Cougars commentary

SEATTLE – Stop playing the Apple Cup? Are you nuts?

Washington State football coach Jake Dickert, understandably hoping to channel the rage of his put-upon fanbase into action, lest it linger into apathy, has told them to show up Saturday in Seattle.

It does not matter that Portland State is not very good. What is important is that Washington State overpowered, ran past, and bullied the visiting Vikings during Saturday afternoon’s 70-30 shellacking.

Despite what my colleagues in the news section might tell you, historians will remember July 2024 for one reason: the return of the EA Sports college football video game.

SEATTLE – When the sun sets in Husky Stadium during an afternoon Apple Cup, its red glow bounces off the crimson-wearing Washington State University fans, of whom there are many, and creates a mirage seeming as if the entire building is full of nothing but Cougars. The fact they are loud heightens the illusion.

It’s funny what pressure can do. Diamonds or dust, either one.

Deion Sanders took the turf on Gesa Field for the first (and probably last) time Friday night, not looking like he was feeling anything close to his prime.

There was an upset in Berkeley, one that had nothing to do with the result on the field – though the way Washington State’s totally Pac-12 42-39 loss to host California played out was upsetting to any Cougar follower and those who hoped the conference’s last season wouldn’t be marred by officiating issues.

Early on Saturday night, Michael Bumpus expressed the thought Mother Nature was playing defense for both teams.