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Following the conclusion of WSU’s spring football camp, the Cougs have started drawing attention from around the country. I had the opportunity to talk to Mitch Mason from the Three Technique Podcast, which covers all 138 FBS teams. Every spring, the Three Tech crew previews every conference in the country, and they recently broke down the rebuilt Pac-12. Mitch picked WSU to win the conference in its first season over preseason favorite Boise State Broncos football. I wanted to pick his brain about what he’s seeing from this WSU team from afar, while also learning more about some of the Cougs’ conference foes. Check out my conversation with Mitch linked below.
WSU is catching some attention for a few different reasons.
First and foremost, Washington State may have the toughest non-conference schedule in the country. The Cougs open the season with the Apple Cup in Seattle, followed by a road trip to Kansas State, before returning home to face Arizona after a matchup with FCS Duquesne. None of those teams are projected CFP contenders, but three Power Four matchups before conference play begins is a major challenge.
This isn’t too dissimilar to what the Cougs used to do back in the day, with some of WSU’s most famous upsets coming early in the season against powerhouse programs. If the Cougs can win two of those three marquee matchups, they’ll immediately enter the conversation for the Group of Six CFP spot.
Secondly, WSU’s defense has reloaded under Trent Bray. WSU had the 15th-ranked total defense in the country last season, but lost a swath of players to both graduation and the transfer portal, including departures to Iowa State. Still, the defense turned heads this offseason by bringing in Power Four talent with upside, adding experienced players from smaller programs, and putting together a strong spring performance.
Mitch pointed to some of the players WSU was able to acquire with experience that will be able to fit right into Bray’s system. “If you’re going to be an elite, a championship caliber defense, whether that be at the conference level or level or beyond, you’ve got to be able to stop the pass and you’ve got to have those guys that can lock down in the secondary. Jalen Thomas was the first guy that I highlighted coming in from San Jose State. Really impressive redshirt freshman season for the Spartans. Jaleel Tucker was, productive at Oregon State, kind of crossing the boundary there coming over from the Beavers”.
If the Cougs aren’t able to make some major splashes early, they should still have every opportunity to make noise once conference play begins. A Pac-12 champion with competitive losses against strong opponents could still remain firmly in the mix for that Group of Six CFP berth. All of this has created excitement and momentum around WSU heading into the season.
I absolutely cannot wait for the Apple Cup on Labor Day weekend and for WSU’s return home on September 19th. Even more exciting is hearing the national conversation around this program starting to build, something Coug fans aren’t always used to before a season begins.
Check out ALL of my spring content at The Win Or Lose Podcast Website, including interviews with Jamey Vinnick, Maxwell Woods, and the Three Technique Podcast. We also recapped the Crimson and Gray spring football game and chatted with Nick Garner about the NIL side of things.
Check out The Three Techniques full conference preview here:
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