Washington State Welcomes Oregon State for a Chance at Bowl Eligibility

Sheesh, where did the time go? Seems like only yesterday we where here previewing the season opener against Idaho. Now, we’ve reached the season finale against Oregon State—Game 2, if you will.

Back on Nov. 1, these two teams met in Corvallis and played a miserable 10-7 affair in which the home team won, which was a kick to the you-know-what for the Cougs. You might think, “Hey, at least the Cougs know what they’re getting this time!” And you’d be mostly correct—except for the most important position on the field.

The Beavers trotted out two quarterback back on Nov.1: Gabarri Johnson and Malik Murphy. Entering this afternoon’s game, the Beavers may have a third quarterback for WSU to plan for. Third-string and true freshman Tristan Ti’a played well enough two weeks ago for the Beavers against Tulsa that he may just be the guy today. The Beavers have nothing to lose, so why the heck not? It’s not like Martin Stadium will be hostile territory.

(An aside: Oregon State’s two bye weeks this season both came before games against WSU. How about that?)

Ti’a, according to reporters who actually analyze these things, is more of a pocket passer, which plays into WSU’s strength, as the Cougar pass defense is among the best in the land (tackling—sigh—is still an issue).

As we’ve seen in recent weeks, WSU seems to sleepwalk through the fourth quarter. For me, that’s the key to this game—play a full four quarters. I’m old enough to remember Bill Doba using “FINISH!” as a rallying cry for his team. This version of WSU football could learn a thing or two from that era. The Cougs will need to finish the game to reach bowl eligibility. And they’ll likely need to do it without starting center Brock Dieu.

Oh, and Zevi Eckhaus needs to play a clean game. His seven interceptions in his las five games are killers.

Talk about it here. Go Cougs.

When

3:30 p.m. PST

Where

Gesa Field at Martin Stadium, for the final time this season. Next year, it’s an official Pac-12 venue.

How to Watch

The CW for the sixth time this season. As always, your favorites are on the call: Ted Robinson, Ryan Leaf and Nigel Burton

The Line

Cougs are 13.5-point favorites, which seems like a lot to me. The game opened at WSU -12.5.

The O/U is 43.5.

Familiar Faces

Robb Akey is still the interim head coach, and he’ll cede control to another former WSU assistant—JaMarcus Shephard—after this one’s over.