Home cooking could use spice

PULLMAN – Bill Doba has been known to play along with a joke or two, so when he was asked Thursday if he knew where his Washington State University team would be playing Saturday, he fell right in line.

“What stadium is that?” Doba asked.

Martin Stadium, coach.

“Oh, where is that? Is that located in Pullman?” he replied.

Yup.

“Oh. We did open there,” Doba said. “But it seems like a year ago.”

Actually, it’s been 36 days since the Cougars played a legitimate home game – 37 by the time WSU takes the field against Stanford. The Cougars (3-1, 0-1 Pacific-10 Conference) last showed their stuff at Martin Stadium on Sept. 1 in the season opener, a 38-26 win against Idaho.

So it would make sense that after playing one game in Seattle and two more on the road, especially after last week’s heartbreaking loss at Oregon State, the Cougars should be ready to pounce on any opponent.

Or maybe not.

Going back to the start of the 1999 season, WSU is a pedestrian 12-12 at home against conference opponents. That mark is better than one other team in the league – Arizona. By comparison, the Beavers have posted a 19-7 mark at Reser Stadium in the same span, the best mark in the conference. On the road, the Cougars have gone 13-12, so, at least by the numbers, they’re actually better off when they’re on someone else’s turf.

Still, ask any player or coach and he’ll say it’s thrilling to be back in the cozy confines of Martin Stadium.

“It always feels good to come home and play in front of our crowd,” defensive line coach Mike Walker said. “Our guys are already talking about how loud it’s going to be and how much fun it’s going to be.”

But point out the records, and they all pause for a moment of disbelief before searching for answers.

“We don’t really have the most conducive stadium for crowd noise, but it does get loud,” said tight end Troy Bienemann, gesturing toward the stands, which at a capacity of 35,117 make for the smallest stadium in the conference.

One doesn’t have to look back too far to see WSU’s struggles. Last season, the Cougars were 1-3 in the Pac-10 at Martin Stadium, blowing a big lead against Oregon, losing to a subpar Stanford team and getting beaten up by USC. (The win, Cougars fans will recall, came against a 1-10 Washington team.)

Another look at the last six years will reveal that 2004’s home-field hardship was the first in some time. From 2001-03 the Cougars won 30 games overall and went 10-2 at home in the Pac-10. In 1999, 2000 and 2004, with just 12 wins overall, they went 2-10.

All of which led Doba to conclude: “It’s not the field or the stadium, it’s the players. Or their players. One of the two.”

So even if Martin Stadium doesn’t give WSU any apparent edge, the team’s record at home against Stanford, UCLA, Arizona State and Oregon could be a good one – if the Cougars themselves are a good team. That remains to be seen.

“You’d like to win at home, I’ll put it that way. I think that’s important,” Doba said. “(But) I just want to win, period. On the road and at home.”

Notes

Wide receiver Jason Hill, the Cougars’ most dangerous weapon on offense, did some light running, his first activity in practice since bruising a quadriceps at Oregon State. Hill didn’t go at full speed, and Doba said the wideout’s availability would be a game-time decision. … The same can be said for fellow wideout Chris Jordan, who sat out again with a sore hip flexor and a sore knee. … The Cougars will have one reserve defensive end back in Lance Broadus, who missed last week’s game with a groin strain. Another, Adam West, will be out for at least two more weeks because of a concussion. … Freshman Greg Trent will be the starter at middle linebacker as expected after the loss of Will Derting to a knee injury. Freshman Jason Stripling and junior Chris Baltzer should also see time at that spot.