5 games are in the books: a couple of nice wins, a couple of disheartening losses, a quarterback change, some inspiring Jimmy Rodgers interviews. Let’s take a look at how those first five opponents’ seasons are going and see if we can learn anything about ourselves moving forward.
First off, where we measure up:
Washington State (3–2) | 20.6 PPG (111th of 136) | 28.8 Points Allowed per Game (107th of 136) | RPI: #104 | Strength of Schedule: 77th
Game 1: Idaho 10 @ WSU 13
Idaho (2–3) | #15 FCS Coaches Poll | 25 PPG | 24.2 Points Allowed
- Wins: St. Thomas 30–37, Utah Tech 6–20
- Losses: at San Jose State 28–31, at Montana 30–41
Let’s call it what it was: a lucky win. First game of the season, hard to take too much from it. We held them to their lowest offensive output of the year, but other than that, I’m just glad we escaped our Moscow rivals with a win.
Game 2: San Diego State 13 @ WSU 36
San Diego State (3–1) | 23.75 PPG | 9.75 Points Allowed
- Wins: Stony Brook 0–42, Cal 0–34, at Northern Illinois 6–3
Looking back, this is a very strange result. Having been there last year when we played in Snapdragon Stadium, I wasn’t shocked we blew them out this season—they slogged to a 3–9 record in 2024, giving up nearly 30 points per game. Fast forward, and suddenly this might be a really good win. The Aztecs have allowed only 3 total points in their three games not against WSU, including a 34–0 beatdown of a Cal (4 - 1) team that hasn’t been held under 27 by anyone else. By year’s end, this one may age well.
Game 3: WSU 10 @ North Texas 59
North Texas (5–0) | #42 AP Poll | 44.8 PPG | 20 Points Allowed
- Wins: Lamar 0–51, at Western Michigan 33–30 (OT), at Army 45–38, South Alabama 22–36
One of the toughest watches as a Coug fan since the Paul Wulff years. There’s no real sugarcoating a 49-point loss. That said, North Texas looks legit, with one of the best Group of 5 offenses in the country.
Game 4: Washington 59 @ WSU 24
Washington (3–1) | 43.2 PPG | 19.8 Points Allowed
- Wins: at Colorado State 38–21, UC Davis 70–10
- Loss: vs. #1 Ohio State 24–6
The final score doesn’t reflect the game. It was 31–24 in the fourth quarter, and if our defense could’ve gotten one stop—or if Ellison extended his hands on that 30-yard go route on 3rd down—the story might have been different. Still, our offense put up the same number of points on UW as #1 Ohio State did.
Game 5: WSU 20 @ Colorado State 3
Colorado State (1–3) | 15.2 PPG | 23 Points Allowed
- Win: Northern Colorado 17–21
- Losses: at Washington 38–21, UTSA 17–16
As I noted in the preview, I was curious to see how a QB change would affect CSU’s offense. The result: their lowest output of the season. Hard to see many wins ahead for a team with the 6th-worst offense in the country.
Final Takeaways:
What may have looked like soft early games (San Diego State and North Texas) could actually turn out to be solid Group of 5 opponents. Outside of the North Texas result, I am quite pleased with WSU’s season so far. The team continues to develop, and after the Colorado State win, there’s no reason to think that we will not continue to develop as the season goes on. Go Cougs!