How a CFB insider sees WSU Cougars’ 2024 season playing out
Jul 18, 2024, 2:47 PM
WSU Cougars coach Jake Dickert looks on during a game at Oregon on Oct. 21, 2023. (Lydia Ely/Getty Images)
(Lydia Ely/Getty Images)
It’s going to be an interesting season for the WSU Cougars football team, to say the least.
Pac-12 postseason bowl agreements remain for WSU, Oregon State
Only Washington State and Oregon State remain from the old Pac-12, with the two Pacific Northwest schools entering an agreement with the Mountain West to play MWC teams but not compete for the conference championship. The Cougs should also see increased visibility with all but two of their games airing on either The CW, FOX or FS1 – all national TV stations.
The Apple Cup against the rival UW Huskies will stream on Peacock, another well-seen outlet, leaving only an Oct. 26 game at San Diego State airing on a channel that may be harder than normal to find (CBS Sports Network).
Will the Cougars’ play live up to all of that exposure, though? Seattle Sports’ Bump and Stacy talked on Wednesday to longtime insider Phil Steele, who produces an annual college football preview magazine, and he shared his view on head coach Jake Dickert’s team after falling just short of a bowl with a 5-7 record in 2023.
“When you look at Washington State, I like the way that Jake Dickert’s building this team,” Steele said. “They are only No. 121 on my experience chart, so they’re not overly experienced. But after missing out on a bowl game last year, I think they get back there this year. A key game might be that Texas Tech game, Week 2. Win that one and I think they clearly get to a bowl. I think Washington State is going to have a better year than expected.”
As for the way the WSU and Oregon State football schedules line up this year, Steele said both Dickert and his fellow “Pac-2” head coach, Trent Bray, like what’s ahead of them.
“When I talked to both head coaches, coach Bray and coach Dickert, they’re pretty pumped up about it,” Steele said. “Because let’s face it, the schedule is a lot better, more manageable than it was playing in the rugged Pac-12 last year.”
Steele covered much more on college football, including the UW Huskies’ arrival in the Big Ten, during the conversation. Listen to the full interview in the podcast at this link or in the player near the top of this post, and catch Bump and Stacy from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. weekdays on Seattle Sports.
More on WSU Cougars football
• WSU, Oregon State determined to fight on as Pac-12, promise bright future
• Bump: Ex-WSU Cougars star has chance to be multi-year NFL starter
• Another WSU departure — voice of the Cougars finds a new home
• Caple: Why are Apple Cup tickets so expensive? Let’s examine
• State of WSU football and more: Cougars AD on the future
