Cougs Put Their Focus On Ducks Washington State’s Romp Over Boise State Has Very Little Effect On National Rankings
Upon careful review of the game tape, it would appear that Washington State dominated Boise State in Saturday’s non-conference football game in Martin Stadium.
Predictably, WSU coach Mike Price found little to fault in the Cougars’ 58-0 win, even if his team wasn’t rewarded by voters in either Top 25 poll.
WSU (4-0) remained No. 15 in the Associated Press writers poll and actually slipped a spot in the ESPN/USA Today coaches poll, from 14th to 15th.
LSU (3-1) was the beneficiary in the coaches poll, jumping over WSU on the strength of a 56-0 thumping of Akron.
Price, whose team moved up six spots in last week’s coaches poll despite a sloppy 35-22 victory over Illinois, wasted no energy trying to figure out the polls.
“It doesn’t bother me a bit,” Price said. “You know, there were several teams that were idle in the Top 25 and I don’t think anybody in front of us got beat. It’s just a couple of points here and there.”
Even a narrow victory at Oregon (3-1) this week would seem to carry more weight with voters than Saturday’s shellacking of a Boise State team that is 1-4 and going nowhere this season.
“In all honesty, we’ve been pointing toward this game (against Oregon),” said Price. “It’s the last game before our bye and we’re looking forward to playing in Autzen Stadium. That’s a good place to play, lots of enthusiasm.”
A victory in Eugene would leave the Cougars at 5-0 heading into home games against California and Arizona. Already, WSU is the only unbeaten team in the Pacific-10 Conference.
Oregon is coming off a 58-49 loss at No. 21 Stanford, a game Price watched on television Saturday night.
Stanford led 21-0 thanks to three Oregon turnovers, but the Ducks rallied behind five touchdown passes from Jason Maas.
“It shows that both of those teams have excellent skilled athletes - running backs, wide receivers and quarterbacks,” Price said. “It also shows that Oregon will never give up in any kind of situation.”
In addition to Maas, the Ducks have standout tailback Saladin McCullough, who is averaging 104.8 yards rushing per game.
The Cougars counter with Ryan Leaf, who has thrown for 1,327 yards and 13 touchdowns, and tailback Michael Black, who averages 104.3 yards rush ing per game.
“It’s going to be a competitive game,” Price said.
Price admonishes Bender
Price once again voiced his displeasure with the pointed postgame comments of WSU defensive tackle Leon Bender. Among other observations, Bender said he hardly broke a sweat against the Broncos.
“Everyone in the program has got to realize that statements made to the media and in front of the media represent the entire program,” Price said. “We have to be careful that we’re respectful of all of our opponents. Sometimes, you just can’t say what you feel.”
After a 37-34 victory over UCLA on Aug. 30, Bender called UCLA a place where athletes go to “become soft.” A couple of weeks later, Bender called USC coach John Robinson a “punk” for not shaking Bender’s hand after the Cougars’ 28-21 victory in Los Angeles.
Price hinted that Bender may be off-limits for future interviews if the standout tackle persists in making such remarks.
Injury update
Backup linebacker Kenny Moore, who plays mostly on special teams, may miss the Oregon game with a sprained shoulder. Price reported no other injuries.
Defensive tackle Delmar Morais could return this week. A former starter, Morais missed most of last season with a knee injury and has not played in 1997.
, DataTimes