What Sark looked like the last time this game was relevant.

It will be nice to watch an Apple Cup that is actually worth a damn for the first time in quite a few years.

In this years installment of the Apple Cup, both teams come in with some momentum. In the case of the Cougs, they have become bowl eligible for the first time in what seems a very long time from the successful squads of the early 2000′s. For the Dawgs, this is a chance to get over the 7-win hump (albeit by one game) and continue to show progress for the program that Sark has built.

All too often this game has meant literally nothing for either one or both teams involved. If anything, it has become a battle for who won’t be living in the cellar at the end of the season.

The tradition from the game has been sapped a little just due to the fact the game is being played on the day after Thanksgiving, and at noon to boot. However, if it wasn’t for the TV money that is helping schools like Washington State hire Mike Leach and allowing the assistants at Washington to be some of the highest paid in the land, you have to give and take some things.

For Washington State, getting to 7 wins should assure them a bowl birth. While bowl eligble now, 6 wins doesn’t guarantee a bowl game, it just guarantees that they could be selected for one. If I was in their shoes, this is a must-win game to get to that point. Getting to 6 wins and not getting picked would be heartbreaking.

For Washington, the “Fire Sark” crowd grows with each loss in the column that piles up. Despite getting to bowl eligibiity, many Washington fans are expecting more from the program and seeing progress that goes beyond qualifiying for the Humanitarian Bowl. Unfair or not, this is an expectation that he can put to rest with a victory over the Cougars at home to get to eight wins.

I will be in enemy territory this Thanksgiving, unable to make it back from the east side of the state to be able to attend the game. I will be sitting in a probably lopsided pro-Coug bar with my Washington flag flying. It will be nice for the majority of the crowd to have a little bit more on the line than getting to anything less than six wins. It will also be nice for the Dawgs to get a victory over a team with some more momentum going for it than Oregon State.

It’s that week kids, get your colors out. Warm up the Apple Cup jokes and get ready for a game that both teams are going to be revved up to win.

I love college football.

“This is inhuman. I can’t believe anyone would stoop so low as far as mocking somebody who is dying,” said one caller on WWL Radio Monday night.

Three radio jocks in Atlanta lost their jobs yesterday for a segment they would take back if they could.

These three shock-jocks decided that a skit, where one impersonated Steve Gleason would be a funny bit.  If you aren’t aware, Steve Gleason has ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s Disease, which as rendered him unable to walk or speak.  He communicates through a computer that he controls with his eyes.

If you haven’t heard the segment, I have a link right here on Huffington Post.  It truly is completely awkward, terrible, and tasteless to listen to, because I think you can hear them wanting to stop the segment while they had the chance.  Alas, they didn’t and it ended up costing them their jobs.

You got your usual Twitter bravado before the station axe came down on them, then the apologies after they got fired.  I am not sure they truly were sorry, just sorry for the fact that the brutal attempt at humor cost them their jobs.

@viewfrom327 @steakshapiro @chrisdimino we took a shot, it backfired. Live and learn…

— Nick Cellini (@NickCellini) June 17, 2013

Right.  ”Took a shot”…

I have personally apologized to Steve Gleason & am profoundly sorry for the ill humored comments from today’s show.

— Nick Cellini (@NickCellini) June 18, 2013

..and there’s that.

Having done a few radio segments here locally in the Northwest, I stay pretty conservative on the subjects I cover & talk about.  Very rarely are segments or skits off the cuff – they are well thought out and also given consideration for how it will sound or be on radio.  This particular skit wouldn’t have worked in any medium, but you know for sure they knew what they were doing before they even started the skit.

I am glad the website Tiger Droppings was able to get a hold of this and whip up the appropriate storm in due time.  In this day and age – it doesn’t take much for something to catch social fire.  The station in Atlanta did the right thing in letting these guys go.

For information on how to donate to Team Gleason and fight ALS, click here to learn more.

Go Cougs.

Is there really much else to talk about?  The Hawks pulled a big time trade yesterday and brought in one of the most electric offensive players in the game today.  Did they give up too much?  Is he injury prone?  Does this limit the Hawks in other ways?

In this episode, Ben and Brad from NoFairWeatherFans.com discuss, and also bring in special analyst RJ to close it out on this nearly power hour.

Other topics discussed are:

• Sonics open season ticket sign ups on SonicsArena.com
• NHL Expansion & Chatter
• Pac-12 Tournament Time

So in the true spirit of a power hour, pick up your 18 pack, a shot glass – take a hit every minute and enjoy this sports broadcast.

You can find us on iTunes, and as always – you can

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The biggest misconception I had about “Moneyball” was that I thought it was all about
money. I am not a baseball fan and hearing about it from friends and media always seemed like
a nice little story, but not something that would apply to football. The salary cap and spending
floor/ceiling would be enough to keep teams from trying a similar system in the NFL. Of
course, that was when I only saw Moneyball as a formula for spending money on your roster.
Moneyball is really about exploiting the market.

Everyone wanted to copy the Yankees, so the A’s exploited the player market to find
guys other teams were missing in their quest to duplicate successful franchises. The NFL also
has its fair share of copycats. Often many teams adjust their rosters trying to be like the most
recent Super Bowl winner or the hot team for the last few seasons. This creates similar market
conditions that Moneyball used to help the A’s, so now it is about finding where to exploit
said markets. Instead of thinking of the market solely as acquiring talent, let’s take a look at
exploiting how the roster to put together.

If the market is roster spots, the NFL is primed for a Moneyball-style takeover. Or at
least, prime for experimentation. Most NFL teams carry the same number of quarterbacks,
receivers, pass rushers, cornerbacks, etc. when making up their 52. The biggest shift on most
rosters depends on what your team’s defensive scheme or whether the GM likes having more
of a specific position on the roster. Receivers, however, are pretty uniform across the board.
Every team is looking for the same specific talents to play X, Z, & Y. This is where teams could
exploit the player market to their advantage.

Traditionally, NFL rosters average six wide receivers and four tight ends. Since the
creation of the forward pass, football teams have favored WRs to move the chains and keep the
passing game working. The TE position has evolved from extra blocker to dynamic receivers, but
NFL teams still look to fill their rosters with just one dynamic TE and a stable of WRs. Part of this
is a lack of dynamic TEs, but recent drafts (and the 2013 especially) could give an NFL team a
chance to flip their WR/TE roster and challenge defenses by finding a way to win every match-
up on paper.

Match-ups are the biggest reason TEs have become predominate in the NFL. The
reason most defenses struggle to stop the Gronks, Grahams, and Gates (Joker TEs) is because
most defenders can’t match their athleticism or their size. Few if any cornerbacks, safeties, or
linebackers can match either the size or speed and even fewer can match both. These Jokers
are also athletic enough to line up in each of the traditional wide receiver positions, run the
same routes and catch the ball just as well. They’re just physically so much bigger on average
than the average sized WR and the averaged sized CB/S/LB.

So why do teams attempt to carry only one of these kinds of talents? It is easy to say
there aren’t that many talented Jokers TEs out there, but I disagree with that notion. Every
team has at least one Joker-type TE and some teams, like New England have many who can
play the part. There is enough talent out there. It is now a matter of making the commitment to
acquiring that talent and determining how it fits into your roster.

Flipping the roster numbers (going from 6Wrs/4TEs to 6TEs/4 WRs) is pretty drastic and
much like when building a traditional roster, it’s important to have a variety of talent to be able
to perform at a high level. Joker TE’s make for great matchup WRs that can line up anywhere,
but they may not be the best run blockers. In-Line TEs aren’t the best in space and H-Backs that
can block in space aren’t necessarily the best pass catchers. Finding balance is important.

Even with the advantage Jokers give, something they have trouble doing is challenging
defenses deep. The lack of deep speed gives defense a schematic advantage, but one that can
be helped when filling the new WR corp. With three WR spots to fill, speed (both lateral and
deep) is the number one quality to be looking for. Adding the WR speed component to the
size advantage of the Jokers gives teams offensive weaponry a look defenses won’t see week-
to-week and difficult to scheme for with no obvious advantage on paper. Flipping the roster in
such a manner is not usually the kind of thing you can do in one year (pretty easily over two or
three drafts, but who has a job that long?), but it can be done, especially if your team’s roster is
already close to this set up.

For some teams, it is as much about upgrading the talent already there as much as it is
re-working the roster. The Seattle Seahawks have already shown an interest in Joker TEs, even
at the expense of employing blocking specialist at the position. After acquiring Zach Miller from
the Raiders, drafting Anthony McCoy last year, the ill-fated signing of Evan Moore, and back-up
Sean McGrath are all in the mold of Joker TEs. This use of their TE roster spots and a penchant
to take risks is something to keep an eye on because they might be one of the few teams in the
NFL who might be slowly making this transition on their own. The Seahawks are also blessed
to have good talent at WR in their starting three of Rice, Tate, and Baldwin. Injuries are still a
concern for Rice, but he has the size/speed/athleticism combo needed to be a top WR and both
Tate and Baldwin have speed and moves to spare.

For a team like the Seahawks, making this transition is as much about upgrading the
current talent as much as it is flipping the roster. They have Joker TE’s, but not enough talent
at the spot to justify playing them more that the 2nd and 3rd WR. Not that the 2nd and 3rd WRs
don’t have value (both schematic and talent), but they don’t create the same match-up issues
and can all be used in rotation with the rest of the WR/TEs. Seattle currently splits their roster
5WR/3TE and flipping that puts them in a spot where they don’t need to target any WRs as
their top 3 are already well established. Here’s a mock for the 2013 Draft that would allow
them to fully upgrade their Joker TEs while still getting help at other positions of need (Editor
Note: Seahawks are still waiting to hear what conditional compensation they received for
trading Barrett Ruud to New Orleans and Tarvaris Jackson to Buffalo. Whether or not they
still owe the conditional 7th for getting Winslow from Tampa Bay is also up in the air as of this
writing):

1. DT John Jenkins, Georgia 6’3” 358

2. TE Jordan Reed, Florida 6’3” 243

3. LEO Jamie Collins, Southern Miss 6’3” 240

4. OT/OG Kyle Long, Oregon 6’7” 312

5. TE Levine Toilolo, Stanford 6’7” 265

6. SLB/LEO Travis Long, Washington State 6’4” 245

7. TE Jack Doyle, Western Kentucky 6’6” 253

With this mock, the Seahawks can get a big guy who can anchor on their DL if they lose
Alan Branch to FA, competition at LEO/OL/LB, and enough Joker TE talent to make Russell
Wilson even scarier. I hate to compare Reed and Aaron Hernandez because they both went to
Florida, but I bet after the combine their testing numbers aren’t too far off and Reed could be
used in a similar way. Toilolo could use some MMA lessons in leverage to help his blocking, but
he also spent a lot of time flexed out at WR at Stanford and his natural height advantage is nice
when dealing with a short field. Doyle has the potential to be another Zach Miller. In this
scenario Reed/Toilolo/Doyle replace Kearse/Butler/McGrath on the 53 roster. Each is more
talent and potentially more useful than the three they replace and are even more helpful to the
offensive coordinator. That’s a lot of big weapons that can be played at any TE or WR spot on
the field and a lot of options when it comes to planning the week to week strategies. They
could even start cutting into the snaps Rice, Tate, and Baldwin get, especially if any of them are
injured again. Maybe tough to get back onto the field if that where to happen.

It’s a heavy investment and there is plenty of risk, but most personnel decisions require
those attributes. The number of big, athletic TEs isn’t diminishing. There will be more next year
(notably Washington’s Austin Seferian-Jenkins) and in future years, so once having made the
switch it’s about maintaining talent same as you would if your roster still carried traditional
numbers. The risk is the same if you make no changes at all: will the talent pan out? While
impossible to tell, the matchup advantage it gives them on paper is tempting. While other
teams are signing up any WR with talent, the team employing this strategy would have its pick
of top TEs and becomes an attractive place when dynamic TEs on other teams’ when contracts
are up. With the ever evolving role of the TE, some lucky team could find a way to exploit the
talent in that market.

Best Sports Moment of 2012 – I am an unabashed Mariners fan. If you go back and look at my posts, most of them are baseball related. Usually, they are in a negative tone, only because I want these guys to do something to support the biggest moment in 2012 for Seattle sports, and arguably one of the greatest individual performances by a Seattle sports athlete.

#Felixing

It really seems to me that it was only a matter of time before Felix strung a game together where he would no-hit someone. He has come close several times, and when he is on – you just get this feeling that he could literally get every hitter to ground out to the shortstop. That would be a good strategy too, as Brendan Ryan really is only good at one thing.

Finally, Felix would get his game. To put the icing on the cake, he also didn’t walk anyone.

I caught wind of the perfect around the 6th inning. I am not one of those superstitious guys, so I didn’t put any stock that Dave Sims for the most part mentions no-no’s after the top of the first inning. I fired up the live stream and had it going on my second monitor at work.

If anything, I hope this isn’t the only time we see him #Felixing in a Seattle uniform. I want the moment in 2013 to be him pitching game 7 of the World Series, but one can only dream.

Worst Sports Moment in 2012 – For me, this isn’t any one moment during the course of the NFL season, but the absolute neutering of the game with regards to hits as a collection of just dumb, game-changing calls. Insane emphasis of inadvertent hits to QB’s heads, “defenseless players”, crackdowns on crack-back blocks are leaving defenses no choice but to either let offensive players go for additional yards, or make equally as dangerous hits on hips & knees.

Helmet to helmet, launching, defenseless, whaaaa whaaa whaaaa

We all know what this is really about, and while it is an attempt to make the game safer for the brains that sit between the Seahawk and 49ers logos, it really is a CYA operation by the NFL to attempt to avert more law suits. Refs err on the side of guilt when it comes to bang-bang plays that happen in a fraction of a second. Even if you do it right, you get the flag. The only way the NFL validates that they may not have agreed with the call on the field is that they don’t send the check to the players locker on Tuesday. It’s a huge problem that needs to be addressed, but as long as Goodell is in charge, I don’t expect any change.

Biggest Surprise in 2012 – This one is easy for me, and that is how amazing the 2012 draft was for the Seahawks. Sure, Russell Wilson would be the biggest surprise in the draft in general I would think, but let’s look at the rest of these picks.

1. Bruce Irvin at 15 – I will admit, this pick set me off in a fit of rage at the time. Only Seattle would pick a guy that nobody really had graded in the first round and then take him at 15. Of course, you hear later that other teams were going to take him late in the first, but it seemed like a reach. However, Irvin has had a fairly successful rookie campaign with 8 sacks in pretty limited use and playing time. He develops a few more moves and this guy is going to be lethal.
2. Bobby Wagner at 47 – Lofa who? New rookie middle linebacker for Seattle should anchor this defense for years to come.
3. Russell Wilson at 75 – This one is easy. When it is all said and done, he may be one of the most successful QB’s of this draft class which included RG3 and Andrew Luck.
4. Robert Turbin at 106 – Legitimate backup to Beast – this guy is going to be good learning behind one of the best. He is also capable of catching the ball (kinda) and his versatility is nice.
5. Jaye Howard 114 – Not sure what his story is. Never heard his name called.
6. Kory Toomer at 154 – I think he got some PT in special teams. His name looks familiar, but that might be because he played for Idaho.
7. Jeremy Lane at 172 – Lose a few CB’s from PED’s, injury, and don’t really lose a step. Contributed more than anyone could have imagined for a 6th rounder taken this year on an elite defense.
8. JR Sweezy at 225 – Draft a DL, move him to OG, start on the line and for the most part beat out a second rounder from the year before. Only Carroll and Schneider can do this and not lose their jobs it seems like.
9. Greg Scruggs at 232 – Got 2 sacks this year, played a little bit at DE. Not bad at all for Seattle’s Mr. Irrelevant.

6 guys from this draft made real contributions this year, as well as developing the core of this team for the foreseeable future. What a crazy good draft.

Best Sports Moment – I am not a guy who follows politics at all. Hell, I haven’t voted since ‘Nam, minus school levies. The Sonics’ arena brought me out for multiple town hall meetings and brought me to the point where I would actually vote. Granted, I would have just voted for whoever voted against passing the arena. Luckily for them, I didn’t have to vote for some random person and luckily for all of us, they passed the arena. With the Sonics gone, like lot of people, I lost a lot of the interest I once had in the NBA.

For information on the arena follow @sonicsarena or go to sonicsarena.com

Chris Hansen and his crew of rich dudes put up the money and backed up the plan for the arena with hella facts. Every time those a-holes down at the port came up with some cockamamie bull honky excuse why we shouldn’t bring back Seattle’s most successful franchise, Hansen dropped fact bombs all over them. These fact bombs proved to be enough to get the politicians to pass the arena plan. Now, we have real hope of being back not only the Sonics, but an NHL teams. This brings me back to the worst of 2012.

Worst Sports Moment – The NHL lockout has comeback again! I don’t get why the owners and players can’t figure out a way to both be rich. The pettiness, over what seems to be a relatively small gap in differences, is killing the sport. I have grown to be a huge hockey fan. There is no other sport’s playoffs that are more exciting. Every shift, every trip down the ice and every shot taken can be the turning point in a game. These already loaded players and owners are blowing it for all hockey fans. Thanks a lot douches, you ruined my Monday through Fridays this fall.

Rich on rich crime

Most Surprising Moment – Matt Flynn not starting was a complete shock to me. This is a guy who has averaged 450 yards and more than four TDs a game. How can Pete Carroll not march him out and get easy wins against the Cardinals and Rams instead of taking losses over crap squads? The Seahawks gave $26 million to Flynn (who is a fan of LTD in Ballard). Everyone knows money talks, just ask Chris Tucker and Charlie Sheen. They guy making bank needs to starting. Well, it turns that isn’t how you com-PETE for the Seahawks.

This dude cakes just strapping up his hat and clipboard every week.

In other words, I am completely surprise how well Russell Wilson played when his number was called. He wasn’t asked to put the team on his back, but he was asked to produce and he has done so more than I would have ever expected. Considering, in the first half of the season I said he was basically Tarvaris Jackson. At that point his stats said he was. Wilson turned it on in the second half of the season. He got a defense and run heavy team, that needed a decent contributed at QB, what they needed and more.

Winner Winner – Apple Dinner…?

Ryan’s Best Sports Moment:  Two words – APPLE CUP.  There’s nothing better than a comeback win against a rival.  The way the Cougs tore up the 4th quarter on that fateful Saturday is just a preview of next year.  Not many teams can put up 18 points in ten minutes, but that’s exactly what Mike Leach’s offense is built for.

Putting all pride aside, I’d also like to thank Keith Price for his ”head bob” that cost UW a false start, and Travis Coons for his wide-right chip shot as time expired.

Also, it’s about time Mike Leach and his team got a win in a meaningful game…which brings me to my next point…

Ryan’s Worst Sports Moment: EVERY OTHER COUG GAME.  It seems every week of last season was a different kind of heart-break, but heart-break, nonetheless.

The Cougs did a lot of chasing this year…

As the season started against BYU, hopes were high.  The Cougs got handled in a no-contest type of game.  After a few garbage wins against lesser teams, the Cougs gave up a 17 point lead in the 4th quarter to the Colorado Bufs.  That heart-break was a nauseating one.  A few weeks later (after a few more losses), the Cougs were rolled 49-6 by a mediocre (at best) Utah team.  That heart-break was an embarrassing one.  In fact, if you look at photos of Brad’s wedding (which took place on the same day), you’ll see how red my face was…maybe that was the beer - I’m not positive.  Then, finally the UCLA game.  At halftime, the score was 37-7 in favor of the Bruins.  It was looking eerily similar to the Utah game.  But the Cougs came all the way back, falling just short thanks to Halliday throwing a pick in the end zone.  That heart-break invoked tears.

However, as this was going on with my Cougars, a completely different feeling filled my body on Sundays…

Ryan’s Most Surprising Sports Moment: No, I’m not talking about the spirit of GOD, mostly because I usually don’t go to church during the football season (conflicting schedules).  This other feeling was elation, as the improbable rookie, Russell Wilson, lead the Seahawks to a playoff berth and an 11-win season.  As he was picked in the 3rd round, no one in the country thought Russell Wilson would start for Seattle this year, especially as the Seahawks signed Matt Flynn to a big-ish contract in the off-season.  It seems as though Flynn has found himself in yet another solid backup role.  The way Russell Wilson started the year, I figured Matt Flynn would be in by week 5.  But Pete Carroll stuck by Wilson, and it looks like it paid off.

Looking at those arms, I’m glad he’s our QB…

Wilson did have his struggles against Miami and San Francisco (the 1st time around), but he led the team to five wins in a row (and 7 of the last 8) at the end of the season.  He’s certainly been a pleasant surprise as he now fights for the honors of Rookie of the Year against RGIII.  Regardless of the Rookie of the Year outcome, Russell Wilson has cemented his QB spot with the Seahawks, and a place in the hearts of The 12th Man.

Hmmmmmm

Two podcast within basically 8 days?  Is this some kind of crazy work ethic that nobody saw coming?  Can you answer these questions?  Here’s what we come at you with this week:

• The NCAA bowl games to watch for this year (half joke, half serious)
• Mike Leach and the trial – it’s over, thank GOSH
• Seattle Seahawks vs 49ers this week, looking back at Sunday Night Football

As always, big ups to The Soundmen (@scottdsoundmen on the Twitter, facebook.com/TheSoundmen ) for playing us in, and playing us out.

As usual, click to subscribe to the podcast with that fancy logo in the top right hand corner, find us on iTunes – and as always…

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The cool thing is though is that we are BACK on KRKO with our own segment, No Fair Weather Fans.  Good times & huzzah!

In the meantime, listen to Ben enjoy his Cougar victory, and Brad already drinking the Kool-Aid for next year and the bowl season.  Boise State is down apparently.  They only lost to Michigan State on the road in a nail biter  and SDSU at home.  They are clearly trash!

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Tune in at 11:00am – CLICK THE LINK  YO

Here is a breakdown of why your favorite of the two schools will lose:

BRAD:

“We’ve only been playing with niiiiine…” – Mike Leach

Let’s face it – the COOGS (as my phone auto corrects it) are on the ropes. The final scores have been speaking for themselves, and outside of a spirited comeback against UCLA, the COOGS have been anything but competitive since they found a way to lose to Colorado.

This game on paper should have trouble written all over it for Washington State.

Travis Long is out.

Tuel is “probably” going to start.

Marquess Wilson (while he was whiner and probably a cancer on the team, was talented) is no longer on the team. Allegations of abuse, whether true or not, loom over a program that hasn’t gotten off to the start that Mike Leach and most WSU fans would have imagined if asked at the beginning of the year.

The terrible losses have been mounting. A game on the day after Thanksgiving, in Pullman at noon doesn’t necessarily let me believe that the Cougar faithful are going to make it out after Black Friday shopping in Moscow. 75% of the students are going to be back in their eastside homes enjoying turkey dinner, far, far away from the confines of Martin Stadium.

Leach is clearly moving guys he doesn’t want out and putting in his system. As a football fan, I believe that Leach is going to get the guys in he needs, and given the time in Pullman he can make it work. He made it work in Lubbock, TX, he can make it work in Pullman, WA.

The talent cupboard wasn’t necessarily bare, as is most of the time when coaching changes happen and one staff is swapped for another. Trust me, as a Husky fan, I can speak to it first hand with the transitions from Gilby (who coincidentally, his son is backing up Tuel at WSU this week) to Tyrone and so forth. This is an attitude thing, and right now – outside of a few seniors, they clearly are empty corpses on the field.

I am actually finding it kinda hard to bash on the Cougs for this game. Not that I was setting out to bash them, but there are so many negatives going into this game, I can’t imagine any coaching staff would be able to get a team out a funk like they are in right now.

The Huskies are getting hot at the right time. It just doesn’t bode well for the Cougs this week. There is always next year.

In other news, Mike Price retired from UTEP today. Maybe give him a call for a pep-talk?

BEN:

Bishop Sankey would be having more fun in Pullman.

The only way I can feel strong about a Coug win is to find holes in the Huskies’ armor. There are a couple for sure. Although, looking at the past four games they are hard to find.

An offensive line that figured to be terrible, the season, has been opening holes for Bishop Sankey, aka The Traitor. Sankey has averaged well over 100 yards per game the last four games. Shutting him down leads to one of the holes in that Husky armor.

The wide receivers are a bunch of no names that haven’t really showed a lot this season. Outside of Kasen Williams and Cody Bruns, I haven’t heard of a single receiver on the team.

I am purposely not mentioning Austin Seferian-Jenkins, it just makes me feel better when I don’t talk about him. Let’s face it, he is one of the best tight ends in the conference and the nation. The Cougs’ linebackers won’t be able to shut him down. Don’t worry though, with the lack of talent UW has at wide receiver, the Cougs can put one of their good safeties on ASJ. Deone Buchanan and Casey Locker have played well all year, this a time for them to play great. What better time than the Apple Cup?

As for attacking the Husky defense, the short passing game has been effective against them. If you look at the last four teams UW has played, none of them were good passing teams. The last team the Huskies played with a decent passing attack was Arizona and they hung 52 points on the Dawgs. This a game where Gabe Marks, the Williams boys (Dominique and Kristoff) and Brett Bartolone need to step up. Three of them are freshman, but are 60 minutes of football away from being sophomores. They have made big plays all year, they just need to find that consistency.

The last factor is you, Cougar Nation. Time to bring the passion you have always shown. Focus that Cougar pride which has flags flying every Saturday behind the dudes from College Game Day and the flags you hold in places all over the world in your Facebook pictures. This is what you wanted, the game to stay in Pullman every other year, not at The Clink. This is your moment, to make that little difference that pushes the Cougs to the win.

Hear us on the Locker Room on Fox Sports 1380, where this was mostly about Luke Michener & the SPSL, in which Maury thinks about starting a Luke Michener segment.

If we aren’t starting segments or talking about Spanaway, it really wouldn’t be Cats & Dogs.

Then Brad gets depressed about Arizona, Ben stays optimistic no matter what (a true NoFairWeatherFan) and looking forward to Oregon State.  We love posting these after the fact, because you can see if we are any good at this.  Brad sure isn’t!

The guys on the Locker Room also let us on another segment, called the Six Pack before Cats & Dogs.  You should theoretically already know we were on that segment too because you listen all the time, but if you don’t – here’s that!  General sports!

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