Fouch learns Apple appreciation

PULLMAN – Will blissful ignorance work for Ronnie Fouch?

The Washington quarterback, a redshirt freshman from Southern California, didn’t know much about the Apple Cup before he headed to Seattle. There isn’t much in the way of Cougar or Husky fever in Redlands.

Now he’s clued in.

“Talking with the older guys and watching as a redshirt last year, I’ve learned how much history and tradition there is in this game,” Fouch said this week. “How big of a game it is to both teams and the whole state. … Everybody in the state is rallying for their team and there is a lot of bragging rights with it.”

Fouch was forced to take over the Husky offense the fourth game of the season when Jake Locker went down with a hand injury against Stanford.

The freshman has had some decent games – 17 of 32 for 276 yards against Oregon State – and some poor ones – 7 of 22 for 39 with two interceptions in a 27-7 loss last week against UCLA.

“We couldn’t execute,” he said of the UCLA defeat that dropped UW to 0-10, 0-7 in the Pac-10. “We put ourselves in long third-down situations again, and any time you get in those situations it’s tough for our offensive coordinator to call a successful play.

“We need to bounce back and get this thing rolling this week. It’s my job to pick up the pace and pick up the enthusiasm this week.”

Now that he understands about the importance of the Apple Cup, Fouch may get to learn the difficulty of playing football in the cold. The forecast for Saturday calls for a high of 42 degrees, with showers and winds of about 10 mph.

“I’ve never been in that cold of weather before,” he said. “I’ve heard the games have been really cold. I’m prepared for it. I’ll bring as much cold gear as I can to try to stay warm on the sidelines and keep my arm warm. But I’ve never played in this type of cold weather before.”

Senior sendoff

Saturday will be the final Martin Stadium game for 19 WSU (1-10, 0-8) seniors, including such four-year standouts as Greg Trent and Brandon Gibson.

“I’ve tried to keep my head up and look forward to each and every game,” said Gibson, who is the Cougars’ career pass receiving yardage leader. “In the back of my mind I knew this would be the last one in Martin Stadium. … I never thought we would have a disappointing season. We’ve always been competitive since we’ve been here and we’ve always put up big numbers.

“It’s a little frustrating.”

“I admire him for the decision he made,” WSU coach Paul Wulff said about Gibson’s decision not to enter the NFL draft after his junior year. “He’s tried to do the right things all (year) and he’s naturally had some frustrations in his own performance at times and for the whole team.”

One senior who didn’t get to finish his last year on the field was quarterback Gary Rogers, who suffered a broken bone in his neck against Portland State.

Rogers, who began the season as the starter but was replaced by Kevin Lopina after the second game, revealed in a radio interview this week he’s petitioning the NCAA for a sixth season.

“I heard about it, but I haven’t talked with Gary about it,” Wulff said. “If he so chooses to pursue that, then we’re behind that at this point. We’ll see how that goes.”

Fast and furious

With both teams struggling and the chance of poor weather, Wulff would like to see his team get off to a quick start Saturday.

“I think it’s important we get on the scoreboard early, and/or first,” Wulff said. “I think it would be the same for both teams.”

It is for the visiting Huskies.

“We are already at a disadvantage playing away,” Fouch said. “We have to go in with the attitude we have to get off to a fast start.”

But the need to get going quickly doesn’t mean Wulff has already decided to take the ball if his team wins the coin flip.

“I don’t know yet,” Wulff said. “A lot’s going to depend on the weather conditions, the strength of the weather and the wind. … A lot of times those things are decided when you’re out there for pregame warmup.”

Imposing cougar

Driving down Stadium Way on Thursday took on a totally different tone. Look toward Martin Stadium from the north side and it’s easy to be startled.

Towering over the entrance is a new 11-foot tall bronze statue of a cougar, the centerpiece of the stadium’s east-end remodeling project.

The piece, donated by WSU alum Gary Schneidmiller and created by Spokane artists Mike and Chester Fields, was installed Thursday and will be dedicated Saturday at 10 a.m. Not only does it stand 11-4, it is 14-5 long and 6-4 wide.

Tickets remain

Even the intensity of a rivalry game hasn’t been enough to sell out Martin Stadium. As of Thursday morning 1,700 tickets remained unsold. WSU has yet to sell out 35,117 Martin Stadium this season.

There are even premium seats still available on after-market sites, including one reseller sending out an e-mail Wednesday saying the average price of their tickets was $37 and their seats five rows from the Husky bench were available for just $81.