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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

2

Minute Drill

Jacob Thorpe’S Keys To A Possible Washington State Victory Over Colorado State Today:

1 Pass, pass and pass again. Colorado State ranks No. 101 in the country in opposing quarterback passer rating, giving up an average rating of 146.05 to opposing signal callers. The Rams also rank near the bottom of all FBS teams in opponents total passing yards and yards per attempt. It’s the perfect situation for quarterback Connor Halliday to have a field day in the pass-heavy Air Raid offense.

2 Sub often. Albuquerque’s elevation is more than a mile high at 5,312 feet, more than twice that of Washington State’s. The Rams come from mountainous Colorado, and are used to training at elevation in Fort Collins, which is just more than 5,000 feet above sea level. It is likely that CSU’s players won’t be as affected by the thinner air, and WSU will have to compensate by rotation players more often.

3 Keep Kapri Bibbs in check. The Cougars have experience against tough running backs, having already gone against All-Americans in Arizona’s Ka’Deem Carey and Washington’s Bishop Sankey. But they haven’t played anyone with a penchant for scoring like Bibbs, who is second in the country with 28 rushing touchdowns, at least 10 more than either Carey or Sankey.

4 Hold on to the football. Only 22 teams have collected more fumbles this season than CSU, while the Cougars have given up the football nine times already this season, 63rd in the country. Losing the ball in WSU territory would put Bibbs and company in perfect position to pile up points, and something the Cougars must avoid to win the game.

  Follow WSU reporter Jacob Thorpe

  on Twitter @jacobthorpesr