Cougars excited for Boise, but not necessarily for blue turf

PULLMAN—Washington State’s coach may not be excited about spending the week watching film of Boise State playing on its hallmark blue turf, but his concern for his own eyes pales in comparison to his compassion for his fowl friends.

“I think animal rights groups better keep an eye on it so ducks don’t break their necks from trying to dive in,” the coach joked on Monday.

Some of the Cougars seem pretty excited about the novelty of playing on a football field that is not green.

“As a kid, you always watched them and were like “oh, I want to play on the blue turf!” said running back Jamal Morrow.

While Leach got in a shot or two at Boise State’s unorthodox take on the concept of “Blue Grass,” he did show some deference to Boise State’s tradition. The Broncos posted undefeated seasons in 2006 and 2009 under current Washington coach Chris Petersen, and have a 22-6 record under third-year head coach Bryan Harsin.

“It’s a place that’s gotten kind of well-known to play because of some of their success, so we’re looking forward to the opportunity to go there,” Leach said. “The one that I remember first was Pokey Allen. A lot of different coaches. Some of those guys who do well at Boise, some of those guys I bet wish they’d stay there.”

However, Leach does not expect what should be a hostile crowd to affect his team, hinting that with the exception of “quiet” Stanford, crowd noise tends to blend together.

“I don’t think I’m going to get shot or anything,” Leach said.