Washington State University Athletics
No. 24 Cougars Host Colorado Saturday Night On ESPN2
COLORADO at No. 24 WASHINGTON STATE
7:45 p.m. (PT), Saturday, Nov. 21 • ESPN2
Martin Stadium (32,952) • Pullman, Wash.
No. 24 WASHINGTON STATE HOSTS COLORADO SATURDAY NIGHT ON ESPN2
Washington State (7-3, 5-2 Pac-12) is back in Martin Stadium for senior day to host the University of Colorado (4-7, 1-6 Pac-12) Saturday at 7:45 p.m. on ESPN2.
SERIES HISTORY
WSU will be facing Colorado for the first time since 2012, a 35-34 defeat to Buffs in Pullman. Colorado leads the all-time series 5-3. Mike Leach owns a 1-4 career record against Colorado.
COMING UP
The Cougars will head to Seattle for the Apple Cup set for Friday at 12:30 p.m. on FOX.
COUGARS APPEAR IN NATIONAL RANKINGS
Washington State appeared at No. 24 in this week’s Associated Press Top-25 and No. 23 in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll. It is the Cougars first national ranking (AP) since earning a No. 25 ranking in week 10 of the 2006 season and is the highest ranking since finishing the 2003 season No. 9.
SENIOR DAY
Prior to Saturday’s kickoff against Colorado, WSU will recognize its 16 seniors who will playing their final game in Martin Stadium. Jeremiah Allison (LB), Tyler Baker (WR), Quentin Breshears (K), Moritz Christ (OL), Skyler Cracraft (S), Joe Dahl (OL), Gunnar Eklund (OL), Daniel Lilienthal (WR), Devonte McClain (DL), Ivan McLennan (LB), Kache Palacio (LB), Darryl Paulo (DL), Jacob Seydel (OL), Taylor Taliulu (S), Destiny Vaeao (DL) and Dom Williams (WR).
COUGAR QUICK HITS
TEAM
• WSU is off to its best start the 2003 team started 8-2 , is bowl eligible for second team in three seasons (2013)
• WSU is ranked No. 24 in the AP Top-25, its first national ranking since week 10 of 2006 (No. 25)
• 23 players have made their Cougar debuts this season, and seven players have made their first career start
• WSU leads the country in passing offense (414.4)
• WSU is the only team from a Power 5 Conference with three players on the Biletnikoff Watch List
• WSU is second in the Pac-12 in tackles-for-loss per game at 7.9, 12th-most in the country
• WSU leads the country in 4th-down conversions (23) and is second in the most attempts (31), 74%
• WSU recorded its first three-game conference winning streak (at Oregon, Oregon State, at Arizona) since 2003
• WSU’s win at Oregon was the first win over the Ducks since 2006 and first in Eugene since 2003
• WSU’s win at Rutgers was the first win against a Big Ten school since defeating Purdue in the 2001 Sun Bowl
• WSU rushed for 117 yards in the win at Arizona, the fourth 100-yard game of season, eighth under coach Leach
• WSU has recorded two sellouts of Martin Stadium in 2015, now owns seven sellouts since coach Mike Leach arrived at WSU in 2012, only one sellout in the five seasons prior
INDIVIDUAL
• WSU’s win over Oregon State gave Mike Leach career win No. 100, he now owns a career 103-71 record
• QB Luke Falk leads the Pac-12 in passing yards (406.7 ypg), touchdowns (35) and total offense (395.7 ypg)
• Falk is the FBS active leader in passing yards-per-game (370.4) and total offense (359.1)
• WR Dom Williams is 2nd in WSU history with 28 career TD catches, trails Jason Hill’s record of 32
• Williams sits 3rd in school history with 2,728 career receiving yards, 13th among active FBS players
• WR Gabe Marks owns the WSU record for career receptions (204), broke Michael Bumpus’ record (195)
• Marks ranks No. 12 among all active FBS receivers in career receptions
• Marks leads the Pac-12 in catches (81), TDs (13), catches per game (8.1) and second in receiving yards (957)
• Marks owns five career games with 10+ receptions, the most in WSU history
• Marks owns 81 receptions, 47 of those have resulted in a WSU first down (58%)
• Cougar RBs combine to average 155.6 all-purpose yards-per-game, 6.0 yds-per-carry and scored 10 TDs
• RB Gerard Wicks recorded a career high 78 rushing yards against Stanford
• RB Jamal Morrow rushed for a career-high 68 yards in the win at Oregon
• RUSH LB Kache Palacio owns 16 career sacks, good for 10th all-time in WSU history
YOUNG COUGS TAKE THE FIELD
Washington State has seen 23 players make their Cougar debuts this season and five players who have made their first career start in 2015. Fourteen freshmen have contributed including seven true freshmen. Seventeen newcomers appear in the depth chart against UCLA with a total of 12 freshman listed including six true freshmen. The players who have made their Cougar debuts this season are: Treshon Broughton (DB), Zach Charme (P), Reggie Coates (DL), Hunter Dale (DB), Nate DeRider (LB), Kaleb Fossum (WR), Lucas Gravelle (LS), Keith Harrington (RB), Alijah Lee (RB), Chandler Leniu (LB), Shalom Luani (S), Tavares Martin Jr. (WR), Hercules Mata’afa (DL), Jeremiah Mitchell (DL), Darrien Molton (CB), Cody O’Connell (OL), Kirkland Parker (DB), Aaron Porter (LB), Kyrin Priester (WR), Kyle Sweet (WR), Logan Tago (LB), Ngalu Tapa (DL), Andre Dillard (LT).
AIR RAID HEATS UP
The Washington State Air Raid offense has taken off to new levels over the last six games (5-1), averaging 528.7 yards in total offense, 444.5 yards passing while converting 44 percent on third downs, 87 percent on fourth down and has scored in all 31 trips inside the red zone (22 TD). The Cougars have averaged 39.8 ppg and 84.2 rushing yards-per-game during that same stretch which included its first three-game conference winning streak since 2003 and scoring 40+ points in three straight for the first time since 2001. Also during that span, Luke Falk has thrown for 2,608 yards with 25 touchdowns, six interceptions, averaged 434.7 passing yards-per-game and completed 69 percent of his passes while wideout Gabe Marks has caught 10 touchdowns and receiver Dom Williams has averaged 98.8 receiving yards-per-game. WSU enters the week leading the FBS in passing (414.4), No. 21 in total offense (492.3) and have rushed for 100+ yards as a team four times this season, matching the total of 100-yard games from the previous three seasons combined.
FALK NAMED DAVEY O’BRIEN AWARD SEMIFINALIST
Luke Falk was named a Davey O’Brien Quarterback Award Semifinalist two weeks ago. The award is presented annually to the nation’s best college quarterback and is the nation’s oldest and most prestigious national quarterback award. Falk is one of 17 semifinalists and has earned a spot on the Davey O’Brien Award “Great 8” Performance of the Week five times this season. Falk enters the week leading the FBS in passing yards (4,067), passing yards-per-game (406.7), second in passing touchdowns (35) and third in total offense (395.7). In Pac-12 play, Falk has averaged 428.1 passing yards-per-game, completed 69.3 percent of his passes and thrown 27 touchdowns against seven interceptions and also rushed for two scores. Earlier this 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. Three Davey O’Brien Award finalists will be named Nov. 24 and the winner Dec. 10.
FALK STAYS HOT
Redshirt-sophomore Luke Falk’s impressive 2015 campaign continued in the win over Arizona State two weeks ago, throwing for 497 yards and five touchdowns. He also threw for 514 yards and five touchdowns in the win at Arizona after posting 407 yards and tying a school-record with six touchdown passes (all in the first half) in the win over Oregon State the week prior. Falk owns nine 300-yard games and five 400-yard games including a 478-yard effort in a road win over Rutgers and a 505-yard performance in the win at Oregon. In the win over the Ducks, Falk threw for five touchdowns while rushing for another in the first win in Eugene since 2003. In just 16 career games including 13 starts, Falk owns 13 career 300-yard games, second-most in WSU history, 48 touchdowns, sixth-most in WSU history and 5,926 passing yards, good for ninth all-time.
FALK EARNS THIRD PAC-12 PLAYER OF THE WEEK ACCOLADE
Luke Falk has been named Pac-12 Conference Offensive Player of the Week three times this season, the most by any player. Falk picked up his most recent award after throwing for 497 yards, completing 36-of-55 passes and five touchdowns to four different receivers with one interception in Washington State’s come-from-behind, 38-24 win over Arizona State. After a slow first half, he completed 20-of-27 passes for 349 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions in the second half. All four touchdown drives in the second half went for more than 70 yards. In the fourth quarter alone, Falk threw for 238 yards and three touchdowns, helping the Cougars to their third come-from-behind win of the season as they trailed 21-17 entering the final quarter. Falk’s passing yardage was the third-highest of a Pac-12 quarterback this season, and he owns the top two marks as well. Earlier this season, Falk earned the accolade after leading the comeback victory at Rutgers and throwing for a season-high 514 yards and five touchdowns in the win at Arizona. Falk now owns four career player of the week awards, the most in school history since the conference started selecting the award in 1991.
FALK’S RECORD BOOK WATCH (Pages 20, 24)
• Falk’s 4,067 passing yards this season rank second in WSU single season history, needs 531 yards to break Connor Halliday’s 2013 record of 4,597
• The Pac-12 record for passing yards in a season is 4,662 set by Sean Mannion (OSU) in 2013
• Falk’s 35 TD are the most in WSU single-season history, breaking the record of 34 shared by Ryan Leaf (1997) and Connor Halliday (2013)
• The Pac-12 record for TD passes in a season is 42 set by Marcus Mariota (ORE) last season
• Falk owns 48 career TD passes, sixth in WSU history, five behind Jack Thompson for fifth with 53
• Falk owns 5,926 career passing yards, ninth in WSU history, needs 11 yards to pass Jeff Tuel for eighth and 69 to pass Timm Rosenbach for seventh
• Falk owns three career 500-yard games, trails only Connor Halliday’s WSU record of five
FALK ADDS ANOTHER FOURTH-QUARTER COMEBACK
Luke Falk hasn’t been a stranger to fourth-quarter comebacks. Falk has played in just 16 games and made 13 starts but already has led the Cougars to five fourth-quarter comebacks in his career. Last season 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 that was 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 most recent one came last Saturday at 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 No. 18 Bruins.
FALK ADDED TO MANNING AWARD WATCH LIST
Luke Falk was added to the Manning Award Watch List Oct. 14, one of 10 quarterbacks added to the watch list for the award given to the top quarterback in country after bowl games. Falk was one of five Pac-12 quarterbacks included on the list of 40 quarterbacks. The Manning Award was created by the Allstate Sugar Bowl in honor of the college football accomplishments of Archie, Peyton and Eli Manning. The winner will again be selected by a voting panel, which includes national media and each of the Mannings, after the bowls.
FALK NAMED A BURLSWORTH TROPHY SEMIFINALIST
Luke Falk was named a Burlsworth Trophy Semifinalist by the Springdale Rotary Club Tuesday. Falk is one of 10 football student-athletes selected as semifinalists for the award given to the most outstanding collegiate football player who began his career as a walk-on. Falk walked on at WSU in 2013, redshirted that season before earning a scholarship prior to the 2014 season. Fans will be allowed to vote for their favorite player via the “GREATER” Fan Vote beginning Nov. 17. Fans are limited to one vote per day, and the voting for the semi-finalist round will conclude Nov. 22. Voting can be accessed at www.burlsworthtrophy.com and will begin with the top 10 semi-finalists and continue as the selection committee announces the top three Burlsworth Trophy finalists on Nov. 24. Finalists will be honored and the winner of the 2015 Burlsworth Trophy announced Dec. 7 at a banquet in Springdale, Ark., sponsored by the Springdale Rotary Club.
OFFENSIVE LINE BULKED UP
Last season, the Cougar offensive line featured three first-year starters and posted the second-best pass attempts-to-sack ratio in the league at 21.4 (771/36), going the second-longest between allowing sacks while dropping back to pass the most times in Pac-12 history in addition to blocking for the nation’s leading passing offense. Not only do all five starters return in 2015 but every offensive lineman (13) also returns from last year. The 2015 offensive line is the biggest (weight) it’s been since coach Mike Leach arrived, averaging nearly 310 lbs after averaging 288.6 in 2012, 288.2 in 2013 and 309.4 lbs last year.
EKLUND EARNS “BONE” AWARD AFTER WIN AT UCLA
Each week, Washington State coaches give out the “Bone” award to the offensive lineman who performs the best during the previous game. Each Cougar starting lineman owns at least one “Bone” award this season. Gunnar Eklund earned the award after a solid performance in the win at UCLA. Eklund started at left tackle and later switched to left guard in the second half. Portland State: None; at Rutgers: Joe Dahl; Wyoming: Gunnar Eklund; at California: None; at Oregon: Riley Sorenson; Oregon State: Eduardo Middleton; at Arizona: Cole Madison; Stanford: None; Arizona State: Eduardo Middleton; at UCLA: Gunnar Eklund
EARTH, WIND AND FIRE IN THE BACKFIELD
The Cougar running back trio made up of redshirt-sophomores Jamal Morrow and Gerard Wicks, and redshirt-freshman Keith Harrington have become known as Earth, Wind and Fire by WSU running backs coach Jim Mastro. WSU has already posted four 100-yard games this season after recording four 100-yard efforts the previous three seasons combined. Each player has had a breakout game this year with Wicks leading the way with 434 rushing yards while also owning 31 receptions. Harrington has caught 39 passes, averaged 7.2 per-carry and owns four touchdowns (3 receiving, 1 rushing) while Morrow is coming off a solid couple games. He set a career-high with 68 yards on eight carries in the win at Oregon, scored his first career touchdowns on touchdown catches in the win over Oregon State and rushed for 59 yards in the win at Arizona. Against the Ducks, the trio combined for 289 all-purpose yards, 15 receptions and averaged 9.7 yards-per-carry. Against OSU, the Cougar backs averaged 7.6 per-carry before WSU racked up another 117 yards in the win at Arizona, its third straight 100-yard game for the first time since 2010. Both Harrington and Wicks caught touchdown passes in the win over Arizona State and Wicks rushed for another at UCLA. The Cougars have already rushed for 779 yards this year, the most in Mike Leach’s four seasons at WSU. The three backs have combined to average 6.0 yards-per-carry, the highest by a Cougar backfield since All-American Jerome Harrison and DeMaundray Woolridge combined to average 8.5 per-carry in 2005.
SPREADING THE BALL AROUND
Washington State enters the week as one of two teams in the country with seven players owning 20+ receptions this season. Last season, WSU was the only team in the country that had six players finish with 40+ catches and four of those players returned in 2015 (Cracraft, Morrow, Williams, Lewis). Through 10 games, the Cougars have seen 10+ receivers catch a pass in each game. Redshirt-freshman Robert Lewis came up big for Cougars in the win against Arizona State, setting a career-high with 97 receiving yards on three catches while freshman wideout Kyle Sweet broke out with season-highs of seven catches for 77 yards.
RECEIVERS MAKING THEIR WAY UP THE RECORD BOOK (pages 19, 23)
• Dom Williams owns 28 career TD catches, second in WSU history, trails Jason Hill (32)
• Williams’ 28 career TDs are tied with J.J. Stokes (UCLA) for 11th-most in Pac-12 history
• Williams owns nine career 100-yard games, tied for third in WSU history
• Williams is third in WSU history with 2,728 receiving yards and fifth with 178 career receptions
• Gabe Marks set a WSU single-game record and tied a Pac-12 record with 4 TD catches at Arizona
• Marks leads the Pac-12 with 81 receptions, third-most in WSU single-season history
• Marks’ 13 TD catches this season tie Jason Hill (2005) for the most in WSU single-season history
• Marks needs 43 receiving yards to record his first career 1,000-yard season
• Marks broke Michael Bumpus’ school record for career receptions (195) during his 12-catch performance at UCLA, upping his career total to 204, tied 20th in Pac-12 history
• Marks owns 22 career TD catches, tied with Hugh Campbell of the fourth-most in school history
• Marks also sits seventh in WSU history with 2,324 career receiving yards
• River Cracraft sits ninth in WSU history with 160 career catches
• Cracraft is closing in on the WSU all-time top-10 for receiving yards (1,937) and TD catches (15)
MARKS NAMED BILETNIKOFF AWARD SEMIFINALIST, SETS WSU RECEPTIONS RECORD
Gabe Marks was named one of ten Biletnikoff Award semifinalists Tuesday, the second Cougar in as many years to be named a semifinalist after Vince Mayle earned the same honor last season. Marks, along with redshirt-senior wide out Dom Williams and junior River Cracraft were named to the watch list throughout the season, making WSU the only team from a power 5 conference with three players on the list and the only Pac-12 Conference team with multiple players on the list. Last season, three Cougars were named to the watch list including Cracraft, Mayle and Isiah Myers. Marks enters the week fourth in the country and leading the Pac-12 Conference in receptions (81), receptions-per-game (8.1) and touchdown receptions (13), and is second in the conference with 957 receiving yards. Marks has produced three 100-yard games this season and also owns the school record with five career games with 10+ receptions. The Venice, Calif. native is coming off a record-breaking performance in the win at No. 18 UCLA, catching 12 passes for 97 yards and two touchdowns including the go-ahead 21-yard score with three seconds remaining. In the win, Marks broke Michael Bumpus’ school record for career receptions (195) and enters Saturday’s game against Colorado with 204 career catches and tied for fourth in school history with 22 career touchdown catches. Marks has put up big numbers in WSU’s four road wins, setting a career-high with 14 catches and tied a career-high with 146 yards and a touchdown in the win at Rutgers, grabbing eight passes for 111 yards and two touchdowns in the win at Oregon, set a school-record with four touchdowns, tying the Pac-12 mark, in the win at Arizona before putting up the numbers at UCLA.
WILLIAMS ADDED TO BILETNIKOFF AWARD WATCH LIST
Dom Williams was added to the 2015 Biletnikoff Award Watch List Oct. 28. The Biletnikoff Award annually recognizes the outstanding receiver at any position in college football. Last season, three Cougars were named to the watch list including Cracraft, Vince Mayle and Isiah Myers. Mayle was later selected as one of the ten semifinalists. Williams enters the week fourth in the Pac-12 with eight touchdowns and 879 receiving yards, and fifth with 61 receptions. The 10 Biletnikoff Award semifinalists will be announced Nov. 16, three finalists will be declared Nov. 24 and winner announced Dec. 10.
CRACRAFT NAMED TO PRESEASON BILETNIKOFF AWARD WATCH LIST
Junior wide receiver River Cracraft was named to the 2015 Biletnikoff Award Watch List prior to the season. Cracraft finished last season seventh in the Pac-12 with eight touchdown catches, ninth with 66 receptions and tenth with 771 receiving yards in just nine games. The Trabuco Canyon, Calif. native tallied four 100-yard games and his 66 catches were tenth-most in WSU history. In 2015, Cracraft is seventh in the Pac-12 with 48 receptions and tenth in receiving yards (552). He has caught four touchdowns and produced two 100-yard games.
LINEBACKERS LEAD THE WAY
The Cougar linebackers have filled up the stat sheet this season with redshirt-sophomore Peyton Pelluer is fourth in the Pac-12 with 8.4 tackles-per game (84 total) along with 9.5 tackles-for-loss, tied for ninth-most in the conference. Senior Jeremiah Allison is 11th in the Pac-12 averaging 7.3 tackles-per-contest (73 total) after leading the Cougars in tackles in each of the first two games, 12 against Portland State and 11 at Rutgers. Allison added 10 tackles in the Arizona State win. Pelluer tallied a career-best 14 stops against Wyoming and has shared the team-high in tackles in the win at Oregon (8), the win over Oregon State (11), 10 against Stanford and made a team-best eight last week at UCLA. Both backers took over as starters midway through last season and haven’t look back with Allison finishing 2014 second on the team with 78 tackles and Pelluer started the final five games and posted 39 tackles including 5.5 for loss.
PELLUER NAMED TO ACADEMIC ALL-DISTRICT VIII FIRST TEAM
Peyton Pelluer was named to the 2015 Academic All-District VIII First Team as selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA). Pelluer, from Sammamish, Wash., is a first-time honoree as a redshirt sophomore this season. The linebacker boasts a 3.57 GPA while majoring in history with an emphasis in secondary education. The fourth-generation Cougar, whose father, grandfather, and great grandfather all played football for the Cougars, was a Pac-12 All-Academic First Team selection last season.
GET THE BALL BACK
First-year WSU defensive coordinator Alex Grinch has emphasized the need to force turnovers and get the ball back to Air Raid offense and the Cougars have done just that. Washington State has forced 18 turnovers in 2015, tied for fifth in the Pac-12 and more than double last season’s total of eight. The Cougars own eight interceptions, are tied for the Pac-12 lead with 10 fumble recoveries and have turned the 18 turnovers into 44 points this season.
YOUNG SECONDARY A YEAR OLDER, LUANI LEADS THE WAY
The Cougars went through a youth movement in the secondary in 2014, starting six freshmen throughout the year including four true freshmen. Senior safety Taylor Taliulu and sophomore cornerback Marcellus Pippins returned as the veterans this season. Taliulu is a three-year starter and Pippins started the final two games last season. The Cougars have received a sold contribution from true freshman Darrien Molton (28 tackles, 1 INT, 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovery) at cornerback while junior college transfer Shalom Luani has emerged as a playmaker after starting all 10 games at safety. Luani is third on the team with 70 tackles, has forced two fumbles and is tied for second in the Pac-12 with three interceptions, the first sealed the double overtime win at Oregon and the next two came in the win over Oregon State, one he returned 84 yards for a touchdown. Sophomore Marcellus Pippins has settled as the starter at the other cornerback, recording a pair of interceptions, eight pass breakups, one fumble recovery and 40 tackles.
DEFENSE PUTS THE PRESSURE ON
Washington State has racked up 23 sacks and is 12th in the country with 7.9 tackles-for-loss per game (79 Total), the second-best average in the Pac-12. WSU tallied five sacks against Wyoming, three from Ivan McLennan and two from Kache Palacio, giving McLennan the first three-sack performance since Andy Mattingly recorded four against Arizona State in 2007. Darryl Paulo enters Saturday with a team-best 10.5 tackles-for-loss, tied for seventh in the Pac-12 and Palacio owns a team-best five sacks, tied for seventh in the conference. Against Wyoming, WSU recorded 14 TFL’s, tied for third-most in school history, posted 11 TFL’s at Cal and eight more against Arizona State.
SPECIAL TEAMS FULL OF NEWCOMERS
Washington State has seen a couple new faces contribute on special teams this season. Freshman punter Zach Charme owns seven punts of 50+ yards and has put 10 punts inside the 20. Freshman kick returner Tavares Martin Jr. has been close to breaking a couple long returns this season. The Belle Glade, Fla. native produced returns of 29 and 34 yards in his collegiate debut against Portland State, a 40-yarder at California and a game-opening 51-yard return against Oregon State. He enters Saturday seventh in the Pac-12 averaging 23.5 yards-per-return. Although not a new face but redshirt-sophomore kicker Erik Powell posted a career day in the win at Rutgers, hitting all three of his field goal attempts (46, 47, 37 ), setting a career long of 47 and is 8-for-11 on the season. Against Stanford, he tied a school record with five field goals (46, 23, 47, 28, 28). Powell is 15-of-19 on the season, tied for the ninth-most makes in WSU single-season history.
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, tight end Nick Begg and receivers River Cracraft and Kyle Sweet. Cracraft’s older brother Skyler is also on the team but played at a different high school. In the season-opener, former Cougar and NBA Champion Klay Thompson brought the Larry O’Brien Trophy to campus and was recognized during the game. Thompson also starred at Rancho Santa Margarita HS before heading to Washington State.
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 2015 roster has 15 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-freshman offensive lineman Andre Dillard’s dad, Mitch was an offensive lineman and tight end for the Cougars in the late 1980’s; redshirt-sophomore safety Isaac Dotson’s dad, Michael was an All-American wrestler for WSU from 1983-86; redshirt-sophomore 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.
CARDIAC KIDS REVISITED
Washington State’s 2015 season is reminding many Cougar fans of the 1965 Cardiac Kids, the Cougar squad that became known for late-game heroics en route to a 7-3 season. That season WSU had four, late-game victories, three being road wins. The same is occurring 50 years later as the 2015 Cougars are also 7-3, with two games to play. They have registered four, fourth-quarter comebacks, with three wins coming in the final minute or overtime, all on the road.
1965 Last-Minute Victories
at Iowa (7-0) - Tom Roth passed 20 yards to Rich Sheron with 36 seconds to play;
at Minnesota (14-13) - Down 13-0, WSU came back to win with 2:12 left on the game clock when Roth scored from one yard out and Bill Gaskins kicked the extra point;
Villanova (24-14) - WSU trailed 14-10 when Roth hit Bob Simpson on a 78-yard pass play with 2:15 to play and Gaskins sealed the win a minute later with a 41-yard interception return for the final score;
at Indiana (8-7) - The Cougars rallied from a 7-0 deficit when Roth and Doug Flansburg hooked up on a five-yard pass play as time expired; Roth then hit Ammon McWashington with a two-point conversion pass.
2015 Last-Minute Victories
at UCLA (31-27) - Luke Falk’s 21-yard touchdown pass to Gabe Marks capped a 7-play, 75-yard touchdown drive with 0:03 seconds remaining for the come-from-behind win.
Arizona State (38-24) – Training 21-17 entering the fourth quarter, WSU outscored the Sun Devils 21-3 in the final period behind three touchdown passes from Luke Falk.
at Oregon (45-38 2OT) – Luke Falk’s 8-yard touchdown pass to Dom Williams with 0:01 remaining capped a 70-yard drive that lasted 1:58 to send the game into overtime, which WSU won in the second overtime.
at Rutgers (37-34) – Trailing 34-30 with 1:31 to play, Luke Falk engineered a 10-play, 91-yard drive capped by an 8-yard pass to River Cracraft for the game-winning score with 0:13 remaining.
COUGARS SIGN PAIR TO FINANCIAL AID AGREEMENTS
WSU got a head start on the 2016 signing class by signing two players to financial aid agreements two weeks ago. QB/ATH Justus Rogers out of Bellevue High School in Bellevue, Wash. and DB Jalen Thompson out of Downey High School and Bellflower, Calif. each inked financial aid agreements, will graduate high school early in December, enroll at WSU in January, 2016 and participate in spring practices. Rogers, 6-2, 220, is rated a three-star prospect by ESPN.com, Rivals.com and Scout.com and has served as Bellevue’s team captain the past two seasons. As a junior, the dual-threat completed 60-of-92 passes for 900 yards and nine touchdowns without an interception and also rushed 49 times for 400 yards and two touchdowns while leading BHS to the 3A State title game. Rogers is rated the No. 46 athlete in the country and No. 19 athlete in the West by Scout.com and No. 15 overall prospect in Washington by ESPN.com. Thompson, 6-0, 170, is rated a three-star prospect by ESPN.com, Rivals.com and Scout.com and is rated the No. 56 cornerback in the country by ESPN.com. Thompson played his junior and senior seasons at Downey, earning All-CIF and All-San Gabriel Valley League honors as a junior after recording 57 tackles and one interception in addition to catching 22 passes for 450 yards and four touchdowns.
WSU ADDS 25 INTO ATHLETICS HALL OF FAME
Washington State inducted 25 members into the WSU Athletic Hall of Fame Sept. 18, joining the current 177 members. Members of 2015 Class: Pat Beach, Football; Larry Beck, Basketball; Steve Broussard, Football; Rex Davis, Tennis and Gymnastics Coach; Wayne Foster, Football; Jerome Harrison, Football; Scott Hatteberg, Baseball; Allan Kennedy, Football; Josh Kimeto, Track & Field; Curt Ledford, Track & Field; Erin McCleave, Swimming; Keith Millard, Football; Jay Miller, Baseball; Mary Moore, Track & Field; Doug Nordquist, Track & Field; Cassandra Overby, Basketball; Eric Perkins-Jasper, Tennis; Pam Qualls, Track & Field; Geoff Reece, Football; Rick Riley, Track & Field; Richard Stiles, Baseball; Lamont Thompson, Football; Marcus Trufant, Football; Bob Waits, Baseball; Bob Yard, Track & Field.
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 up to 174 after last week’s appearance at Baylor. 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 last year 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.
GRINCH, MANNING, HARRELL, MELE JOIN COUGAR COACHING STAFF
Washington State made a couple changes to its coaching staff in the offseason, bringing on first-year defensive coordinator Alex Grinch who will also work with the Cougars secondary. Grinch spent the last three seasons at Missouri where he coached the safeties, helping Missouri to a 23-5 record over the past two years including two SEC East Division titles. Roy Manning joined WSU to coach the outside linebackers after serving the past two seasons at his alma mater, the University of Michigan, coaching the cornerbacks in 2014 and the outside linebackers in 2013. Making the move from offensive analyst to outside receivers coach is Graham Harrell who is very familiar with the Air Raid offense from his record-setting days as a quarterback for coach Mike Leach at Texas Tech. Eric Mele, who served as the interim special teams coach midway through last season, had the interim tag removed during the offseason and is the Cougars special teams coach.
DAHL NAMED TO OUTLAND TROPHY WATCH LIST
Redshirt-senior left tackle Joe Dahl was named to the Outland Trophy Watch List, given annually to the nation’s top interior lineman. Dahl is one of 13 players from the Pac-12 Conference included on the 81-player list. WSU defensive tackle Rien Long won the award in 2002, also garnering first team All-America honors while leading the Cougars to the 2003 Rose Bowl. Dahl earned All-Pac-12 honorable mention last season after starting all 12 games at left tackle for the nation’s top passing offense. The Spokane, Wash. native surrendered just one sack in the Cougars’ Pac-12 record 807 pass attempts and earned the WSU “Bone” Award (given to the team’s best offensive lineman each week) a team-best six times last season. Earlier this summer, Dahl was named to the preseason All-Pac-12 first team by ESPN.com, second team by Athlon Sports and third team by Phil Steele Magazine.
ALLISON NAMED TO WUERFFEL TROPHY WATCH LIST, ALL STATE GOOD WORKS TEAM
Senior linebacker Jeremiah Allison was named to the 2015 Wuerffel Trophy Watch List, known as “College Football’s Premier Award for Community Service.” Allison is one of 80 football student-athletes considered for the award that honors college football’s top community servant. Allison has been involved with many community service projects in and around Pullman throughout his three years at Washington State. The Los Angeles native has assisted with Habitat for Humanity, the Washington State Athletics Reading Buddies with local elementary schools, Sr. Buddies at the local retirement home and Butch’s Holiday Bash for local children. Allison also helped out with National Women In Sports Day and is a member of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee for football. He was the recent recipient of the WSU athletic community service award and also works with a local church, setting up weekly bible studies in addition to speaking with local individuals who lost their parent or parents to share words of inspiration. For the second straight season Allison was also named to the All State Good Works Team for his charitable work and community work.
NEW COUGAR FOOTBALL BROADCAST TEAM
Hall of fame announcer Bob Robertson is in his 49th 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 45 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 will serve as the new play-by-play voice for Cougar football, men’s basketball and baseball broadcasts. Joining Chazanow and Robertson in the booth for his second season will be Cougar legend Jason Gesser who quarterbacked WSU to the 2001 Sun Bowl and 2003 Rose Bowl. Returning for her fourth season as the sideline reporter is Jessamyn McIntyre, an executive producer for 710 ESPN Seattle.
MATT CHAZANOW NAMED VOICE OF COUGARS
Matt Chazanow was named Voice of the Cougars over the summer. Chazanow replaces Bud Nameck on Cougar football and men’s basketball broadcasts. Additionally, Chazanow will serve as the voice of Cougar baseball broadcasts. Chazanow has extensive experience in broadcasting at the highest level of collegiate football, including calling national play-by-play broadcasts for ACC football, Big East and ACC postseason basketball, along with SEC and ACC postseason baseball. As a senior network manager at IMG College in Winston-Salem, N.C., Chazanow has spent the past seven years managing eight IMG college network broadcasts (Washington State, Arizona, Cal, Gonzaga, Oregon, Texas, UCLA and Washington). Cougar fans had a chance to hear Chazanow last November when he called the WSU men’s basketball broadcasts at the Great Alaska Shootout.
