On back side of weekly mountain
COUGARS
It's been a long slog up the mountain, but we've finally made it to Wednesday. Now it's time to strap on the skis and ride the powder downhill to Saturday's football game. Sort of. Read on.
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• Washington State: Though the weather folks are even more inaccurate than I am in my college football picks – and believe me, this week that's bad – there is a good chance of snow between now and Saturday. Then really cold weather for the game, despite the 2 p.m. start. ... We don't have a lot for you links-wise with the Cougars, but there are some good stories below. As for WSU, we have our notes from last night and a Pac-12 notebook, looking at the divisional structure of the conference. ... Freelancer Howie Stalwick has a Cougar notebook. ... And ESPN.com's Ted Miller writes about Connor Halliday.
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• Around the Pac-12: The division races are the subject of this conference notebook. ... And this one. ... Not this one. ... This piece ranks the teams. ... Washington: Since OSU coach Mike Riley decided to go for two points against the Huskies last year, the fortunes of the two teams have gone opposite ways. Though Keith Price probably won't have anything to do with this season's matchup. ... Oregon State: The Beavers will try to arrest the downhill slide during the final two games. ... Oregon: The Ducks are better than USC and have been able to entice recruits away from the Trojans as well. ... This is the best read of the day. Don't miss it. It's about how hard it is for an Oregon student to attend a Duck football game. A college football game. ... California: Former Bears coach and quarterback Joe Kapp – saw him do the former; too young for the latter – passes along wisdom through his son. What can he say to Sean Cattouse? ... Stanford: Only one team has torched the Cardinal defense. And Andrew Luck couldn't answer. ... Colorado: The Buffs think they can snap their road losing streak this week. ... Utah: The Utes are still alive in the South because they never stopped playing hard. ... USC: Matt Barkley respects the Ducks. ... UCLA: The family aspect of the Colorado game cannot be ignored. ... The Bruins' basketball team is struggling right now. ... Arizona State: This family has played a big part in this rivalry – on both sides. ...The Sun Devils' suddenly leaky pass defense is in for another test. ... Arizona: At least the Wildcats are shooting high in the coaching search. And being shot down.
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• That's it for this morning. We'll be back after the Cougars practice tonight. Until then ...
