Wildcats Beat Cougars In A No-Brainer Mental Errors By WSU Players, Freshman Qb Propel Arizona To Pac-10 Win
Washington State lost a heartbreaker between its ears.
Arizona, fueled by the Cougars’ mental mistakes and inspired by indomitable quarterback Keith Smith, pulled away from WSU in the fourth quarter for a 34-26 victory before 47,405 in Arizona Stadium.
“We aren’t the disciplined team we need to be to be a championship team,” coach Mike Price said.
The Wildcats won it in the final 6 minutes, and Smith was the hero.
With 5:45 left and the score knotted 20-20, Smith pulled a poor man’s Gale Sayers, smartly eluding three attempted tackles on a 19-yard adventure that ended with the second-year freshman stumbling over the goal line like a Ferrari running on fumes.
“We thought we could stay in our lanes better (in defensing Smith),” linebacker James Darling said. “He’s one of the fastest players we’ve seen - quarterbacks or anyone else.”
Smith’s go-ahead run didn’t come without an assist.
WSU gave the Wildcats a 15-yard head start on the drive - Kenny Moore was flagged for a personal foul after shoving punt returner Richard Dice into the Arizona bench. The contact occurred just as Dice angled for the sideline.
It wouldn’t be the last time a mental error cost the Cougars.
WSU quarterback Ryan Leaf, as if taking Smith’s heroic run as a personal affront, quickly led the Cougars on a five-play drive to the Arizona 13.
That’s where another mental mistake - this one in the execution of WSU’s pass-protection scheme - robbed the Cougars of a chance to pull even at 27.
As Leaf searched the end zone for a receiver on second-and-12 with 3:09 remaining, Arizona linebacker Armon Williams found a way around WSU’s offensive front.
Leaf never saw what hit him. The ball flew toward the right hashmark, where linebacker Chris Burnett picked it up and ran to the Arizona 41.
“That’s the kind of discipline that killed us,” Price said, alluding to the missed block on Williams. “One of our guys went the wrong way.
“We had maximum protection - we only had two receivers out (running patterns). But it isn’t max protection when a guy goes the wrong way.”
Arizona ran the clock down to 1:12 before stretching its lead to 34-20 on Chris McAlister’s 37-yard interception return.
The loss added to WSU’s frustration against Arizona - the Cougars have now lost four straight close games to the Wildcats.
It also spoiled several great individual efforts for WSU:
Leaf completed 22 of 37 passes for 348 yards and two scores.
Receiver Shawn McWashington, limited in recent games by an ankle injury, made several critical catches.
Receiver Shawn Tims, overlooked during a 3-1 start, became Leaf’s go-to receiver at times.
Defensive tackle Gary Holmes dominated whomever the Wildcats sent his way.
Placekicker Tony Truant booted a career-long 53-yard field goal to tie it at 17 and give the Cougars a needed boost.
The loss was additionally frustrating considering WSU essentially spotted the Wildcats a 14-0 lead.
It began after Arizona’s first drive stalled near midfield and the Wildcats downed Matt Peyton’s punt at the WSU 1.
The Cougars ended up punting from their own 14, again giving Arizona possession near midfield. This time, the Wildcats would make WSU pay.
Arizona’s Smith, whose track-certified speed seemed to surprise the Cougars on the game’s initial series, led a five-play scoring drive when given a second chance.
He completed passes of 14 and 23 yards on the 52-yard drive, ending it with a 9-yard run that made it 7-0 with 8:36 left in the first quarter.
WSU’s second drive stalled with Burnett sacking Leaf. Trung Canidate doubled the Wildcats’ lead on the next play, blocking Jeff Banks’ punt and taking it for a TD.
Arizona shut down WSU running back Michael Black, who gained just 16 yards before leaving for good with a sprained right ankle.
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