COUGARS FACE AIR FORCE IN CHEEZ-IT BOWL
Washington State (6-6, 3-6 Pac-12) heads to Phoenix, Ariz. for a matchup against No. 24 Air Force (10-2, 7-1 Mountain West) in the Cheez-It Bowl. Kickoff is set for Friday, Dec. 27 at 7:15 p.m. (PT) on ESPN. This will be the first meeting between the two schools. 

WASHINGTON STATE BOWL HISTORY
Washington State is making a program-record fifth consecutive and 16th overall appearance in a bowl game. It will be WSU's second trip to the Cheez-It Bowl (formerly Copper Bowl), after defeating Utah 31-28 in 1992. Head coach Mike Leach is making his 18th career bowl appearance and his second in Phoenix after leading Texas Tech to a 44-41 comeback win over Minnesota in 2006. Tech trailed 38-7 in the third quarter before winning in overtime, the biggest comeback in NCAA Division I FBS bowl history at the time. Leach has led six WSU teams to bowl games, the first coach to do so at Washington State. The Cougars will matchup up against a service academy for just the fourth time in program history with the previous three meetings all coming against Army, a 31-18 win in Pullman (1980), a 21-21 tie in West Point, N.Y. (1978) and 23-0 defeat in West Point, N.Y. (1963).

ABOUT WASHINGTON STATE
Washington State enters the Cheez-It Bowl with a 6-6 overall record and a 3-6 mark in Pac-12 Conference play. The Air Raid leads the nation in the passing (444.3), sixth in total offense (516.8) and 11th in scoring (39.2). The Cougar defense enters the postseason fifth in the Pac-12 in takeaways (18). Head coach Mike Leach is in his eighth season at Washington State, owns a 55-46 record with the Cougars, has WSU in a bowl game for a program-record fifth straight season and is making a WSU-record sixth bowl appearance.

COUGAR QUICK GAME
TEAM
•  WSU is making its school-record 5th straight bowl appearance
•  3 WSU WR were named to the Biletnikoff Award Watch List (Arconado, Patmon, Winston Jr.), most in Pac-12
•  WSU has seen 27 players make their WSU debuts this season and 17 make their 1st career start
•  WSU's roster features players from 19 states and from British Columbia, American Samoa and Australia
•  Since 2015, WSU owns 43 wins, 4th-most among Pac-12 schools (UW - 46, Utah - 46, Stan - 44)
•  Since 2015, WSU owns 29 Pac-12 wins, 4th-most among Pac-12 schools (USC - 32, Stan - 30, UW - 30)
•  WSU is the only Pac-12 team with four shutouts since 2013 (6+ seasons) (Utah - 3, Stan and UW - 2)
•  WSU produced an All-America offensive lineman in each of the last 4 seasons (2015-18)
•  3 starters from the 2018 team have made starts in the NFL this season;
    QB Gardner Minshew II (JAC), LT Andre Dillard (PHI), S Jalen Thompson (ARZ)

INDIVIDUAL (Player Notes Pages 11-20)
•  QB Anthony Gordon leads the country in passing yards (5,228), passing yards/g (435.7), 2nd in passing TD (45)
•  RB Max Borghi is 2nd in the Pac-12 with 15 total TD, leads the Pac-12 at 6.5 yards-per-carry
•  Borghi leads all RB nationally with 81 receptions and has rushed for a 100 yards four times in 2019
•  Borghi is only player in the country with 750+ rush yards, 550+ rec yards and 15 total TD
•  WR Brandon Arconado leads the Pac-12 with 6 100-yard efforts, 4th in Pac-12 with 942 receiving yards
•  Arconado named to CoSIDA Academic All-America 1st Team (MBA, 3.65 GPA)
•  WR Easop Winston Jr. is tied for 13th in the country with 11 TD receptions, 4th in the Pac-12 with 81 catches
•  K Blake Mazza was a Lou Groza Award Finalist (3), is 20-for-21 in FG attempts, All-Pac-12 First Team
•  LB Jahad Woods is 9th in the country with 121 tackles, owns 8 games with 10+ tackles in 2019

COLLEGE GAMEDAY RECORD
Dating back to the middle of the 2003 season, ESPN's College GameDay has had the WSU flag appear throughout the show. The streak reached 242 after appearing at the Army-Navy Game earlier this month. The first appearance came in Austin, Texas (10/4/03) and the streak began two weeks later in Madison, Wisc. (10/18/03). 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." Appearance No. 217 was its first in Pullman (10/20/18), a 34-20 win over Oregon. 

EIGHT COUGARS NAMED ALL-PAC-12
Redshirt-sophomore kicker Blake Mazza's first-team selection led eight Washington State players who received All-Pac-12 Conference recognition as voted on by the head coaches. A trio of players earned second-team honors, including redshirt-senior quarterback Anthony Gordon, redshirt-sophomore offensive lineman Abe Lucas and freshman linebacker Travion Brown, who was named as a special teams/all-purpose player. Four players received honorable mention honors: sophomore running back Max Borghi, redshirt-junior offensive lineman Josh Watson, redshirt-senior wide receiver Easop Winston and redshirt-junior linebacker Jahad Woods.

COUGARS IN THE RANKINGS
Washington State reached No. 19 in the week four Associated Press Top-25 Poll after starting the season ranked No. 23 in the preseason poll, just the second time in the last three seasons appearing in the preseason poll and just the fourth time since 1952. The Cougars finished 2018 ranked No. 10 in both the Associated Press Poll and Coaches Poll, their highest ranking to finish a season since finishing the 2003 season ninth in the AP poll. The No. 10 ranking was the highest by any Pac-12 Conference team, the first time that happened in conference history. 

COUGARS FEATURED ON HBO'S 24/7 COLLEGE FOOTBALL
HBO Sports' landmark franchise 24/7 broke new ground this October with an all-access college football series chronicling four programs in-season; Florida, Penn State, Arizona State and Washington State. Narrated by Liev Schreiber, the voice of HBO Sports' Emmy award winning documentaries and HARD KNOCKS franchises, the series documented the head coach, players, assistant coaches and more over one week during the regular season. WSU was featured with an hour-long special highlighting the home game against Colorado.

AIR RAID
• WSU leads the country in passing (444.3), sixth in total offense (516.8), No. 11 in scoring (39.2) • WSU has tied the Pac-12 single-season record for team TD passes (47, Washington - 2016) • WSU had 3 players on the Biletnikoff Award Watch List (nation's top receiver); Brandon Arconado, Dezmon Patmon and Easop Winston Jr., the most in the Pac-12 and second nationally only to Alabama's 4 • WSU has seen Max Borghi post 4 100-yard rushing games (New Mexico State, UCLA, Colorado, Stanford) • vs. New Mexico State, 6 passing TD to 5 different WR, 618 yards of total offense, Max Borghi 128 rushing yards • vs. UCLA, 63 points, 720 yards of total offense, 570 passing yards, 9 passing TDs, 150 rushing yards • vs. UCLA, the 2 teams combined to set a Pac-12 single-game record with 130 points, WSU's 720 yards of total offense is 2nd-most in WSU single-game history, Anthony Gordon's 9 TD passes was a WSU/Pac-12 record • vs. Colorado, recorded 497 yards of total offense, 4 different players caught TD, combined to rush for 128 yards • at Oregon, 406 pass yards, 3 passing TD, 6.9 yards-per-play • vs. Stanford, 520 passing yards, 5 TD passes, 8 receivers caught a pass, 624 yards of total offense • vs. Oregon State, 606 passing yards, 6 TD passes, 2 rush TD, 641 yards of total offense • WSU has led the Pac-12 in passing in 6 of Mike Leach's 7 seasons, finishing 2nd to Cal (Jared Goff) in 2013  • WSU has led the nation in passing three times under Mike Leach (2014, 2015, 2018)

MIKE LEACH AMONG NATION'S BEST
Now in his 18th season as a head coach and 8th in Pullman, Mike Leach owns a 139-89 career record including a 55-46 mark at WSU • his 55 wins at WSU are 3rd-most in school history, O.E. Hollingberry (93, 1926-42), Mike Price (83, 1989-2002) • is the 1st Cougar head coach in school history to lead WSU to 5 straight bowl games  • is the 1st Cougar head coach in school history to lead WSU earn bowl eligibility 5 straight seasons • passes Mike Price for the most the most bowl appearances (6) in WSU history • 2nd Cougar Head Coach to be named National Coach of the Year (2018 AFCA), Mike Price in 1997 • named a George Munger Coach of the Year semifinalist (2016, 2017, 2018) • 2-time Pac-12 Coach of the Year (2015, 2018) • WSU has sold out Martin Stadium 18 times since Mike Leach arrived in 2012, twice in 2019 (Colorado, Stanford) • under Leach, WSU has recorded 14 4th-quarter comebacks (Oregon State this season)

YOUNG COUGS TAKE THE FIELD 
• 26 total freshman have played this season, 17 redshirt-freshmen and 9 true freshmen
• 27 players made their WSU debuts; CB Derrick Langford, DB Daniel Isom, RB Deon McIntosh, FS Bryce Beekman, OL Hunter Mayginnes, LS Tyler Williams, DL Brennan Jackson, LB Travion Brown, DL Nicholas Sheetz, QB Gage Gubrud, DL Lamonte McDougle, WR Brandon Gray, DB Chad Davis Jr., DB Shahman Moore, OL Cade Beresford, LS Simon Samarzich, WR Mitchell Quinn, OL Seth Yost, WR Lucas Bacon, DL Cosmas Kwete, LB Peni Naulu, DB Trey Davis, DL Michael Van Beek, DL Christian Mejia, CB Armaunie Archie, RB Jouvensly Bazil, LB Rocky Katoanga
• 9 true freshmen have played; LB Travion Brown, DL Cosmas Kwete, LS Simon Samarzich, DL Nicholas Sheetz, LB Peni Naulu, DB Trey Davis, CB Armaunie Archie, RB Jouvensly Bazil, LB Rocky Katoanga
• 17 players have made their first career start; CB Armani Marsh, END Karson Block, NT Misiona Aiolupotea-Pei, FS Bryce Beekman, SS Daniel Isom, QB Anthony Gordon, X Rodrick Fisher, Liam Ryan made his 1st career start at left tackle, Rob Valencia made his 1st career start at left guard, Tyler Williams as the field goal longsnapper, Simon Samarzich as the longsnapper on punts, CB Derrick Langford, CB George Hicks III, NT Dallas Hobbs, NICKEL Pat Nunn, DL Tristan Brock, NICKEL Travion Brown

FRIENDLY CONFINES OF MARTIN STADIUM
Washington State went 7-0 at home in 2017, 6-1 in 2018 and 5-1 mark this season to push it's Martin Stadium record to 18-2 over the past three seasons.  

GORDON SHINES IN STARTING ROLE (Ratings Based On PFF College) (GORDON NOTES PAGE 14)
Not much was known about redshirt-senior quarterback Anthony Gordon outside of the program prior to the 2019 season but he put on a show in his first career start in the opener against New Mexico State. The Pacifica, Calif. native opened the game by completing his first 15 passes and led WSU to points on all nine of the drives he started including the first six that resulted in touchdowns. Gordon finished the night 29-of-35 for 420 yards and five touchdowns, tying Luke Falk (2014 at OSU) for the most touchdown passes in a Cougar starting debut. 
• Gordon entered the bowl season leading the country in passing yards (5,228), passing yards/g (435.7), total offense (435.0) and second in passing TD (45) • Davey O'Brien Award Semifinalist, given to the nation's best QB • 3-time Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week (New Mexico State, at Houston, Stanford) • named to Manning Award Watch List, Maxwell Award Watch List • Gordon set the Pac-12 single-season record for passing TD, breaking the previous record of 43 (Jared Goff - 2015, Jake Browning - 2016) • Gordon set the Pac-12 single-season record for passing yards, breaking the previous record of 4,779 (Gardner Minshew II, 2018) • Gordon has produced the 16th season with 5,000-passing yards in NCAA FBS history, the first since Patrick Mahomes in 2016, and 6th by a quarterback coached by Mike Leach • Gordon's 5,220 yards of total offense are most in WSU single-season history, 2nd in Pac-12 history behind Marcus Mariota's 2014 mark of 5,224

IT'S A CITY SITUATION
Since 2015, the Cougars have seen six players from San Francisco City College take the field and the 2019 roster holds four players from the school; QB Anthony Gordon, WR Easop Winston Jr., OL Robert Valencia, CB Derrick Langford. Past Cougars who played at SFCC, DB Shalom Luani (2015-16) and S/KR Rob Taylor (2016-17)
• In their only season played together at SFCC in 2015, Winston Jr. tallied 62 receptions for 986 yards and 12 touchdowns while Gordon threw for 3,864 yards and 37 touchdowns, leading SFCC to a 2015 California JUCO title
• In 2019, Gordon has connected with Winston Jr. for 80 receptions for 927 yards and 11 TD • Winston Jr. is 7th in WSU single-season history wtih 80 receptions • Winston Jr.'s 11 TD rec are tied for 7th-most in WSU single-season history • Winston Jr.'s 19 career TD rec are tied for 7th-most in WSU history

COUGAR WIDE RECEIVER NOTES (Ratings Based On PFF College) (PLAYER NOTES PAGES 11-20)
• WSU's wide receiver corp is rated 5th-best in the country, tops in the Pac-12 • WSU had 3 players on the Biletnikoff Award Watch List (Brandon Arconado, Dezmon Patmon, Easop Winston Jr.), the most in the Pac-12 and second nationally only to Alabama's 4 • Arconado (942) and Winston Jr. (927) are looking to become the 2nd Cougar duo to record 1,000-yard seasons in the same year since 2015 (Gabe Marks, Dom Williams) • Arconado's 6 100-yard rec games are tied for 2nd-most in WSU single-season history, 1 away form tying Mike Levenseller's 1976 WSU record of 7 • Tay Martin's 18 career TD rec are tied for 10th-most in WSU history • WSU owns 7 receivers with 40 catches, 7 players with multiple TD catches and 7 players with 500+ rec yards • WSU owns 3 of the top 5 rated slot receivers in the Pac-12, Travell Harris (2nd), Arconado (4th), Renard Bell (5th) • at least 8 receivers caught a pass in every game except at Oregon, 7 caught a pass

ALL-PURPOSE, ALL THE TIME (PLAYER NOTES PAGES 11-20)
The Cougar running backs serve all-purpose roles for the Air Raid. In the 2016 and 2017 seasons, the Cougar backs combined to record 1,000 yards rushing and 1,000 yards receiving. The group just missed making it three straight seasons in 2018, combining for 974 rushing yards and 1,044 receiving yards while scoring 28 total TD.
• The 2019 running back group has combined for 926 rush yards, 679 receiving yards, 98 catches and 18 total TD • WSU RBs combine to average 7.5 yards-per-carry led by Max Borghi's 6.5 yards-per-carry, best among Pac-12 backs • Borghi is 2nd in the Pac-12 with 15 total TD, 3rd with 11 rushing TD • Borghi is 1st player in WSU history to score 10 total TD in each of his 1st 2 seasons • Borghi leads all RB nationally with 81 receptions and 25 missed tackles forced after the catch • Borghi only player in the country with 750+ rush yards, 550+ rec yards and 15 total TD • Borghi has recorded 100+ all-purpose yards 8 times this season, is averaging 6.8 yards per touch • Borghi's 15 total TD are tied for 5th-most in WSU single-season history • Borghi's 26 career total TD are tied for 4th-most in WSU history • Borghi's 19 career rushing TD are tied for 5th-most in WSU history

OFFENSIVE LINE NOTES (Ratings based on PFF College) (PLAYER NOTES PAGES 11-20)
• WSU has allowed 18 sacks on 696 dropbacks, fewest sacks allowed in the Pac-12 • WSU has blocked for four 100-yard rushing games by Max Borghi • left tackle Liam Ryan was named the Pac-12 Offensive Lineman of the Week after the New Mexico State • center Fred Mauigoa is a 2-time Rimington Trophy Watch List selection, has started 38 straight games • right tackle Abraham Lucas was named to the Outland Trophy Watch List, earned Freshman All-America honors last season • Lucas was named the Pac-12 Offensive Lineman of the Week after the Oregon State win, played every snap, did not allow a sack in 70 pass attempts, 606 passing yards, 6 pass TD, 2 rush TD • WSU returned 65 starts to its 2019 offensive line, the most OL starts returning since starting 2016 with 69 starts • WSU produced the nation's best passing attack in 2018, rated the 2nd-best pass-blocking line in the country • WSU allowed just 13 sacks in 2018 on 677 pass attempts, fewest sacks allowed in the Pac-12 and tied for 8th-fewest allowed in the country, allowed one sack for every 52 pass attempts • WSU has produced an All-America offensive lineman in each of the last 4 seasons (LT Joe Dahl, 2015; LG Cody O'Connell, 2016; LG Cody O'Connell, 2017; LT Andre Dillard & RT Abraham Lucas, 2018)

• 3 former Cougar offensive linemen are in the NFL including a pair of starters; 
- 2016 5th-round draft pick Joe Dahl starts at left guard for the Detroit Lions 
- 2018 5th-round draft pick Cole Madison is a member of the Green Bay Packers 
- 2019 1st-round pick Andre Dillard has made 3 starts for the Philadelphia Eagles

MAZZA NAMED LOU GROZA AWARD FINALIST (MAZZA NOTES Page 17)
Redshirt-sophomore Blake Mazza was a Lou Groza Award Finalist, one of three up for the award given to the nation's top collegiate place-kicker and the first Cougar to be named a finalist for the award in program history. 
• Named to All-Pac-12 First Team • named to Midseason All-America Second Team by The Athletic • 20-of-21 in field goal attempts, made first 18 FG to start the season, longest consecutive FG streak in WSU history • tied for 10th in the country with a Pac-12 leading 20 made field goals, tied for 4th-most in WSU single-season history • 15th in the country with 52 PAT, 3rd-most in WSU history • was named 1 of 3 Lou Groza Award Stars of the Week after hitting all FG (35, 38, 35) in win over Stanford • tied for 6th-most points (112) by a kicker in the country, 3rd-most by a kicker in WSU single-season history • 2 FG of 50+ yards attempts (50 vs. New Mexico State, career-long 51 at Utah)

SPEED D (PLAYER NOTES PAGES 11-18)
The "Speed D" defense enters the bowl season 5th in the Pac-12 with 18 takeways and tied for second in the league with nine fumble recoveries. Since 2015, the Cougars are 29-5 when forcing multiple turnovers including a 5-0 mark when doing so in 2019. Last season, WSU led the Pac-12 in sacks (38), was second in  takeaways (23) and 5th in the Pac-12 in scoring defense (23.3), the 9th-best mark in WSU single-season history.
• Jahad Woods is 9th in the country and second in the Pac-12 with 121 tackles, WSU's first 100-tackle season since 2015 and most since James Darling's 136 in 1996 • WSU held New Mexico State to 7 pts, 317 yards of total offense, 3 sacks • held Northern Colorado 139 passing yards allowed, had 4 takeaways, 9 tackles-for-loss • held Houston 128 passing yards • recorded 5 tackles-for-loss included 4 sacks at Arizona State • recorded 7 tackles-for-loss, 2 sacks, 3 interceptions against Colorado, 141 pass yards allowed • held Oregon's Justin Herbert to 222 passing yards and 0 TD, recorded 3 sacks • held Stanford to 6 rushing yards, 10th-fewest allowed in WSU history

FIVE SENIORS HEADED TO ALL-STAR GAMES
QB Anthony Gordon - Reese's Senior Bowl, East-West Shrine Game
C Fred Mauigoa - NFLPA Collegiate Bowl, East-West Shrine Game, Hula Bowl
WR Dezmon Patmon - NFLA Collegiate Bowl, East-West Shrine Game
CB Marcus Strong - Tropical Bowl
WR Easop Winston Jr. - Tropical Bowl

Tropical Bowl (Jan. 12, 2020 - Daytona Beach, Fla.) 
NFLPA Collegiate Bowl (Jan. 18, 2020 - Pasadena, Calif.)
East-West Shrine Game (Jan. 18, 2020 - St. Petersburg, Fla.) 
Reese's Senior Bowl (Jan. 25, 2020 - Mobile, Ala.) 
Hula Bowl (Jan. 26, 2020 - Honolulu) 

14 SENIORS SET FOR FINAL GAME
14 members of the Washington State senior class will be playing their final game in the crimson and gray at the Cheez-It Bowl. The 2019 senior class have been a part of 34 wins, was part of the record-setting 11-win season in 2018, beat Stanford four straight times, recorded three wins against each Oregon and Utah, earned four-straight bowl appearances, own six wins over AP Top 25-ranked teams, compiled a 23-4 home record over the last four years, including a perfect 7-0 at home in 2017 and combined for 10 Pac-12 All-Academic awards. DL Misiona Aiolupotea-Pei, WR Brandon Arconado, DL Karson Block, DL Tristan Brock, QB Anthony Gordon, QB Gage Gubrud, OL Fred Mauigoa, DL Nnamdi Oguayo, WR Dezmon Patmon, CB Marcus Strong, QB Trey Tinsley, WR Easop Winston Jr., OL Robert Valencia. Tyler Hilinski, who was part of the signing class, was also recognized with the seniors prior to the home finale against Oregon State.

FOUR FORMER WALK-ONS EARN SCHOLARSHIPS
This past summer, the Cougars awarded scholarships to four former walk-ons.  
DL Karson Block • P Oscar Draguicevich III • RB Clay Markoff • DB Armani Marsh 

FOUR COUGS EARN BACHELOR'S DEGREES
Four current Cougars entered the 2019 season already owning their bachelor's degree.
WR Brandon Arconado (finance) • QB Gage Gubrud (business)
OL Robert Valencia (social sciences) • WR Easop Winston Jr. (sociology)

FAMILY CONNECTION
The Cougar roster features a number of players who have family members who played professional sports. 
• QB John Bledsoe's dad, Drew Bledsoe played at WSU from 1990-92, was the No. 1 overall pick by the New England Patriots in the 1993 NFL Draft and played 14 seasons • LB Travion Brown's great, great uncle is Jackie Robinson (dad's side) • P Oscar Draguicevich III's dad, Oscar played professional soccer for 10 seasons including 3 for the San Jose Clash of the MLS • WR Calvin Jackson Jr.'s dad Calvin Sr. played DB at Auburn, played 6 NFL seasons with Miami • CB Derrick Langford's dad Derrick Sr. was a 52nd-round MLB draft pick by the Atlanta Braves in 1994 • NT Lamonte McDougle's dad, Stocker played OL at Oklahoma for offensive line coach Mike Leach and 7 NFL seasons, uncle Jerome McDougle played DL at Miami and 4 NFL seasons • RB Deon McIntosh' brother RJ played DL at Miami and is with the Giants • WR Dezmon Patmon uncle, DeWayne Patmon played LB at Michigan and 2 seasons for Giants • DL Will Rodgers III's uncle is former NBA start Jason Richardson, played 13 NBA seasons • S Tyrese Ross' dad, Dominique Ross played FB for Dallas Cowboys in late 1990's • RUSH Ron Stone Jr.'s dad, Ron Sr. played OL in the NFL for 13 seasons, 3x Pro Bowler, 2x Super Bowl Winner • CB Marcus Strong's brother, Victor played DE at Oregon State and in the NFL for 6 seasons • QB Trey Tinsley's dad, Scott played QB at USC and for Philadelphia Eagles in late 1980's • Ma'ake Fifita's older brother, Mosese is the starting nose tackle at Air Force 

COACHING STAFF CHANGES
The WSU coaching staff went through a major change following the loss at Utah Sept. 28 as defensive coordinator Tracy Claeys has resigned. Roc Bellantoni assumed interim defensive coordinator duties and Darcel McBath  assumed co-interim defensive coordinator duties. Tim Burmeister started the season working in a defensive quality control position and moved to an on-field position coaching the linebackers following the change.

COUGAR FOOTBALL BROADCAST TEAM
Matt Chazanow is in his fifth season as the play-by-play voice for Cougar football, men's basketball and baseball broadcasts. Joining Chazanow for his second season will be former Cougar quarterback Alex Brink who is the only WSU quarterback to win three Apple Cups and was later a seventh-round draft pick by the Houston Texans. Returning for her eighth season as the sideline reporter is Jessamyn McIntyre, an executive producer for 710 ESPN Seattle.  

WSU TO RETIRE KLAY THOMPSON'S JERSEY JAN. 18
Washington State Director of Athletics Pat Chun announced that Cougar Athletics will retire basketball great Klay Thompson's No. 1 jersey in a ceremony Jan. 18 in Pullman. The jersey will be retired in a ceremony at halftime of the WSU-Oregon State game at Beasley Coliseum. The No. 1 jersey worn by Thompson during his three seasons in Pullman will join the No. 55 worn by Steve Puidokas as the only two retired jerseys in the WSU men's basketball program. Thompson also becomes just the seventh person at WSU to have his number retired in any sport, joining football's Mel Hein and Jack Thompson, and baseball's Buck Bailey, Bobo Brayton and John Olerud. In just three seasons, Thompson became WSU's third all-time leading scorer, averaging 17.9 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.3 steals per game, while draining a school-record 242 3-pointers. He was the 11th overall pick by the Golden State Warriors in the 2011 NBA Draft, becoming just the second Cougar to be chosen in the first round. As a Cougar, Thompson earned Pacific-10 Conference honors all three seasons at WSU, all-freshman accolades as a rookie and First-Team All-Pac-10 as both a sophomore and junior. As a junior, Thompson led the Pac-10 and ranked 11th in the nation in scoring with 21.6 points per game, while also leading the league in 3-pointers made (98) as he broke four WSU single-season records, including points (733), and 3-point field goals. As a member of the Golden State Warriors, Thompson has helped the team to three World Championships and five-straight appearances in the NBA Finals (2015-19). In his eight seasons as a Warrior, Thompson has averaged 19.5 points per game, 3.5 rebounds and 2.4 assists, shooting .442 from the field and .415 from three-point range. His 1,798 three-point FGs made are 16th in NBA history and he owns the NBA single-game record with 14 three-pointers set in 2018. He was named to the All-Rookie First Team in 2012, has been an NBA All-Star five times, and twice has been an All-NBA Third-Team selection. He was the NBA Three-Point Contest champion as part of the 2016 NBA All-Star Weekend and this past season was an NBA All-Defensive Second-Team selection. Thompson has also won gold medals at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, the 2014 World Cup and 2009 FIBA Under-19 World Championship while representing USA Basketball.

COUGAR ATHLETICS TO HONOR GEORGE RAVELING
WSU Director of Athletics Pat Chun announced that Cougar Athletics will honor the contributions of legendary basketball coach George Raveling in a ceremony Feb. 9 in Pullman. Raveling's name will be hung in the Beasley Coliseum rafters during a halftime ceremony of the Boeing Apple Cup series game between Washington State and Washington. Raveling coached at WSU from 1972-83, taking the Cougars to NCAA Tournaments in 1980 and 1983. The 1980 appearance marked the first for WSU since finishing second in 1941. While at WSU, he earned 167 victories, and was twice named the Pac-8/10 Conference Coach of the Year. During his time in Pullman, Raveling also served as an assistant coach for the USA team at the 1979 Pan American Games and the West Regional coach at the 1979 U.S. Olympic Sports Festival. Raveling continued his collegiate coaching career after leaving WSU in 1983, first at the University of Iowa (1983-86), then at the University of Southern California (1986-94). His career head coaching record stands at 337-292. In 1984 and 1988 he served as an assistant coach for the U.S. Olympic Teams. Raveling became the first African-American men's head basketball coach in conference history when he was hired in 1972. He also possesses one of the most important documents in American history, Martin Luther King's original notes from his "I Have a Dream" speech, part of a massive collection of items Raveling has accumulated during his life. Raveling, who was inducted into the WSU Athletic Hall of Fame in 2004, has been inducted into both the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2015 and the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame in 2013. Raveling also received the John Bunn Lifetime Achievement Award in 2013, given by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame to an individual who has contributed significantly to the sport of basketball. A graduate of Villanova University, Raveling served as an assistant coach at his alma mater and the University of Maryland before assuming his role at WSU.

WSU INDUCTS SIX INTO ATHLETIC HALL OF FAME
Washington State University inducted six individuals into its Athletic Hall of Fame in September in Spokane. The honorees joined the current 217 individuals and teams in the WSU Athletic Hall of Fame. The list of six inductees comprising the 2019 class include: Josephat Kapkory (track and field/cross country, 1991-94), Stephanie Papke (volleyball, 1994-97), Ellannee (Richardson) Rajewsky (track & field, 1999-2003), Lisa Roman (rowing, 2010-12), Rod Commons (administration, 1976-2007), Ryan Leaf (football, 1994-97): One of the greatest football players in WSU history…led the Cougars to the 1998 Rose Bowl and a No. 9 final ranking…1997 Pac-10 Offensive Player of the Year and named to The Sport News' All-American First Team…finished third in the 1997 Heisman Trophy race…set numerous Pac-10 and WSU single-season and career records…selected No. 2 overall by the San Diego Chargers in the 1998 NFL Draft…spent four seasons in the NFL.

STEVE GLEASON RECRUIT SUITE IN COUGAR FOOTBALL COMPLEX
In fall, 2016, WSU announced the naming of the Steve Gleason Recruit Suite, inside the Cougar Football Complex. 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.