Mike Sando

It's a brutal week for the Pac-10, with member teams playing road games against Miami, North Carolina, Texas and Nevada. Point spreads (in parenthesis) are for entertainment purposes only. Saturday's game Arizona (-29) at UAB No joke: Arizona was ranked 15th in nation by Sports Illustrated in its preview issue. Joke: Dick Tomey reminds Wildcats that "there is no i in overrated." The pick: Wildcats 28, Blazers 10

Washington State University quarterback Ryan Leaf drops back to pass. Receiver Shawn McWashington comes open over the middle. Leaf throws. Out of nowhere, here comes USC cornerback Daylon McCutcheon. The pass is intercepted. The Trojans win. McCutcheon raises his arms in a triumphant pose. Not to worry, WSU fans. It's only a video game. "We just got this new game, it's NCAA College Football," McCutcheon said Wednesday, three days before his 23rd-ranked Trojans play the Cougars in Los Angeles. "It's fun, just because you know different guys that play on different teams."

Football coaches love bye weeks for fairly obvious reasons. Injuries heal. Game plans are honed. It's finally possible to sleep in on a Saturday morning, maybe even past 5. Players aren't always sympathetic. A weekend off sounds cool at first, but they get antsy. "I hate bye weeks," Washington State junior quarterback Ryan Leaf said Tuesday. "It's fun watching college football, but I can't sit there and watch it that long because I want to be playing."

Mark Smaha, WSU trainer

UW hopes to be headed for success behind Rashaan Shehee, who had 171 yards. Photo by Associated Press

Washington's Jerome Pathon (24) celebrates a first-quarter touchdown as Fred Coleman (22) closes in. Photo by Associated Press

Jim Lambright and the University of Washington coaching staff strode into the hotel lobby and quickly found the front desk. "You're from Washington State?" the youngish-looking clerk asked innocently.

Ryan Leaf's clutch throws helped WSU hold off UCLA. Photo by Dan Pelle/The Spokesman-Review

Arizona and Oregon provide what should be an entertaining undercard for this weekend's games involving the Pac-10's true heavyweights. Point spreads (in parenthesis) are for entertainment purposes only. TONIGHT'S GAME Arizona (-3) at Oregon Time/TV: 7:30, Fox Northwest. Oregon defense lines up 1 yard off field. The pick: Wildcats 30, Ducks 17. SATURDAY'S GAMES No. 4 Washington (-7) at No. 19 BYU Time/TV: 12:30, ABC. Rashaan Shehee takes Husky offense to another level (balcony?). The pick: Huskies 42, Cougars 24. California at Houston (-2) Time: 12:30 p.m. All one needs to know about Cal's defense is found on Page 18 of team media guide, where new coordinator Lyle Setencich lists favorite coaching moment as: "After a 7-yard run by our running back midway through my first season as head coach at Albany HS in 1973, realizing how much we had improved since start of the year." The pick: Cougars 30, Bears 27. North Texas at Oregon St. (-10-1/2) Time: 1 p.m. Beavers always tough at home in practice against scout team. The pick: Beavers 17, Eagles 13. San Jose State at No. 17 Stanford (-30) Time: 12:30 p.m. Sgt. Willingham makes troops run wind sprints after "unacceptable" fourth-quarter lapse leads to San Jose field goal. The pick: Cardinal 48, Spartans 3. No. 3 Tennessee (-14) at UCLA Time: 12:30 p.m. Bob Toledo and Rich Kotite never seen in same room. Coincidence? The pick: Volunteers 48, Bruins 17. No. 5 Florida St. (-13-1/2) at No. 23 USC Time/TV: 5 p.m., ABC. Fox on hand to shoot upcoming episode of "C.O.P.S." The pick: Seminoles 28, Trojans 21. Last week: 2-0; Year-to-date: 2-0 League Overall W L PF PA W L WSU 1 0 37 34 1 0 Arizona St. 0 0 0 0 1 0 Arizona 0 0 0 0 0 0 California 0 0 0 0 0 0 Oregon 0 0 0 0 0 0 Oregon St. 0 0 0 0 0 0 Stanford 0 0 0 0 0 0 USC 0 0 0 0 0 0 Washington 0 0 0 0 0 0 UCLA 0 1 34 37 0 1

Michael Black escapes the clutches of UCLA's Larry Atkins. Photo by Colin Mulvany/The Spokesman-Review

1. Washington State University quarterback Ryan Leaf helps the Cougars go on an early fall fling by completing 17 or 30 passes for 381 yards and three touchdowns. Photo by Craig Buck/The Spokesman-Review 2. Washington State's Dorian Boose takes on UCLA's Danny Farmer after recovering a fumble. Photo by Colin Mulvany/The Spokesman-Review 3. Nian Taylor celebrates WSU's final score of the first half for a 30-14 lead. Photo by Colin Mulvany/The Spokesman-Review 4. WSU's Todd Nelson tries to disarm UCLA quarterback Cade McNown, just missing a sack in the fourth quarter. Photo by Colin Mulvany/The Spokesman-Review 5. Washington State University defensive lineman Jesse Ratcliff celebrates a season-opening victory over UCLA by joining teammates and coach Mike Price in a rousing chorus of the Cougar fight song. Photo by Colin Mulvany/The Spokesman-Review (ran only in the Spokane edition) 6. UCLA's running back Skip Hicks found daylight early and often, rushing for 190 yards and four touchdowns on 27 carries. Photo by The Spokesman-Review (ran only in the Regional edition)

WSU coach Mike Price and the Cougars, defeated in last year's opener at Colorado, hope to get off on a positive note when the UCLA Bruins play at Pullman today. Photo by Bart Rayniak/The Spokesman-Review

1. Hicks in the mix. At 6-feet and more than 220 pounds, Skip Hicks has the size - and the moves - to produce another 1,000-yard season out of the Bruins' backfield. File/Associated Press 2. Hicks

Over on the weak side, away from the opposing tight end, Washington State senior linebacker Brandon Moore cannot contain his excitement. "We're going to be fast," marveled Moore, who will be the weak-side starter when the Cougars open their season Saturday at home against UCLA. "It's going to be a sight to see out at Martin Stadium - just a lot of flying around, getting after it." Over on the other side, Steve Gleason cannot wait for Saturday. This is his first season as the Cougars' starting strong-side linebacker, so it's only natural for the sophomore to feel a little anxiety.

The smiles become more reluctant, the eyes less forgiving, the upper lips a little tighter. It's game week. Finally. With five days remaining until Washington State's football opener against UCLA in Martin Stadium, the first misunderstanding has already been blown out of proportion. It happened Monday, when UCLA coach Bob Toledo made reference to something his WSU counterpart denied having said. Alas, the machines of motivation are working overtime. "If you talk to Mike Price, he's excited about his football team," Toledo told the Los Angeles media. "He thinks they're much like Arizona State a year ago." The Sun Devils, of course, sailed through the 1996 regular season with an 11-0 record and nearly defeated Ohio State in the Rose Bowl.

Reigning Pac-10 defensive player of the year Jason Chorak and his classmates like to pass on the reminder that they have stayed the course at Washington. File/Associated Press

Quarterback Ryan Leaf has learned to sidestep questions about his future to focus on the present at Washington State. Photo by Christopher Anderson/The Spokesman-Review

Forecasting the Pacific-10 Conference football champion usually seems easy, but getting it right has been elusive. USC was the consensus choice in 1996. The Trojans tied for fifth. Eventual champ Arizona State received casual preseason consideration, and even Bruce Snyder had to be surprised when the Sun Devils made it through the regular season undefeated.

Tackling was forbidden and the opposition was provided by the scout team, but Washington State football coach Mike Price was pleased nonetheless with the progress shown by his offense during Saturday morning's scrimmage. "When Drew Bledsoe was the quarterback here and we went to the Copper Bowl, we were behind by seven points against the scout team in the same mock scrimmage," Price said. "So believe me, I've seen it all.

Rob Meier stands 6-feet, 5-inches and weighs 249 pounds. Naturally, people want to know how he compensates for being such a runt. "The only way I'm compensating is coming off on the ball, trying to watch that ball," says Meier, the newest starting defensive tackle on Washington State's football team. "Because I'm 50 pounds lighter, I have to get the first hit in there."

Washington State's offensive line was eager to make a statement during what was to be the final full-contact football scrimmage before the Aug. 30 opener against UCLA. "Look out, Ryan!" had already been used, so the O-line was determined not to suffer a relapse of last weekend's debacle, in which quarterback Ryan Leaf was sacked six times.

Washington State's Michael Black is the leading returning rusher in the Pacific-10 Conference with 984 yards gained last season. Photo by Dan McComb/The Spokesman-Review

The ever-shrinking Washington State University basketball roster was reduced to 10 scholarship players Tuesday when the Cougars announced that prized recruit Ron Selleaze has given up basketball to support his struggling family in Oakland, Calif. Selleaze played at Fresno City College last season and was named most valuable player of his league. The 6-foot-6, 200-pound wing was expected to contribute immediately at WSU, probably as a starter. But Selleaze was forced to drop out of summer school at Oakland's Merritt College when unforeseen circumstances mandated that he seek employment and become the breadwinner for his extended family, WSU coach Kevin Eastman said. "We were hoping that things would work out as the summer went on, but he just can't afford to do it right now," Eastman said. "He's got more than just an immediate family to help out. Without getting into things that are really nobody's business, it's not just one person he's supporting and it's not just his family. There's some extended family there." With classes set to begin Monday at WSU, Eastman and his staff will be hard-pressed to find another player with skills even remotely comparable to those of Selleaze. According to a recent report in the Fresno Bee newspaper, Selleaze plans to re-enroll at Fresno City this fall and still wants to play basketball somewhere. But he will have only one year of eligibility remaining under NCAA rules, which require a player to complete his playing career within a five-year window. Selleaze played at Merritt immediately following high school, then sat out one season before playing at Fresno last year. WSU's loss of Selleaze comes only weeks after the departure of 6-6 wing Beau Archibald, who moved back to Utah after the death of his father. Archibald's departure had been expected for some time; Lynn Archibald, a prominent coach, had waged a public battle against cancer and his condition had deteriorated rapidly during last season. Selleaze's departure further puts Eastman's program in a difficult situation.

How dominant was Washington State's starting defense during Saturday morning's football scrimmage? Consider that starting quarterback Ryan Leaf was sacked six times en route to a 6-for-19 nightmare. "I didn't have any time, period," Leaf said. Consider that the first-string offense, playing without injured tailback Michael Black, ran the football five times out of 32 total plays - three times for no gain and twice for negative yardage.