In WSU’s 70-30 win over Portland State, Cougs’ defense leaves something to be desired
PULLMAN – When he returned to the sideline after polishing off one of the best plays of his career, an interception return for touchdown in Washington State’s season-opening 70-30 rout of Portland State, Steve Hall had to let his teammates know.
That was my first career pick-six, he told them.
“They couldn’t believe it,” Hall said.
Sure enough, Hall’s 100- yard return was the first of his career at any level: high school, junior college or Division I ball. He was gassed by the time he completed the play, the longest interception return for a touchdown in program history, but it helped the Cougars cruise to a season-opening win .
The bad news for WSU: Otherwise, the Cougars’ defense submitted something of an uneven showing. It didn’t sit well with WSU coach Jake Dickert that his squad allowed 30 points to an FCS club such as Portland State, which scored its most points against an FBS opponent since a 2021 loss to Hawaii.
“I thought they dictated to us today,” Dickert said. “I think they’ve got a bunch of different schemes. They got options, they got unbalanced, they got motions. But I don’t think we were aggressive enough at the line of scrimmage. It’ll always start there. So we gotta get better from this tape.”
It’s the most points WSU has permitted to an FCS foe since 2016, when Eastern Washington walked out of Pullman with a 45-42 win, Eagles great Cooper Kupp dicing up the Cougs’ secondary. If you don’t want to count a game that included extenuating circumstances like a future Super Bowl MVP’s presence, the truth is that the last time Washington State gave up 30-plus points to an FCS foe predates the FCS itself.
Granted, the Cougars have had worse defensive results against FCS teams, such as a loss to Portland State in 2015 when they allowed 24 points in the second half of a 24-17 loss. But it’s not clear the last time WSU yielded 30 or more to an FCS opponent prior to that EWU game, because the FCS became what we know it as now in 1978.
That’s how uniquely pedestrian the Cougs’ defense was, allowing Vikings quarterback Dante Chachere to complete a touchdown pass of 40 yards, run for two scores and backup William Haskell to hit a scoring pass of 11 yards.
It added up to a discouraging day for Dickert and defensive coordinator Jeff Schmedding, whose unit is working through the growing pains expected of such a young group. Redshirt freshman Ethan O’Connor is starting at cornerback. Six WSU edges still have an “OR” between them on the depth chart. Free safety Tyson Durant is a senior, but the Akron transfer is playing his first season at WSU.
The Cougars’ starters, however, didn’t play nearly the whole game. In fact, 28 Cougars made their WSU debuts, including 11 on defense. If Washington State had left its starters in for the whole game, as will likely be the case moving forward, Portland State probably doesn’t get to 30, especially not considering the temperatures during gametime eclipsed 90 degrees.
But the Vikings were playing in the same conditions as the Cougars, and to Dickert, this defensive outing wasn’t up to par.
“There’s some communication issues, there’s tackling issues,” Dickert said.
After the game, Hall said the area his group needs to address most is on explosive plays. In the first quarter, PSU running back Delon Thompson ripped off a 54-yard rush, which set up his team’s touchdown run moments later. Later in the game, running back Quincy Craig broke free for a gain of 27, moving the chains on third-and-short.
The Vikings registered six plays of 10-plus yards. Against the likes of Texas Tech and Washington, WSU’s next two opponents, maybe that wouldn’t be such a bad number. Against Portland State, picked to finish 10th of 12 teams in the Big Sky this season, it won’t fly.
“They have the right mindset and attitude to go out there and get better, and we can play better, especially on defense,” Dickert said. “It’s an exciting first step. We now know where we’re at, and we’re going to attack the process, keep going forward.”