Is this the biggest Coug game in over 10 years?

[405 Coug]

How important is the Arizona game? While we can use the standard lines, it's just another game, play them one at a time, it's a long season, I personally view this as a very pivotal game and here are a few reasons what this win does
1. Gives the Cougs a chance to finish in the upper half of the conference, for the first time since 2003. Sure there are still a lot of games to go, but getting off to a 3-1 start, gives you a lot of momentum heading into the last 5 games, and could propel the team to 2-3 more wins and a very respectable record with 7-8 wins or more possible. A loss it will be a struggle to get to 6 IMO
2. Gives WSU a chance to host Game Day ( I hope this talk doesn't jinx us, as it does worry me), needless to say the exposure to the University and the football program, will help in recruiting students and football players.
3. Sets up a great game with Stanford, Cougs are still in the race for the Pac 12 north, and all of a sudden the ESPN game on Saturday becomes a much bigger deal, and hopefully leads to another sell out. Sure beating Stanford is a tall order, but if this offense is clicking, and the defense can come up with a few keep stops anything is possible, and I haven't felt that way in years. Once again more exposure and more recruits watching what is happening in Pullman, and they can see that this is getting to be an exciting team. I know a 7:30 start is not ideal and seems to keep fans away, but a win could get fans to go out of their way.

A loss is not the end of the season, and bowl hopes will still be there, but the buzz and excitement over Cougar football is just starting to get some traction, it would be nice to see it take off.

So here is hoping for a big win on Saturday, GO COUGS!

 

[SaveFerris]

How important is the Arizona game? While we can use the standard lines, it's just another game, play them one at a time, it's a long season, I personally view this as a very pivotal game and here are a few reasons what this win does
1. Gives the Cougs a chance to finish in the upper half of the conference, for the first time since 2003. Sure there are still a lot of games to go, but getting off to a 3-1 start, gives you a lot of momentum heading into the last 5 games, and could propel the team to 2-3 more wins and a very respectable record with 7-8 wins or more possible. A loss it will be a struggle to get to 6 IMO
2. Gives WSU a chance to host Game Day ( I hope this talk doesn't jinx us, as it does worry me), needless to say the exposure to the University and the football program, will help in recruiting students and football players.
3. Sets up a great game with Stanford, Cougs are still in the race for the Pac 12 north, and all of a sudden the ESPN game on Saturday becomes a much bigger deal, and hopefully leads to another sell out. Sure beating Stanford is a tall order, but if this offense is clicking, and the defense can come up with a few keep stops anything is possible, and I haven't felt that way in years. Once again more exposure and more recruits watching what is happening in Pullman, and they can see that this is getting to be an exciting team. I know a 7:30 start is not ideal and seems to keep fans away, but a win could get fans to go out of their way.

A loss is not the end of the season, and bowl hopes will still be there, but the buzz and excitement over Cougar football is just starting to get some traction, it would be nice to see it take off.

So here is hoping for a big win on Saturday, GO COUGS!

It's a huge game for all of the reasons given in your post and would put them 1 win away from bowl eligible. Something that many/most thought was impossible after game 1. I have had the same feeling on getting this win and having a shot to get to 7, 8 wins in the regular season but that is getting a bit ahead of things at this point.

It's been 3 straight game of "biggest Coug games" in a lot of ways but need to take care of business on Saturday and win a game they have every reason on paper to win.

 

[Flatlandcoug]

It's a huge game for all of the reasons given in your post and would put them 1 win away from bowl eligible. Something that many/most thought was impossible after game 1. I have had the same feeling on getting this win and having a shot to get to 7, 8 wins in the regular season but that is getting a bit ahead of things at this point.

It's been 3 straight game of "biggest Coug games" in a lot of ways but need to take care of business on Saturday and win a game they have every reason on paper to win.

That's the deal about starting to win games......every game is the "biggest game in years" if we keep winning. This game is huge in terms of getting to bowl eligibility, but if we win, the game against Stanford is for the opportunity/possibility to win the Pac-12 North. If we win that one, every game after that is huge for the same reason. Of all the things that are great about getting to 4-2, that sense that we are relevant is very high on the list.

 

[JBrown4435]

It sure feels like it to me!

 

[cr8zyncalif]

If you remove all the Apple Cups, then yes, I'd say the biggest game in 10 years. Last comparable game was when we gave the game away to UCLA after Jerome ran for a million yards and we were up by 3 TD's.

Let's hope for a different outcome this time. One thing I'll say for this team that you couldn't say for that team…this team has shown that it can finish.

 

[CougPatrol]

I don't think so. We had several bigger games, IMO, in 2013.

• Our home game vs. Utah that got us bowl eligible
• Arizona game the previous week where we earned our 5th win. No bowl if we lose that one.
• Bowl game vs. Colorado State
• Apple Cup
• Auburn & USC games to start the season

I think all of those games were bigger than Saturday's game vs. Arizona.

 

[chinookpirate]

Yes. Biggest game since sweeping the Oregon schools. Each win makes the next game that much more important.

If we beat Arizona...

Pullman, WA becomes the site of the Pac-12 North Championship in 7 days! ...and that my friends becomes the biggest game of the Mike Leach era in Pullman. The national hype for that game will be unreal.

 

[StormyCOUG42]

I don't think so. We had several bigger games, IMO, in 2013.

• Our home game vs. Utah that got us bowl eligible
• Arizona game the previous week where we earned our 5th win. No bowl if we lose that one.
• Bowl game vs. Colorado State
• Apple Cup
• Auburn & USC games to start the season

I think all of those games were bigger than Saturday's game vs. Arizona.

I'll buy the first two. Disagree on the rest. Sure, in hindsight the Auburn and USC games were huge for how the season played out... but I don't think too many folks thought so before hand.

 

[CougPatrol]

You disagree that Apple Cup 2013 was not bigger than a midseason game vs. Arizona? Our bowl game vs. Colorado State wasn't a major bowl, obviously; but we had the opportunity to win a bowl game and finish the season with a winning record. That hasn't been done too often at WSU.

 

[Flatlandcoug]

Getting down to the nitty gritty, when you look back at this season, this week's game against Arizona isn't likely going to be remembered as one of the biggest or most important games in the past 10 years. Realistically, it won't be in the top 10. If things go badly and we don't qualify for a bowl game, people will remember PSU as the game that cost us. If we qualify for a bowl game, people will point to the Oregon game as the one that got us over the hump. If we go on a roll and beat Stanford or UCLA, that game might be remembered as the most important. So, in the big picture, this weekend is really just another football game.

It's the one this week, and in Leach's book, that makes it the most important game of the past ten years and next ten years.......this week.

 

[Coug303]

Absolutely not. The 2015 Rutgers game was.

 

[YakiCoug]

Absolutely not. The 2015 Rutgers game was.

Without a win there, WSU starts 0-2 for the second consecutive year. We've won four of five since the flopalooza v. Portland State. A win tomorrow would definitely cause a stir.

 

[bogusto]

Without a win there, WSU starts 0-2 for the second consecutive year. We've won four of five since the flopalooza v. Portland State. A win tomorrow would definitely cause a stir.

We beat Arizona and Coug football is in a flamboyant state it hasn't seen since Doba's last bowl season of 2003. We become nationally relevant, at least for one week, and the upcoming game with Stanford takes on significance not seen since 2003. Whether we win another game or not, being 5-2 and in the center of football hype for an entire week is the best we've seen in that long of a span. So, yes, Arizona is our biggest game in over 10 years.

 

[Cougatron]

It's a big game because we can make another step towards the growth of the program.

In 10 years? I don't know about all that. It's just 1 game in a season where we are really competitive with the other Pac 12 teams and that is something that hasn't been around for 10 years.

It's exciting because every game we have a real honest chance to win, and I'm excited about this game and all the rest though out.

 

[chinookpirate]

You had better hope WSU fans don't feel like it's"just another game"... If they do, and we beat Arizona... and Stanford becomes "just another game"... Moos is screwed. He will have lost the war.

 

[YakiCoug]

Absolutely not. The 2015 Rutgers game was.

But what about the 2011 Idaho State game?