A Grip on Sports: It may not look all that bumpy but Washington State’s road to an 11-1 football season has some hidden potholes

A GRIP ON SPORTS • There is the expected. And the un, as in the un-cola (7-Up), the un-tied (as in your 7-year-olds’ shoes) and the un-expected (as in Washington State’s final four football games). The last one cited might be tougher than originally thought.

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• The Cougars begin their stretch run tonight by hosting seemingly woeful – sporting a 2-6 record that would trend toward confirming the declaration – Utah State. Jake Dickert’s team is a 20.5-point favorite. Everyone in Pullman tonight – the game kicks at 7:30 on The CW – wearing a Cougar sweatshirt and jacket – it should be in the low 40s – is expecting a fun night of touchdowns, celebrations and playoff talk.

Could happen. Heck, should happen. But, despite a slew of injuries and off-field issues, the Aggies come to the Palouse actually playing better. In fact, they come touting a win in their last game.

OK, it came at the expense of Wyoming, who has as many losses as any team in the Mountain West. And the 27-25 decision came on a last-second field goal. But a win is a win, right?

That’s probably the sentiment right now among Cougar fans. A win is a win, and four more of them means their team is 11-1 and has to be reckoned with come time to pick the expanded 12-team playoff field. Getting there, though, might have a pothole or two that weren’t in the road a week ago, as 7-1 WSU took its much-needed breather.

Earning a home win against Utah State should happen tonight, even if the spread is a bit wide. Then the road beckons. New Mexico, which seemed a pushover not that long ago. Oregon State in the unofficial Pac-12 title game. Back home for Wyoming, as much of a sure thing in today’s circumstances as the Cougs could ask for.

The potholes? Well, the Lobos looked as tough last night on San Diego State’s sand-filled turf as the Cougars did a couple weeks ago – if not better. Overcoming a field that looked more like better suited for the Mojave Desert than America’s most temperate city, UNM started fast, took a long breather but scored late to hand the Aztecs a 21-16 defeat. That paralleled WSU’s 29-26 victory in San Diego pre-bye week.

Then there is the Beavers, who may have a new-look on offense this week and a few of its injured defenders back. Plus, Corvallis. Pac-12 bragging rights. All that.

The Cougar faithful are riding high today. As they should be. But no school in America epitomizes the intelligence of the biblical admonition, pride cometh before the fall, better over the years than Washington State. I like to think the word excess kicks off the original text, which is why I am cautious today.

It’s OK to take pride in the Cougars season. To celebrate the 21st-spot in the CFP committee’s first rankings. To dream of a chance to lace it up against the schools that threw you to the side of the road. But don’t get over your newly waxed skis. Take each mogul as it comes. It will make the ride a little slower, but a lot smoother.

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WSU: Greg Woods previews tonight’s game, pointing out how porous the Aggies’ defense has been. … He also shares the three keys to the game in his 2-minute drill and makes his pick. His thoughts seem to parallel mine. The Cougars will win but it will be closer than anticipated. … The score at halftime in Beasley Coliseum on Friday night was a little closer than probably new coach David Riley wanted. But the second half was almost all Cougs, as Riley’s team got hot and ran away from Bradley, winning 91-74. Greg has that story as well. … USWNT star Trinity Rodman spent time at WSU during the pandemic, though never had a chance to play for the soccer team. Maybe that’s when she began developing her signature move. … Elsewhere in the (new and old) Pac-12, the Mountain West and the nation, Jon Wilner answers questions in the S-R this morning. … John Canzano looks at tonight’s rivalry in Salt Lake City and answers some Pac-12 questions. … If you thought the House decision would end the NCAA’s legal issues, think again. There will be more lawsuits like this one from Vanderbilt’s quarterback. … What are the best games today to watch on TV? … Oregon State has to win two of its final four games to become bowl eligible. Today’s home game with San Jose State – in a similar bowl boat – would be a big step in that regard. … Washington heads to Happy Valley where the Penn State faithful will all wear white shirts. Maybe the Huskies can have them waving them in the fourth quarter. … Oregon should be able to try everything in its playbook today against a Maryland team that isn’t stout defensively. The Ducks may also just keep much under wraps. … Colorado won’t do that today at Texas Tech. The Buffs need to keep winning if they want to have a Big 12 title shot. … There are few rivalries that have more fire than the one between Utah and No. 9 BYU. The host Utes try to play spoiler today. … It’s boss vs. mentor in today’s Arizona State game against UCF. … The weekend began last night with California racing out to a big lead at Wake Forest. Did the Bears lose? Nope. They held on 46-36 for their first ACC win. … UCLA also posted a season-first last night, winning in the Rose Bowl. The Bruins pushed around Iowa and won 20-17. … In the Mountain West, Nevada makes its final conference visit to No. 12 Boise State today. … Hawaii hosts UNLV tonight. … Air Force travels to Fresno State for a late game. … If Wyoming wants to improve, it must keep players in Laramie. … Recruiting never stops. Ask Colorado State. The Rams have a bye this week. … In basketball news, the Oregon State women lost a season opener for the first time in almost 30 years. Colorado State took down the Beavers. … The OSU men are off to a 2-0 start after topping Weber State at home. … Oregon won again as Nathan Bittle led the way against visiting Montana. … Washington’s biggest player is healthy once more.

Gonzaga: Around the WCC, Arizona State plays at Gonzaga on Sunday. The Sun Devils tuned up by holding off Santa Clara in Henderson, Nev. … Former USF basketball coach Todd Golden is in some hot water at Florida and it has nothing to do with wins and losses. … Pacific picked up a win, topping San Jose State in the Rainbow Classic.

EWU: The Eagles are headed for another losing season. But so is Northern Colorado, today’s host. And the Bears have yet to win in Greeley. As Dan Thompson points out, it is a golden opportunity for Eastern to pick up their second conference win. … Elsewhere in the Big Sky, the game of the day pits seventh-ranked Montana against fourth-ranked UC Davis in Missoula. … When playing No. 2-ranked Montana State, having injuries does not help Sacramento State’s upset chances. … It has been a while since Idaho State has won at Weber State. … In basketball news, Sacramento State lost at Fresno State. … Montana State battled Wisconsin on the road in a season-opening loss Thursday.

Idaho: The Vandals are also on the road, having taken the six-hour bus ride to Portland to face PSU. Peter Harriman has three things for us to watch. We add a fourth. UI is on the razor’s edge concerning the FCS playoffs. If it loses a game like this, against a much-improved but still underrated nationally Viking team, it gives the selection committee a chance to take another Midwest school instead.

Preps: Sure, the first week of the postseason isn’t actually considered part of the State football playoffs. But the WIAA picks the opponents, which seems to indicate the round of 32 games are at least unofficially part of them. Mead was given a tough home task last night, facing the Big Nine runner-up Eastmont. Dave Nichols was at Union Stadium to document the Panthers’ 31-10 victory that ended Eastmont’s season and moved Mead into the 4A’s official tournament. … Dave also put together this roundup of the other action Friday night.

Chiefs: Spokane was on the road last night, in Kamloops, where the Chiefs opened a two-goal lead. And stopped scoring. The final? Kamloops took a 4-2 win.

Velocity: After a first-round win, Spokane is playing with house money. Will the Velocity go all-in today in Madison, Wisc., facing the USL Super League’s third seed, Forward Madison FC, with a berth in the league’s final match on the line? Justin Reed has this preview of the semifinal match.

Mariners: There is a Gold Glove defensive award for each position. And then a Platinum one for each league, signifying the best defender the National and American leagues have. Cal Raleigh won the latter yesterday, become the first catcher to take the American League award. … Who will play first base next season for the M’s? Any position preview starts with Luke Raley.

Seahawks: We said this yesterday. There are always grades. Even semester ones. Bob Condotta’s grade book ran on the S-R site today. … Veteran’s Day is Monday. Mike Macdonald knows all about that.

Kraken: After adding a scorer to the roster, Seattle handled Las Vegas in overtime.  

Sounders: With top-seed LAFC’s 1-0 win over Vancouver last night, Seattle learned its Western Conference semifinal opponent. It will be a challenge.

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• A busy weekend for us. We will return tonight with a late TV Take from the WSU football game. Then back at it with this column tomorrow morning before gearing up for another TV Take, this one from Gonzaga’s noon visit to Stanford. That game will be televised by ESPN2, the beginning of a women’s tripleheader on the network. Until then …