HIGHS AND LOWS
High point of the game
With a little less than 10 minutes left, WSU led by just six, 13-7 and squandered some prime scoring opportunities. But Alex Brink led the Cougars into UCLA territory, throwing a big fist pump after a 21-yard third-down completion to the Bruin 20. Two Dwight Tardy runs later, they were at the 5. Brink rolled right, bought time and Brandon Gibson came free in the end zone. Brink found him, the Cougars led 20-7 with 7:31 left and their first Pac-10 win of the year was all but assured.
Low point of the game
It would be easy to choose Kahlil Bell’s 50-yard touchdown run on the game’s third play, but we’ll pick the drive that came up empty at the end of the third quarter. The Cougars had marched from inside their territory to the UCLA 2, where they had a second and one. Kevin McCall picked up a first down with a 1-yard run then, in order, a Brink quarterback sneak, a McCall run and another McCall run came up empty. Then Kevin Brown broke through the middle of the line and blocked Romeen Abdollmohammadi’s 18-yard field goal attempt. The almost 4-minute drive came up empty.
A pat on the back
The WSU defense has suffered through one of the toughest seasons in recent memory, but Saturday it played like the teams of the early ‘90s. Call it Posse-lite. Bill Doba and Leon Burtnett have fashioned a 3-4 front that utilizes six and seven-man attacks to apply unrelenting pressure. But the biggest improvement has occurred in the secondary, where corners Devin Giles and Chima Nwachukwu, along with safeties Husain Abdullah and Xavier Hicks, are also playing more aggressively. That aggression has squeezed the passing lanes that were as wide as Interstate 90 earlier in the season.
Needs fixing
OK, we’ll pick on the pooch kickoff after the Cougars’ first touchdown. The idea was to get the Bruins on one side of the field by formation, then pooch the ball back across the field and possibly beat out-numbered UCLA to the ball. The only problem was Wade Penner’s kick was too strong and sailed out-of-bounds, setting up UCLA in good field position.
Three unanswered questions
“Can the offensive line continue to dominate? The Cougars have always matched up well with UCLA’s defensive schemes but there is no reason to think WSU can’t run on Cal this week.
“Has the defense turned a corner? Again, matchups are so important. Up next is a Cal team with the Pac-10’s best receiver, DeSean Jackson, who can make a defense pay if it is too aggressive. The game plan for Saturday will be interesting.
“Is the heat off? As Doba said, “this is just one game, guys, and we still have four games to go.” But the one win, against the Pac-10’s co-leader, does build confidence.
Vince Grippi