The Washington State Cougars took the field every Saturday last season knowing that it was going to be a likely blowout and they would be on the wrong end of things. Head coach Paul Wulff took over a program in disarray in 2008 and has battled players with injuries and off the field issues. The 2010 squad looks much stronger as Wazzou continues to build up their team that was completely torn down two years ago. Odds are listed at +3000 for Washington State winning the Pac 10. View the full conference breakdown in our 2010 Pac 10 football predictions article.
The Cougs struggled to move the ball in any fashion last year, rushing for just 71 yards per game. Losing Cal transfer James Montgomery in week 3 hurt the running game more than anyone could have imaged. Montgomery was coming off a 100 yard game against Hawaii before the injury occurred. He is back 100% healthy and will solidify the ground game in 2010. The QB situation was a complete mess as three were used because of injuries. Sophomore Jeff Tuel will get a shot as the full time starter after throwing for a freshman school record 354 yards against Cal before being injured. Marshall Lobbestael will battle David Gilbertson for the backup job. Hopefully the Cougs do not have to use emergency quarterback Dan Wagner (backup punter) again this year. The wide receiver position looks to be one of the stronger points on this team. Jared Karstetter returns after snagging 38 balls for six touchdowns. He will be joined out wide by Gino Simone (36 catches) and senior Jeffrey Solomon. The offensive line lost their best player in C Kenny Alfred, but do get three starters back from a unit that allowed a whopping 53 sacks. There is only room for improvement up front and Wulff likely spent much of the off-season working with this group.
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On defense, Wazzou really had no chance because the offense was putting them on the field at a rapid rate. The Cougars were depleted by injuries on this side of the ball also and put up awful numbers. Opposing offenses had career offensive outputs against Washington state, piling up over 500 yards of total offense/game and nearly 40 points. Seven starters return looking to make the past two years a distant memory. The defensive line is deep and much more talented than last year. Sophomore Travis Long played in the trenches as an undersized end and collected 47 tackles including 4.5 behind the line of scrimmage. Rushing yards shouldn't be as easy to come by with a healthier and stronger front four. The three linebackers that round out the front seven have gained valuable experience also. Alex Hoffman-Ellis led the team in tackles with 84. Myron Beck was used as the fourth linebacker last season, but will get the start at outside linebacker. The secondary allowed nearly 67% of passes to be completed in 09'. They must replace a key player in safety Xavier Hicks, but Aire Justin and Daniel Simmons move into starting roles at corner after being in the two deep last year.
The measuring stick will be out when Wazzou plays at Oklahoma State in the opener. SMU and Montana State are their other two non conference games. The Pac 10 is more wide open than previous years with the sanctions on USC and Oregon losing their starting quarterback. They won't come close to challenging for a conference crown, but the Cougars will play in tighter games this season. I believe they finish 3-9 with a few close losses.
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