Playing for pride
PULLMAN – There will be nothing special about December or January for Washington State University’s football team, not with six consecutive losses to open the Pacific-10 Conference season and not with a losing record a guarantee.
The 2005 season is already a disappointment, no matter what happens in the final two games of the year. But at the very least, the Cougars know they can salvage some pride with an upset win against an 8-1 Oregon team that comes to Martin Stadium today for a 7:15 p.m. kickoff with BCS bowl dreams still in reach.
“It’s been a really unusual year,” WSU head coach Bill Doba said. “We’ve made big plays, but not when we’ve really had to have them in the fourth quarter or right before the half. Or we’ve made some silly errors at times.”
No matter what the cause of the 3-6 season, WSU has one last shot tonight to make things look better before entering what is shaping up to be a historically awful Apple Cup matchup with a similarly winless Washington team in the conference.
It might not be easy as Oregon is coming off of a 27-20 overtime win over California last week and has this final road game before closing out against Oregon State at home.
For WSU quarterback Alex Brink, this is also a chance to play against his hometown team – the sophomore grew up in Eugene, Ore.
But with 14 starts already under his belt, including two at Oregon State, Brink said that seeing the Ducks on the other side of the field won’t be much different than any other game.
“It’s certainly fun to play against people I know and play against the team I watched growing up,” he said. “(But) we’re playing another Pac-10 team and trying to get a first Pac-10 win.”
With nothing to play for, it might seem possible that this Washington State team, even after bouncing back from one crushing defeat after another, might be ready to fold up the tent and start thinking about the off-season.
But Doba, although he and his coaching staff have struggled to push the right buttons on game day, insisted this week that his team will give Oregon its best shot, even if nothing better than a 5-6 final record lies ahead of it.
“I’ve always said that coaches lose games and players win them. And that’s the way we’re going to keep it around here,” he said. “I’d be surprised if we didn’t come out and play hard. These guys will play hard.”
Notes
Doba has said WSU will likely use more two-tight end sets with just four receivers on the roster who have significant experience. Three pass-catchers – Michael Bumpus, Brandon Gibson and Marty Martin – are all out this week. Martin is done for the year, and there’s a decent chance that the same can be said for Bumpus and Gibson. … Tight end Jesse Taylor is still out with minor nerve damage in his neck, and Doba said Taylor’s season is probably over. … This will be the Cougars’ second 7:15 p.m. kickoff this season and fourth at 7 p.m. or later. WSU is 2-1 in night games, having beaten Idaho and Nevada and lost to Cal.