First look: Fresh off narrow road win, Washington State hosts Hawaii in homecoming game
PULLMAN – Here is a first look at Washington State’s home matchup against Hawaii on Saturday afternoon.
What is it?
Coming off a narrow road victory over Fresno State, Washington State will host Hawaii in the teams’ first meeting in more than a decade. For the Cougars, it’s the third game of a Pac-12/Mountain West scheduling agreement that provided WSU and Oregon State games for this season.
Where is it?
Gesa Field at Martin Stadium in Pullman.
When is it?
Kickoff is set for 12:30 p.m.
Where can I watch it?
KSKN (CW Network) will broadcast the game.
Who is favored?
Washington State was around a 19.5-point favorite in most sportsbooks as of Monday morning.
How did the Cougars fare last week?
Quarterback John Mateer and Washington State’s offense scuttled for much of their 25-17 win over Fresno State, facing a one-point deficit midway through the fourth quarter, but WSU cornerback Ethan O’Connor leapt in front of a pass for what turned into the game-winning pick-six, making his third interception of the season.
From there, the Cougars ran some clock and added a short field goal from senior kicker Dean Janikowski, who has followed some early-season struggles by connecting on his last five field goals. To make the game-sealing stop, the Cougs’ pass rush went from invisible to electric, forcing FSU QB Mikey Keene to flush from the pocket and make a couple errant throws.
All told, Mateer completed just 17 of 34 passes for 172 yards and one interception, which came a couple minutes before halftime, taking away a chance at points before the break for the second straight game. He tossed his pick against Boise State because of the Broncos’ two-high safety look, he said, while Fresno State deployed one safety – who Mateer failed to look off.
For the game, Mateer totaled two turnovers, his sixth and seventh of the season. He also lost a fumble earlier in the game trying to scramble from the pocket and keep a play alive, and after the game, Dickert said Mateer would be wise to throw the ball away in situations like that. Otherwise, he runs the risk of turnovers, which have been his bugaboo this fall.
“I think he takes the turnovers hard, as he should,” Dickert said. “He’s the one that makes all the big decisions with the football. The first one, he started just getting a little bit loose carrying it, and then the second one, just didn’t hold the safety enough to try to squeeze the inside fade in there.”
Mateer and the Cougs’ rushing offense didn’t make the impact it has in games past. Freshman running back Wayshawn Parker tallied 12 carries for 63 yards, but many of those came on WSU’s final drive, when the hosts needed to kill clock. Mateer also didn’t get the chances to use his legs the way he has in weeks past, and it’s clear opposing defenses are committing more defenders to limit that part of his game.
For their part, though, the Cougs’ defense covered for many of these mistakes. Transfer safety Tyson Durant grabbed an interception, his second of the season, bringing WSU’s interception total this season to eight, including O’Connor’s pick.
WSU’s pass rush and run defense left a little to be desired – the Cougs logged one sack, just their sixth this season, and they let Fresno State running back Elijah Gilliam rack up 120 yards on 20 carries – but the unit has shown a real penchant for creating turnovers. So far, the Cougs have been able to make that work.
On Monday, Dickert shared that safety Jackson Lataimua will be back in practice this week. He missed the Fresno State game with an injury he suffered against Boise State. Tight end Billy Riviere, who has played sparingly this season and mainly as a blocker, will be back in practice as well after missing the previous two games.
Punter Nick Haberer, who has yet to play this season with a back injury, has been cleared by the team’s medical staff to “really start kicking,” Dickert said. Haberer has suited up and taken part in warmups in each of the past three games, only to not play, which Dickert said has come by recommendation of team medical staff.
Scouting Hawaii …
The Rainbow Warriors, 2-4 on the year, own wins over FCS foes Delaware State and Northern Iowa. They’ve dropped a close game to UCLA and taken setbacks to Sam Houston State, San Diego State and most recently Boise State last weekend.
Hawaii’s offense revolves around senior quarterback Brayden Schaeger, who has completed 145 of 242 passes (60%) for 1,592 yards, 12 touchdowns and six interceptions. During the Rainbow Warriors’ start to the season, he’s thrown for 200-plus yards in every contest, including a 374-yard effort against Northern Iowa and a 272-yard outing in a loss to San Diego State.
Talented as Schaeger is, he does much of the heavy lifting for Hawaii’s offense, which doesn’t have much of a rushing attack. The Rainbow Warriors’ leading rusher is junior Landon Sims, who has 39 carries for 160 yards and one touchdown. He hasn’t eclipsed the 40-yard mark in any of his team’s last five games, and Hawaii is averaging just 80.5 rushing yards per game, last in the Mountain West.
So instead, the Rainbow Warriors have turned to Schaeger and his favorite receivers, who have been sophomore Pofele Ashcock, who has made 43 receptions for 470 yards and four touchdowns, and junior Nick Cenacle, who has reeled in 29 catches for 268 yards and three scores.
Also of note: Hawaii has permitted 21 sacks this season, which is No. 128 of 133 FBS teams. Schaeger is taking an average of five sacks per game, tops in the country, perhaps opening the door for WSU’s pass rush to finally break through in a consistent way – which it hasn’t all year.
“It’s our second crack at the run and shoot,” Dickert said, referencing the offense San Jose State ran to the tune of 52 points against WSU last month. “Unfortunately, it is the second time. The first one did not go so well, so we gotta adjust how we play that, but they’ll also see some of our base ideas for it. So we gotta play that chess match.”
On defense, Hawaii is allowing an average of 21 points per game, including permitting an average of 139 rushing yards and 194 passing yards a pop. Three different Rainbow Warriors have grabbed interceptions this season, and senior cornerback Cam Stone has broken up a team-high five passes.
The Rainbow Warriors haven’t been all bad on this end of the ball. Hawaii has pocketed 12 sacks, fourth in the Mountain West, and cornerbacks Caleb Brown and Elijah Palmer have registered four and three pass breakups, respectively.
What happened last time?
WSU and Hawaii’s last meeting came in 2009, when the Paul Wulff-led Cougars dropped a 38-20 decision in Seattle in WSU’s second game of the season. The Rainbow Warriors raced to a 35-0 lead before the Cougs added a couple late scores with the game out of reach.