American college football season
The 2020 Washington State Cougars football team represented Washington State University during the 2020 NCAA Division I FBS football season . They were led by first-year head coach Nick Rolovich . The team played their home games in Martin Stadium in Pullman, Washington , and competed as members of the North Division of the Pac-12 Conference .
On August 11, 2020, the Pac-12 Conference initially canceled all fall sports competitions due to the COVID-19 pandemic .[2]
On September 24, the conference announced that a six-game conference-only season would begin on November 6, with the Pac-12 Championship Game to be played December 18. Teams not selected for the championship game would be seeded to play a seventh game.[3]
Previous season [ ]
The Cougars finished the season 6–7, 3–6 in Pac-12 play to finish tied for fifth in the Northern Division. They were invited to play in the Cheez-It Bowl , where they lost to Air Force 31–21. On January 9, head coach Mike Leach departed the program to accept the vacant head coaching position at Mississippi State .[4] [5] Less than a week later, athletic director Pat Chun hired Hawaii head coach Nick Rolovich .[6] [7]
Schedule [ ]
Washington State had games scheduled against Utah State , Houston , and Idaho , but canceled these games on July 10 due to the Pac-12 Conference's decision to play a conference-only schedule due to the COVID-19 pandemic .[8]
Date Time Opponent Rank Site TV Result Attendance November 7 7:30 p.m. at Oregon State FS1 W 38–28—
November 14 4:00 p.m. No. 11 Oregon Martin Stadium Pullman, WA FOX L 29–43—
December 6 4:30 p.m. at No. 20 USC FS1 L 13–38—
December 19 10:30 a.m. at Utah FS1 L 28–45
Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Pacific time
[9]
#WeAreUnited controversy [ ]
In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic , student athletes of the Pac-12 Conference formed a unity group to negotiate with the conference to get more fair treatment for student athletes ranging from COVID-19 safety protocols to racial equality messages under the threat of opting out of the fall season with the hashtag #WeAreUnited.[10]
On August 2, 2020, Washington State wide receiver Kassidy Woods alleged that head coach Nick Rolovich threatened his status on the team, while also being removed from the team chats and being told to clear out his locker.[11] Woods also released an audio conversation between him and Rolovich to the Dallas Morning News, where Rolovich was understanding of Woods opting out due to COVID-19 but was still critical of the unity group.[12] Rolovich said in a statement that the said conversation between him and Woods occurred before the release of the #WeAreUnited group's article, and Washington State spokesman Bill Stephens clarified that Woods did not lose his scholarship or has been cut from the team, while ESPN reported that no one has been cut, but is not allowed to participate in team activities if they choose to opt out due to safety reasons.[13] [14]
Personnel [ ]
Staff [ ]
Name
Position
Seasons at Washington State
Alma Mater
Nick Rolovich
Head Coach
1
Hawaii (2004)
Brian Smith
Offensive Coordinator / Running Backs
1
Hawaii (2005)
Jake Dickert
Defensive Coordinator / Linebackers
1
Wisconsin–Stevens Point (2007)
Michael Ghobrial
Special Teams Coordinator
1
UCLA (2011)
Craig Stutzmann
Co-Offensive Coordinator / Quarterbacks
1
Hawaii (2002)
Andre Allen
Wide Receivers
1
Ashford (2014)
Mark Weber
Offensive Line
1
Cal Lutheran (1980)
A. J. Cooper
Defensive Ends
1
North Dakota State (2006)
Ricky Logo
Defensive Tackles
1
North Carolina State (1992)
Mark Banker
Safeties
1
Springfield (MA) (1978)
John Richardson
Cornerbacks / Recruiting Coordinator
1
North Dakota State (2010)
Dwain Bradshaw
Head Strength and Conditioning Coach
1
Arizona State (2014)
Jason Cvercko
Chief of Staff
1
Connecticut (2011)
Rankings [ ]
Ranking movementsLegend: ██ Increase in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking. NR = Not ranked. RV = Received votes. т = Tied with team above or below. ( ) = First place votes.
Week
Poll
Pre
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
Final
AP
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
Coaches
RV
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
CFP
Not released
Not released
Game summaries [ ]
at Oregon State [ ]
Washington State Cougars (0–0) at Oregon State Beavers (0–0)
1
2
3 4 Total
Cougars
7
7
14 10 38
Beavers
0
7
7 14 28
at Reser Stadium , Corvallis, Oregon
Date : November 7, 2020Game time : 7:30 p.m. PST Game attendance : 0TV announcers (FS1 ) : Alex Faust (play-by-play) & Petros Papadakis (analyst)
Game information
First Quarter
WSU – Travell Harris 29-yard pass from Jayden de Laura (Blake Mazza kick), 3:50. Washington St. 7–0. Drive: 6 plays, 58 yards, 2:44.
Second Quarter
OSU – Trevon Bradford 7-yard pass from Tristan Gebbia (Everett Hayes kick), 4:10. Tied 7–7. Drive: 15 plays, 93 yards, 7:27.
WSU – Deon McIntosh 3-yard run (Blake Mazza kick), 0:37. Washington St. 14–7. Drive: 9 plays, 84 yards, 3:27.
Third Quarter
WSU – Jayden de Laura 5-yard run (Blake Mazza kick), 12:10. Washington St. 21–7. Drive: 5 plays, 64 yards, 1:52.
WSU – Travell Harris 28-yard pass from Jayden de Laura (Blake Mazza kick), 8:20. Washington St. 28–7. Drive: 4 plays, 38 yards, 2:20.
OSU – Jermar Jefferson 1-yard run (Everett Hayes kick), 3:27. Washington St. 28–14. Drive: 9 plays, 85 yards, 4:47.
Fourth Quarter
WSU – Blake Mazza 34-yard field goal, 11:59. Washington St. 31–14. Drive: 12 plays, 66 yards, 6:22.
OSU – Jermar Jefferson 7-yard run (two-point conversion failed), 8:32. Washington St. 31–20. Drive: 8 plays, 72 yards, 3:21.
OSU – Jermar Jefferson 15-yard run (Tristan Gebbia–Trevon Bradford pass), 2:39. Washington St. 31–28. Drive: 14 plays, 90 yards, 2:52.
WSU – Travell Harris 44-yard run (Blake Mazza kick), 2:29. Washington St. 38–28. Drive: 1 play, 44 yards, 0:09.
Top passers
WSU – Jayden de Laura – 18/33, 227 yards, 2 TD, INT
OSU – Tristan Gebbia – 34/48, 329 yards, TD
Top rushers
WSU – Deon McIntosh – 18 rushes, 147 yards, TD
OSU – Jermar Jefferson – 21 rushes, 120 yards, 3 TD
Top receivers
WSU – Travell Harris – 7 receptions, 107 yards, 2 TD
OSU – Trevon Bradford – 7 receptions, 78 yards, TD
Oregon [ ]
Oregon Ducks (1–0) at Washington State Cougars (1–0)
1
2
3 4 Total
No. 11 Ducks
7
7
7 22 43
Cougars
13
6
0 10 29
at Martin Stadium • Pullman, Washington
Date : November 14, 2020Game time : 4:00 p.m. PST Game attendance : 0Referee : Chris CoyleTV announcers (FOX ) : Tim Brando (play-by-play) & Spencer Tillman (analyst)
Game information
First Quarter
ORE – D.J. Johnson 13-yard pass from Tyler Shough (Camden Lewis kick), 6:48. Oregon 7–0. Drive: 15 plays, 92 yards, 5:50.
WSU – Lucas Bacon 18-yard pass from Jayden de Laura (two-point conversion failed), 3:00. Oregon 7–6. Drive: 6 plays, 77 yards, 3:48.
WSU – Renard Bell 4-yard pass from Jayden de Laura (Blake Mazza kick), 0:48. Washington State 13–7. Drive: 4 plays, 53 yards, 1:33.
Second Quarter
WSU – Blake Mazza 39-yard field goal, 9:38. Washington State 16–7. Drive: 7 plays, 35 yards, 3:00.
WSU – Blake Mazza 49-yard field goal, 0:24. Washington State 19–7. Drive: 13 plays, 59 yards, 6:19.
ORE – C. J. Verdell 3-yard run (Camden Lewis kick), 0:03. Washington State 19–14. Drive: 2 plays, 60 yards, 0:17.
Third Quarter
ORE – Travis Dye 16-yard pass from Tyler Shough (Camden Lewis kick), 3:26. Oregon 21–19. Drive: 5 plays, 68 yards, 2:09.
Fourth Quarter
ORE – Johnny Johnson III 2-yard pass from Tyler Shough (Camden Lewis kick), 14:19. Oregon 28–19. Drive: 7 plays, 80 yards, 3:06.
WSU – Blake Mazza 25-yard field goal, 9:59. Oregon 28–22. Drive: 7 plays, 79 yards, 4:20.
ORE – Travis Dye 71-yard pass from Tyler Shough (Tyler Shough run), 8:25. Oregon 36–22. Drive: 3 plays, 75 yards, 1:34.
WSU – Deon McIntosh 1-yard run (Blake Mazza kick), 4:40. Oregon 36–29. Drive: 9 plays, 74 yards, 3:45.
ORE – Cyrus Habibi-Likio 1-yard run (Camden Lewis kick), 1:40. Oregon 43–29. Drive: 6 plays, 75 yards, 3:00.
Top Passers
ORE – Tyler Shough – 21/30, 312 yards, 4 TD, INT
WSU – Jayden de Laura – 25/39, 329 yards, 2 TD
Top Rushers
ORE – C.J. Verdell – 18 rushes, 118 yards, TD
WSU – Deon McIntosh – 18 rushes, 92 yards, TD
Top Receivers
ORE – Jaylon Redd – 5 receptions, 99 yards
WSU – Renard Bell – 10 receptions, 158 yards, TD
at USC [ ]
Washington State Cougars (1–1) at USC Trojans (3–0)
1
2
3 4 Total
Cougars
0
6
0 7 13
No. 20 Trojans
28
7
3 0 38
at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum , Los Angeles, California
Date : December 6, 2020Game time : 4:30 p.m. PST Game weather : Scattered clouds, 64 °F (18 °C)Game attendance : 0Referee : Steven StrimlingTV announcers (FS1) : Alex Faust, Petros PapadakisReference
Game information
First Quarter
USC – Amon-Ra St. Brown 7-yard pass from Kedon Slovis (Parker Lewis kick), 8:46. USC 7–0. Drive: 7 plays, 65 yards, 2:50.
USC – Amon-Ra St. Brown 22-yard pass from Kedon Slovis (Parker Lewis kick), 5:11. USC 14–0. Drive: 5 plays, 34 yards, 2:20.
USC – Amon-Ra St. Brown 4-yard pass from Kedon Slovis (Parker Lewis kick), 2:33. USC 21–0. Drive: 1 play, 4 yards, 0:06.
USC – Amon-Ra St. Brown 2-yard pass from Kedon Slovis (Parker Lewis kick), 0:44. USC 28–0. Drive: 4 plays, 31 yards, 1:40.
Second Quarter
USC – Tyler Vaughns 35-yard pass from Kedon Slovis (Parker Lewis kick), 7:11. USC 35–0. Drive: 7 plays, 80 yards, 3:51.
WSU – Travell Harris 5-yard run (kick failed), 0:28. USC 35–6. Drive: 11 plays, 75 yards, 6:43.
Third Quarter
USC – Parker Lewis 48-yard field goal, 11:53. USC 38–6. Drive: 8 plays, 16 yards, 3:07.
Fourth Quarter
WSU – Renard Bell 6-yard pass from Gunner Cruz (Blake Mazza kick), 1:37. USC 38–13. Drive: 16 plays, 93 yards, 10:38.
Top passers
Top rushers
WSU – Deon McIntosh – 10 rushes, 65 yards
USC – Kenan Christon – 3 rushes, 11 yards
Top receivers
WSU – Renard Bell – 11 receptions, 76 yards, TD
USC – Drake London – 5 receptions, 92 yards
at Utah [ ]
Washington State Cougars (1–2) at Utah Utes (2–2)
1
2
3 4 Total
Cougars
7
21
0 0 28
Utes
0
7
14 24 45
at Rice-Eccles Stadium , Salt Lake City, Utah
Date : December 19, 2020Game time : 10:30 a.m. PST Game weather : Partly cloudy, 38 °F (3 °C)Game attendance : 0Referee : Mark DuddyTV : FS1Reference
Game information
First Quarter
WSU – Max Borghi 8-yard run (Blake Mazza kick), 4:34. Washington State 7–0. Drive: 7 plays, 57 yards, 4:26.
Second Quarter
WSU – Deon McIntosh 11-yard run (Blake Mazza kick), 8:31. Washington State 14–0. Drive: 7 plays, 88 yards, 4:01.
UTAH – Britain Covey 91-yard pass from Jake Bentley (Jadon Redding kick), 3:37. Washington State 14–7. Drive: 3 plays, 95 yards, 0:58.
WSU – Jamire Calvin 8-yard pass from Jayden de Laura (Blake Mazza kick), 1:51. Washington State 21–7. Drive: 4 plays, 75 yards, 1:46.
WSU – Jayden de Laura 3-yard run (Blake Mazza kick), 1:21. Washington State 28–7. Drive: 1 play, 3 yards, 0:04.
Third Quarter
UTAH – Ty Jordan 5-yard run (Jadon Redding kick), 6:09. Washington State 28–14. Drive: 9 plays, 81 yards, 4:39.
UTAH – Bryan Thompson 9-yard run (Jadon Redding kick), 0:55. Washington State 28–21. Drive: 8 plays, 68 yards, 3:38.
Fourth Quarter
UTAH – Ty Jordan 33-yard run (Jadon Redding kick), 12:01. Tied 28–28. Drive: 7 plays, 70 yards, 2:15.
UTAH – Ty Jordan 13-yard run (Jadon Redding kick), 6:29. Utah 35–28. Drive: 2 plays, 13 yards, 0:12.
UTAH – Jadon Redding 44-yard field goal, 2:37. Utah 38–28. Drive: 7 plays, 30 yards, 3:37.
UTAH – Clark Phillips III 36-yard interception return (Jadon Redding kick), 2:06. Utah 45–28.
Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
WSU – Jamire Calvin – 7 receptions, 104 yards, TD
UTAH – Britain Covey – 6 receptions, 134 yards, TD
Awards [ ]
Player
Award
Date
Jayden de Laura
Pac-12 Freshman of the Week[15]
November 9, 2020
Ayden Hector
Pac-12 Freshman of the Week[16]
November 16, 2020
References [ ]
^ Pac-12 Conference. "Pac-12 announces resumption of football, basketball & winter sports seasons" . Pac-12 Conference . Retrieved 24 September 2020 .
^ "Pac-12 Conference postpones all sport competitions through end of calendar year" . pac-12.com . August 11, 2020. Retrieved August 11, 2020 .
^ "Pac-12 announces resumption of football, basketball & winter sports seasons" . pac-12.com . September 24, 2020. Retrieved September 24, 2020 .
^ Mickanen, Dylan. "Reports: Mike Leach hired as Mississippi State head coach" . NBC Sports . Retrieved August 4, 2020 .
^ Sallee, Barrett. "Mississippi State hires Washington State's Mike Leach to be next head coach" . CBS Sports . Retrieved August 4, 2020 .
^ Shapiro, Michael. "Report: Washington State to Hire Hawaii's Nick Rolovich as Head Coach" . Sports Illustrated . Retrieved August 4, 2020 .
^ Thamel, Pete. "Sources: Washington State finalizing deal to hire Hawaii's Nick Rolovich as next football coach" . Yahoo! Sports . Retrieved August 4, 2020 .
^ Bromberg, Nick. "Pac-12 follows Big Ten's lead and won't play non-conference games in 2020" . Yahoo News . Retrieved 10 July 2020 .
^ "2020 Washington State Football Schedule" . FBSchedules.com . Retrieved February 27, 2020 .
^ Bumbaca, Chris. "Group of Pac-12 athletes unite, threaten opt out unless athletes' demands of conference are met" . USA Today . Retrieved August 4, 2020 .
^ Peter, Josh. "Washington State player says head coach threatened his status over Pac-12 unity group" . USA Today . Retrieved August 4, 2020 .
^ Blum, Sam. "Full transcript: Washington State coach Nick Rolovich critical of PAC-12 unity statement in conversation with WR Kassidy Woods" . The Dallas Morning News . Retrieved August 4, 2020 .
^ Evans, Jace. "Washington State coach Nick Rolovich attempts to clarify position on #WeAreUnited group" . USA Today . Retrieved August 4, 2020 .
^ Rittenberg, Adam. "Washington State football coach Nick Rolovich tells WR Kassidy Woods joining unity group would create 'an issue' " . ESPN . Retrieved August 4, 2020 .
^ "Pac-12 Football Players of the Week – Week 1" (Press release). Pac-12 Conference. Retrieved November 9, 2020 .
^ "Pac-12 Football Players of the Week – Week 2" (Press release). Pac-12 Conference. Retrieved November 16, 2020 .
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