in their careers, Wicks - 123 vs. Colorado last year, Williams - 126 against Idaho and Morrow - 122 against Oregon last week. The backs also combine for 44 receptions, 975 all-purpose yards and 14 total touchdowns through four games. Last season, WSU rushed for over 100 yards five times after recording four 100-yard efforts the previous three seasons combined. The Cougars averaged 80.1 rushing yards per game in 2015, doubling its average from 2014 (39.1). The backs combined to rush for 1,195 yards and averaged 6.1 yards-per-carry in 2015, the highest per-carry average by a WSU backfield since All-American Jerome Harrison and DeMaundray Woolridge combined for 8.5 per-carry in 2005.  

COUGAR RUSHING ATTACK BREAKS OUT
The last two games as seen the running game erupt for a pair of record-setting performances. Last week against Oregon, WSU rushed for 280 yards (most since 2006) and six touchdowns (the most since 1997). Morrow, Wicks and Williams each scored twice and combined for 389 all-purpose yards while averaging 7.8 yards-per-carry in the win. In the week three win over Idaho, the Cougars rushed for 228 yards, led by Williams with 126 yards and a score, the first 100-yard rusher since Wicks ran for 123 against Colorado last season. Williams' mark was the most since Dwight Tardy posted 214 at UCLA in 2007 and was the first Cougar freshman to record a 100-yard game since Tardy in the 2006 Apple Cup. The Cougars had three different running backs score touchdowns in the win as Williams scored from two-yards out,  Wicks scored on a two-yard rush, and later after recovered a fumble on a kickoff, and walk-on Alijah Lee spun his way with a gritty six-yard touchdown carry to cap the day.

SPREADING THE BALL AROUND
Washington State was the only team in the country with 10 players who recorded 20+ receptions last season and was the only Power-5 Conference team with two players owning double-digit touchdown receptions. The Cougars had 10+ receivers catch a pass in every game last year and nine players finished the season with at least one touchdown catch. Washington State opened the season with 10 players catching a pass in each of the first two games, then saw nine catch a pass in the win over Idaho before Luke Falk completed a pass to 11 different players against Oregon.

THE VET AND THE YOUNGSTER POST BIG NUMBERS
Redshirt-senior wideout Gabe Marks has put up impressive receiving statistics the first month while sophomore receiver Tavares Martin Jr. had a breakout game at Boise State. Marks snagged 10 receptions in each of the first two games and owns four touchdowns in the first four games while Martin Jr. erupted at BSU with 12 catches for 158 yards including an acrobatic 50-yard tumbling touchdown. Marks sits second in the Pac-12 in catches (29) and Martin Jr. is tied for sixth with 24.

RECEIVERS MAKE THEIR WAY UP THE RECORD BOOK (Pages 16-17)
•  Gabe Marks owns 256 career receptions, fourth-most in Pac-12 history
•  Marks owns 29 career TD catches, third-most in school history and tied for ninth in Pac-12 history
•  Marks also sits third in WSU history with 2,821 career receiving yards
•  River Cracraft passed Brandon Gibson for fifth in WSU history with 183 career catches
•  Cracraft also moved into ninth all-time for receiving yards (2,187) and just outside the top-10 for  TD catches (15)
•  Cracraft owns a catch in 33 consecutive games, ninth-longest current streak in the nation
•  Robert Lewis owns a catch in 28 consecutive games, Marks has a catch in 20 straight games

COUGAR DEFENSE DIALING IT UP
Washington State forced three turnovers at Boise State and forced two fumbles in the win over Idaho. Last week the Cougar defense forced two more turnovers (fumble, INT) and also recorded a safety in the win over Oregon. WSU is second in the Pac-12 in turnover margin to +5, tied for tenth in the country while playing one fewer game than most teams. The Cougars enter the week tied for second in red zone defense (83.3%). In the week three win over Idaho, WSU did not allow a touchdown in the 56-6 victory, surrendering just 257 yards of total offense, the fewest allowed since the 2013 matchup against the Vandals (253). Against Oregon last week, the Cougars tallied eight tackles-for-loss including 3.5 by Hercules Mata'afa who also recorded a sack which resulted in a safety. The redshirt-sophomore defensive end is tied atop the Pac-12 with 7.0 tackles-for-loss.


GET THE BALL BACK
Defensive coordinator Alex Grinch has emphasized the need to force turnovers and get the ball back to the Air Raid offense. The Cougars did that in 2015, forcing 24 turnovers, fourth in the Pac-12 and three times as many as the 2014 total of eight. The Cougars recorded 13 interceptions, recovered 11 fumbles, and led the Pac-12 with 16 fourth-down stops.  This season, WSU picked off three passes at Boise State and forced two more fumbles against Idaho before forcing two more turnovers along with a safety in the win over Oregon last week.  Under coach Grinch, WSU owns a 10-3 record when forcing multiple turnovers in a game.

2015 DEFENSE MADE STRIDES UNDER GRINCH
The Washington State defense clamped down the hatches in 2015 under first-year defensive coordinator Alex Grinch. The Cougars' defensive unit allowed 27.7 ppg and 416.6 ypg while forcing 24 turnovers. WSU kept the explosive plays (20+ yards) to a minimum giving up 56 in 2015, averaging 4.3 per game. In 2014, the Cougar defense allowed 6.1 explosive plays per game, a total of 73 on the season. By removing special teams touchdowns allowed, WSU allowed 23.3 ppg, a vast improvement after allowing 38.6 ppg in 2014. The Cougars finished the season with 24 turnovers forced, averaging 1.8 takeaways per game and tripled the amount of turnovers from 2014 (8). In the 27-3 win over Colorado, WSU held an opponent without a touchdown for the first time since a 42-0 victory over Idaho in 2013 and the first time holding a conference opponent without a touchdown since Oregon State in 2006. It was the fewest points allowed to a conference opponent since 1996 (OSU).

DEFENSE PUT THE PRESSURE ON IN 2015
Last season, Washington State racked up 33 sacks and was eighth in the country with 7.8 tackles-for-loss per game (102 Total), the second-best average in the Pac-12 and the second-highest total in WSU history. All-Pac-12 honorable mention defensive lineman Hercules Mata'afa shared the team-lead with seven sacks, tied for fourth-most in the conference. Against Wyoming, WSU recorded 14 TFL's, tied for third-most in school history and later posted 11 TFL's at Cal, and eight more in the games against Arizona State, Colorado and Washington. WSU finished the season with five players owning 10+ tackles-for-loss, the most players by any Pac-12 team and tied for the most in school history (2002).

LINEBACKERS LEAD THE WAY
The Cougar linebackers filled up the stat sheet last season with All-Pac-12 honorable mention Peyton Pelluer finishing the season tied for fifth in the Pac-12 with 7.8 tackles-per game (101 total) along with 11 tackles-for-loss. The redshirt-junior started the 2016 season with a game-high 10 tackles against EWU including one for loss and a pass breakup. He added six more at Boise State,  tied for the team lead in the win over Idaho with seven and added at tackle-for-loss against Oregon. Making his first career start as a linebacker, Isaac Dotson made five tackles against EWU and in his first career start, WIL linebacker Frankie Luvu made a career-high seven tackles including 1.5 for loss against Idaho. Last week against Oregon, Dotson made the start at WIL, tallied five tackles and recorded his first career interception.

YOUNG SECONDARY
The Cougar secondary has gone through a youth movement the past two seasons. Last season, WSU received solid contribution from true freshman Darrien Molton (44 tackles, 1 INT, 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovery) at cornerback while being named the top freshman cornerback in the country by Pro Football Focus. All-Pac-12 honorable mention Shalom Luani started all 13 games at safety, finished third on the team with 91 tackles, with two forced two fumbles and tied for third in the Pac-12 with a team-best four interceptions while now-junior cornerback Marcellus Pippins recorded three interceptions, nine pass breakups, two fumble recoveries and 43 tackles. Through the first four games of 2016, Molton is second on the team with 26 tackles while owing a team-best three pass breakups. Luani picked off a pair of passes at Boise State and Pippins also owns an INT. Junior college transfer Robert Taylor has stepped in and recorded 18 tackles, good for fourth on the team, while recovering a pair of fumbles in his first month as a Cougar. True freshman Jalen Thompson enrolled early last January and quickly took over at strong safety, starting all four games and tallied eight tackles with two pass breakups.

SPECIAL TEAMS
Washington State special teams own a couple impressive statistics through the first four games of 2016. The Cougars enter the week second in the country in punt coverage, allowing -1.3 yards-per-return. Sophomore Kaleb Fossum has a had a couple solid games at punt returner, averaging 7.7 per return, fourth in the Pac-12.

SPECIAL TEAMS PROVIDES BIG BOOST
Cougar special teams provided a couple highlights in the win over Idaho week three, scoring a pair of touchdowns, blocking a field goal and recovered a fumble, scoring touchdowns on both plays. Midway through the second quarter, nose tackle Robert Barber blocked a 32-yard field goal attempt and cornerback Marcellus Pippins picked up the loose ball and raced 72 yards for the touchdown, giving WSU its first touchdown return of a blocked field goal in school history (dating back through the 1983 season). It was the first touchdown scored on special teams since Michael Bumpus returned a punt 87 yards for touchdown at Nevada in 2005. Midway through the fourth quarter, the Cougar kickoff team forced a fumble that Gerard Wicks scooped up and returned 11 yards for a touchdown. It was the first time the Cougars scored two special teams touchdowns in the same game since returning two punts for touchdowns against Idaho in 1973.

RANCHO SANTA MARGARITA TAKEOVER
The Cougars have tapped into the Rancho Santa Margarita High School pipeline, currently owning four players from the school in center, Riley Sorenson, defensive lineman Nick Begg and receivers River Cracraft and Kyle Sweet. One other Coug to point out who also went to RSMHS, would be Golden State Warrior Klay Thompson.

POLYNESIAN PIPELINE
The Washington State roster has seen an influx in Polynesian players since Mike Leach and his coaching staff arrived in 2012. Assistant Head Coach / Defensive Line Coach Joe Salave'a, a native of Pago Pago, American Samoa and a nine-year NFL veteran, has helped bring a number of players to Pullman in his three seasons at Washington State. The 2016 roster has 16 players who are of Polynesian decent including seven who list their hometown from American Samoa.

LIKE FATHER, LIKE SON
Three Cougars share a unique bond with their dads and/or grandpa, each have worn the crimson a gray. Redshirt-sophomore left tackle Andre Dillard's dad, Mitch was an offensive lineman and tight end for the Cougars in the late 1980's; redshirt-junior linebacker Isaac Dotson's dad, Michael was an All-American wrestler for WSU from 1983-86; redshirt-junior linebacker Peyton Pelluer's dad, Scott also played linebacker for the Cougs, matching Peyton's No. 47 from 1977-80; Peyton's grandpa, Arnie played end for WSU in the mid 1950's and his great grandpa, Carl, played flanker in the 1920's.

SEVEN COUGARS TO BE INDUCTED INTO WSU HALL OF FAME
The WSU Hall of Fame will welcomed in seven new members Sept. 17. Joining the current 206 members was Marv Chamberlain (Baseball), Erin Elridge (Swimming), Jason Gesser (Football), Mark Hendrickson (Basketball/Baseball), Mike Price (Football Coach), Jennifer Robertson (Track & Field) and Marcia Saneholtz (WSU Administrator).

FALK NAMED TO 2016 AWARD WATCH LISTS
Quarterback Luke Falk was named to the 2016 Davey O'Brien Award, Rotary Lombardi Award and the Maxwell Award Watch List. Falk is one of 30 quarterbacks named to the watch list for the Maxwell Award presented annually to the nation's best college quarterback and was also named to the Maxwell Award Watch List for America's Player of the Year. Falk, a redshirt-junior, was an All-Pac-12 first-team selection last season after leading the country in passing at 380.5 yards-per-game and guiding the Cougars to a 9-4 record capped by a Sun Bowl victory over Miami. The Logan, Utah native set a school record with 38 touchdown passes, good for fourth in the nation, and was second in school history with 4,566 yards. Falk tallied three Pac-12 Player of the Week honors and was Pac-12 All-Academic honorable mention.

MARKS NAMED TO 2016 BILETNIKOFF, Maxwell AWARD WATCH LISTS
Wide receiver Gabe Marks was named to the 2016 Biletnikoff Award and Maxwell Award Watch Lists. The Biletnikoff Award recognizes the nation's most outstanding receiver each year and the Maxwell Award is presented to the nation's Player of the Year. Marks was one of 10 Biletnikoff Award semifinalists last season, earning All-Pac-12 First Team honors and tallied 104 receptions for 1,196 yards and a school-record 15 touchdowns. Marks led the Pac-12 in receptions, touchdown catches and was second in receiving yards while also tallying four 100-yard games.

SORENSON NAMED TO 2016 RIMINGTON TROPHY WATCH LIST
Center Riley Sorenson was named to the 2016 Rimington Trophy Watch List. Sorenson, a senior from Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif., has started 21 games over the past two seasons and has been one of the anchors for a Cougar offensive line that helped WSU lead the nation in passing each of the last two years. Additionally, he was named a 2015 All-Pac-12 honorable mention selection. Sorenson also received the 2016 Pac-12 Sportsmanship Award for the strength of character and dedication to his team that he displayed throughout the 2015 season even while he and his family faced extreme personal challenges. The Rimington Trophy is presented annually to the Most Outstanding Center in NCAA Division I-A College Football.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF EXTRA YARD FOR TEACHER
The Extra Yard for Teacher's Program kicked Sept. 17 with the College Football Playoff Foundation.  The CFP is awarding each institution within the Pac-12 $10,000 to benefit an elementary school teacher or teachers in your community throughout the season, concluding at the 2016 Pac-12 Football Championship Game. Washington State will gift three elementary schools in Pullman with Google Chrome Books as part of the program.

STEVE GLEASON RECRUIT SUITE DEBUTS IN COUGAR FOOTBALL COMPLEX
WSU announced the naming of the Steve Gleason Recruit Suite, inside the Cougar Football Complex this summer. Gleason, the Washington State Athletic Hall of Famer who played football and baseball in a Cougar uniform from 1995-99, was on hand as the room all future Cougar football players will walk through was named in his honor. The opportunity arrived courtesy of Cougar alumnus Glenn Osterhout's naming donation of $250,000. With his pledge, Osterhout, a 1983 graduate who is a certified financial planner in Bellevue, was presented the opportunity to name the recruiting room inside the Cougar Football Complex.

NICHOL, SHEPHARD JOIN COUGAR COACHING STAFF
The Cougar coaching staff added two new position coaches as Dave Nichol joined the staff as the outside receivers coach and JaMarcus Shephard as the inside receivers coach. Nichol is no stranger to a Mike Leach-coached team, having spent three seasons (2003-05) as an offensive line assistant at Texas Tech under the current Cougar head coach. Most recently, Nichol served as the offensive coordinator at East Carolina in 2015. Shephard arrived at WSU following two seasons as the receivers coach at Western Kentucky University. In addition to his duties as receivers coach the past two seasons, Shephard added special teams duties for the 2015 season.

COUGAR FOOTBALL BROADCAST TEAM
Hall of fame announcer Bob Robertson is in his 50th season calling Cougar football games, and according to a nation-wide survey of sports information directors, is the longest tenured radio announcer in the country with the next closest being Bill Hillgrove who has announced 46 straight seasons at Pitt. Robertson began calling WSU games in 1964 and with the exception of a three-year period in 1969-71, has been calling Cougar games ever since. Robertson now hosts the Cougars pre, halftime and postgame shows, while also providing analysis during the games. Matt Chazanow is in his second season as the play-by-play voice for Cougar football, men's basketball and baseball broadcasts. Joining Chazanow and Robertson in the booth for his third season will be Cougar legend Jason Gesser who quarterbacked WSU to the 2001 Sun Bowl and 2003 Rose Bowl. Returning for her fifth season as the sideline reporter is Jessamyn McIntyre, an executive producer for 710 ESPN Seattle.