Both Wazzu men's and women's hoops notched victories this past Wednesday. The men turned in a very nice performance against Northern Kentucky at home in Beasley Coliseum by a final of 68-47. The Cougs got off to a good start and never looked back against the Norse. However, it must be pointed out that Northern Kentucky is a powerhouse program within the Horizon League. There's little argument to be made that the Horizon League is comparable to the Pac-12. But a win is a win and WSU looked good in the process despite missing the services of Jabe Mullins for a second straight game due to injury. As for the women, well, they got off to a terrible start against Portland. Early on the Cougs trailed by 27-8 to the Pilots, a team that has dominated Wazzu over the years. For the record, Wazzu has never come back from a 19-point deficit to win a ball game. Erase that record as WSU fought their way back to earn a 69-63 victory. In the end, a balanced scoring attack brought Wazzu all the way back from the brink of disaster.
Next up for the men will be a trip to Las Vegas on Saturday where they will take on UNLV in the opening round of the Las Vegas Clash tournament. Tipoff is set for 12:30pm and the game will be telecast on FS1. Wazzu women will travel to Seattle where they will take on Washington in a conference battle that will be broadcast on the Pac-12 Network beginning at 2pm.
https://wsucougars.com/news/2022/12/7/womens-basketball-cougs-score-the-programs-largest-comeback-win-in-69-63-victory-at-portland.aspx

So with the vocal lamenting exuded over players entering the transfer portal, thinking that lack both loyalty and character, as the saying goes, "it is what it is." It would be nice if recruiting student-athletes would be a matter of sitting down in their living rooms and talking about why they should choose Washington State. Those days are gone, just like many players lured away from Pullman by the combination of money and playing time. Here's a comment by former Coug player Robbie Tobeck given to Cougfan.com: "If every season-ticket holder jumped onto our 1890 Club at just the minimum, $18.90 per month, we’d have over $3 million in our collective. At that point, Jake Dickert would be able to sit down with any recruit and assure them and their parents we will be able to provide all the opportunities anyone in the Pac-12 can. And every coach will tell you now that every recruit, and every recruit’s parents, bring up NIL and what the opportunities are. That’s just part of recruiting now." Why did Tobeck set the goal at $3million? That's pretty much what it's going to take if Wazzu is going to be able to compete with other schools for recruits. In real-world terms, that translates to about $36,000 per football and basketball player. That's the new territory we're talking about. A college education, room/board, and a pretty nice annual income for a student-athlete. Certainly, that's a much different situation than just five years ago before NIL became the law of the land. And if you're hoping this NIL situation will be repealed or simply go away, not very likely. The supreme court has already ruled in favor of NIL by a vote of 9-0.
Don't be surprised if you begin getting email and snail mail solicitations to join the 1890 Club. Seems somewhat ironic that the 1890 Club moniker includes the year Washington State was founded. Thoughts?