Once again, we're Sure Happy It's Tuesday! We'll have plenty of analysis to report heading into the matchup this week with the #4 ranked Oregon Ducks. Experts have the Ducks penciled in to not only win the Pac-12 North, but also to emerge as the Pac-12 champs after they win the conference playoff. But as Coach Corso would say, "Not so fast my friend..."
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First things first. If you subscribe to Pac-12 Networks, be sure to set your DVR for the Wazzu men's hoops season opener against Alcorn State. Tipoff is slated for 12noon PST. As if you aren't hungry enough for the guys to begin showing their basketball prowess, here's a nice story from Jamey Vinnick of CFC.com:
https://247sports.com/college/washington-state/Article/This-Week-in-WSU-hoops-a-good-chance-to-soar-high-and-start-2-0-174845902/ -
What is the biggest change for Wazzu hoops this season? Facts are facts. With the nightmare of last season mired in the catastrophic mess that was a pandemic plagued season now just a memory, there will be fans in the stands of Beasley Coliseum. Heck, the requirement of folks to wear a face diaper has been relaxed which should help the return to normalcy. The prospects are good that they will have plenty to cheer about in the coming months. Colton Clark put together a nice piece ahead of the season opener today:
https://www.nbcrightnow.com/sports/washington_state_university/well-have-a-lot-of-new-faces-washington-state-basketball-opens-anticipated-season-with-newcomers/article_9fd71344-2f4d-5198-920f-f8c3cd00dfb6.html -
Looking forward to Cougar football taking on the Ducks in Eugene Saturday night, here's a fun analysis of what to expect from Will Derting, one of the best linebackers to ever don a crimson and gray jersey. Jamey Vinick throws in his two cents on what we might see in Autzen Stadium to complete this prognostication:
https://247sports.com/college/washington-state/Article/WSU-football-at-Oregon-The-Early-Glimpse-with-Will-Derting-174342812/ -
As one who occasionally enjoys Dawgpiling, here's a detailed account of why UW head coach Jimmy Lake won't be on the sidelines directing the play of his team. It's a sad situation for Husky fans...who deserve sympathy equal to their understanding with the Coach Rolovich issue that led to his firing.
https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/washington-coach-jimmy-lake-suspended-after-getting-physical-with-player-in-loss-to-rival-oregon/
Go Cougs!!!
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It's somewhat strange to discuss who will be the next head coach of Cougar football when the interim guy is doing a good job thus far. When a credible expert speaks to the issue of who will be the guy running Wazzu football next season, well, he warrants consideration. Here's his take on things:
https://sports.mynorthwest.com/1525555/who-next-wsu-coach-candidates-both-sidelines/
- It seems fitting to put together a list of coaches who branch off of the Mike Leach coaching tree. Perspective on his football genius can easily be determined by a cursory glance:
Dave Aranda/Baylor head coach – Graduate assistant coach under Leach from 2000-02 at Texas Tech
Neal Brown/West Virginia head coach – Played under Leach in 1998 when Leach was offensive coordinator at Kentucky
Sonny Cumbie/Louisiana Tech head coach – Played under Leach at Texas Tech from 2000-03 and later served as a graduate assistant coach under Leach
Sonny Dykes/TCU head coach – Coached wide receivers and later was the co-offensive coordinator at Texas Tech under Leach from 2000-06
Josh Heupel/Tennessee head coach – Played under Leach at Oklahoma in 1999 when Leach was the offensive coordinator for the Sooners
Dana Holgorsen/Houston head coach – Coached alongside Leach as assistants at Valdosta State from 1993-95, then served as a wide receivers coach and offensive coordinator under Leach from ...
- The news of former WSU Coach Mike Leach passing at the young age of 61 is very, very sad. I had the pleasure of writing about the Cougs when Leach was at the helm. To say that he was a unique person doesn't begin to describe the multi-faceted dimension of the man.
In terms of coaching football, Leach led his teams in a way that had most other coaches scratching their heads. His offensive creativity gave a multitude of defensive coordinators ulcers. To say that his techniques for molding student-athletes into football players were unusual would be accurate. Making guys run sprints in a sand pit named "Leach Beach" is a prime example. Crazy as that sounds, his players had fewer ankle injuries over the course of the season than any team in football. Only Mike Leach could get players to hit the beach. And if you look at the coaching tree that branches out from Leach, you'd find a myriad of men who owe him for their start in the profession.
When you examine the way Leach represented the schools ...
- Close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades, so Wazzu's loss yesterday to UNLV by a score of 74-70 was just that, a loss. However, there were plenty of reasons to applaud both the performance and the progress the Cougs are making over the past few games. Let's get the bad observation out of the way. WSU turned the ball over a ridiculous 22 times. No one is going to beat many teams with such wreckless play, especially against a team that posted a 9-0 record going into the contest. Some of those errors might be attributed to Coach Kyle Smith going with a different lineup almost every game because of player injuries. Facts are facts and when there isn't a steady lineup, players struggle to play team ball. On the bright side, Wazzu shot a respectable 54.2% from the field, coupled with a very nice 56.5% from behind the arc. On defense, WSU held UNLV to just 30.4% from behind the arc and 50.9% overall. The Cougs outrebounded the Rebels by a margin of 33-20. Despite being down by ...
