This post is sponsored by EA Sports NCAA Football 11.

Well, everyone -- it's officially Christmas in July! I'll be heading to GameStop here shortly to pick up my very own copy of the game. But before I do, we conclude our week of posts (which have been incredibly fun) by bringing you a message from our sponsor:

When you go to particular school or grow up a around college football you are more than just a fan. It's who you are. We thought we could leverage this pride in your roots and show that ‘where you come from' is more than just a statement about geography. By positioning NCAA Football 11 as a game that understands this pride and is authentic to these traditions, the takeaway should be that anything that is in college football is in NCAA Football11.

And this doesn't just include game play (though that's a huge part of it). It's rivals and mascots; it's legends and stories. It's those things that are at the very fabric of the game itself. Of course the game is great this year as well. With authentic entrances, mascots and specific offenses for each team the term "where I come from" takes on a much larger meaning. While playing NCAA Football 11 is ultimately a great sports sim, it should also give you a sense of the pride and emotion one has for being a fan of a team they will never not be a part of.

If you want to purchase your very own copy of the game without leaving the comfort of your living room, click on one of the EA Sports NCAA Football 11 ads around the site. You can order directly from them.

Oh, and FYI: If you're on Xbox 360, my gamertag is NussCoug. Hit me up.

This is the sixth of a series of posts sponsored by EA Sports NCAA Football 11.

Craig (Dancing Football): Well, back to reality for us fellas! At least all this talk of Rose Bowls and a great players can give us some shred of hope that things will not always be like they have been.

EA Sports wants us to tell you our expectations for this season. I'm not really going to get into wins and losses, because that can get pretty bleak. I'll tell you what I expect from our players and coaching staff on the field, and I hope the added bonus of a few surprise victories (or close games for that matter) will come along if those expectations are met.

First, from the coaches, it is time to see what they've got. They were dealt a pretty sorry hand talent-wise initially, but they've got most of their guys on the field now. Granted, those guys are still younger and smaller than most teams around them, but I expect the playbook to open up a bit more on both sides of the ball.

From the players, I want to see some muscles! We were easily the scrawniest team on the block last season (thanks to playing a boatload of underclassmen), but we'll have a lot of returners who should have been spending the offseason in the weight room. Hopefully with that added strength comes some increased durability. This team was the most injured in the country last year, and we were definitely the BCS team that could least afford it. Any hope of this team making strides forward in the win column will hinge greatly on keeping the starters on the field.

That's all I've got for now. I'll definitely have more as the season draws closer. What say ye, my co-author brethren? What do you expect from Wulff and company this season?

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This is the fifth of a week-long series of posts sponsored by EA Sports NCAA Football 11.

Brian (cougfan): I chose a moment that I was present for. It was special to me because it was my last game as a student. I was fortunate enough to be in Pullman for the best run of Apple Cups WSU has ever had. During my time there, we only lost one, the 2006 game.

In 2008, the Huskies were historically bad. They were bad enough that it overshadowed how bad the Cougs were. WSU came in to the game only holding a win over Portland State -- though it cost them two starting quarterbacks. UW was on their way to perhaps going oh-fer on the year. The Apple Cup truly was the toilet bowl in 2008.

It didn't matter, though. Every Apple Cup generates a buzz between the two schools. The significance of sending our rival to the worst season in Pac-10 history piqued my interest. The game itself was exactly what I expected. Two terrible teams engaged in a 60-minute pillow fight, with WSU being on the wrong end of it for most of the game. UW's horrendous kicker, Ryan Perkins, took over, missing what amounted to chip shots and giving the Cougs a glimmer of hope. Jared Karstetter -- a true freshman -- introduced himself to the world (or the 30,000 people watching) by streaking down the sidelines to catch a Kevin Lopina pass to set up Nico Grasu -- the still shaky Grasu -- for a game-tying field goal (make sure you've got Windows Media Player installed for this one).

Overtime was still a battle of inept offenses. UW and WSU traded field goals in the first overtime. In the second, Ryan Perkins came through, missing another field goal (his third on the day). The Cougs ran three useless plays, and this happened:

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This is the fourth of a week-long series of posts sponsored by EA Sports NCAA Football 11.

Jeff: This is such a tough one for me. Do I go with the superlative talent? If I go that direction, it has to be Ryan Leaf. The guy was a jerk to me and pretty much everyone else while at WSU (although it sounds like he's got things back on track), but for pure jaw-dropping ability, nobody else I ever watched in crimson and gray even comes close -- and that includes Jerome Harrison, who was amazing.

But since I had a lot of personal interactions with a lot of players in my role as reporter while at WSU, I can't view these guys in a vacuum. For that reason, I'm left with only one choice.

Leon Bender.

One of the most genuinely nice guys you'd ever want to meet, he was an absolute force up the middle on that 1997 defense. He'd candidly speak his mind on a variety of topics (a reporter's dream, and something that earned me a little "talking to" by Mike Price, but that's another story for another day) during the week, and then torment opposing offensive linemen on Saturdays. He was so good, he was drafted in the second round by the Oakland Raiders.

Five weeks later, he was dead. Truly one of the saddest stories I've ever experienced -- if anyone deserved to make it big, it was him.

"He was just a big kid who wanted to play football," said longtime league personnel director Ken Herock, part of the Raiders' scouting staff when the impressionable Bender was being evaluated. "Was he the most polished guy you had ever seen. No, he wasn't, not at all. But he wanted to be good. He wanted to please people. We knew, from talking to people at Washington State, that he was very coachable. And he was a hard worker, so, who can tell where all those things would have taken him?"

For me, it'll always be Bender.

Craig (Dancing Football): Lucky for me Nuss, I don't know many Cougar football players on a personal level so I can judge my favorites entirely on their performance on the field.

If I was going to choose my favorite by the most dominating player I've seen in my limited time as a Coug fan, it would easily be Jerome Harrison. I remember reading the Daily Evergreen's season preview for 2005 when Jerome said he would be disappointed with anything less than an 1800 yard season. I laughed and thought and said to anyone that would hear,"If he goes for 1800 this year, we will win the Pac-10." Of course, he actually ran for 1900!!! yards in only 11 games and we happily went to our third Rose Bowl in eight years. What's that? 4-7? Damn.

While I love Jerome just as much as the next Coug, I have to say there has never been a Coug I enjoyed watching more than Jed Collins. He wasn't the best player, he wasn't super-athletic, but he still managed to make many a highlight reel play. His trademark maneuver was to avoid the juke move all together and, to steal a phrase from our beloved sponsors, use the "truck stick." This resulted in many hilarious collisions with smaller defensive backs. He was an effective pass catcher out the tight end spot and our fullback for short yardage plays. He had badass long hair flowing out of his helmet. He was the complete "everyman" package and I loved every minute of it. I wasn't the only one that noticed his excellence, as he signed a free agent contract with Philadelphia.

The next year I met someone who, once discovering I was a Coug, told me she was dating a former WSU player that plays in Philadelphia. I knew it was Jed and it took all I had to keep myself from professing my undying admiration for her boyfriend. One of my good friends was interested in the girl and after hearing from me how Jed is one of the greatest human beings to walk the Earth, he may have become a bit discouraged. I don't feel bad though, because seriously dude, you're competing with an NFL player!

Anyways, Jed was the man. For me, it may not always be Jed, but for now it definitely is.

Grady: I loved watching Jed Collins, too. He's not my all-time favorite, but I'm about 90% sure he could headbutt a mountain and make it crumble. He is our Chuck Norris.

The one name that keeps coming up in my mind when discussing this topic is Jerome Harrison. The highlight of this past NFL season for me was The Ghost - out of nowhere - completely messing up everyone's fantasy league for a couple of weeks with the Browns. Jerome was always a surprise at WSU - he ran with the kind of consistency you'd expect from a high school All-American, not a junior college transfer. At his best he was unstoppable, and at his worst he was still better than any other Cougar running back this decade. His moves were fluid; his ability to burst through holes was always jaw-dropping. Harrison, at pass-happy Wazzu, became a solid Heisman candidate as a running back. Imagine that.

This is the third of a week-long series of posts sponsored by EA Sports NCAA Football 11.

Jeff: I gotta be honest. I didn't have too many tailgating traditions while in school, as two of my first three years were spent in press boxes covering the team for The Daily Evergreen.

But my senior year probably was like a lot of people, given the proximity of most peoples' housing to Martin Stadium: Gather at the fraternity with my best buds, eat some breakfast, gather in the basement to watch some of the early morning football, listen to music and consume some adult beverages.

It wasn't tailgating in the traditional sense of the word, but it was a heck of a lot of fun to get primed and pumped for Cougar Football Saturday.

Grady: First, a confession to make -- I have never tailgated at a Coug game. You have to consider the fact that a) I've been living in Pullman for most of the last seven years and didn't need to drive to the game and b) I was a student for six of those seven years and spent most of my pre-game time in line.

So, in reality, that's my tailgating tradition. Waiting in line with the rest of the die-hard student fans. Cards are a lifesaver for this experience, as is talking sports in general with my friends. Or making fun of other people in line (terrible, I know), booing the occasional opposing fan and crafting strategies to get the best seat possible once inside.

I would kill to have had my Droid or any smartphone in my possession as a student. Truly the best way to pass time, keep track on scores from other games, surf the web and play games.

So, for all you kids with iPhones in line this fall: SCREW YOU. You don't know what true boredom is, and you should have to suffer like the rest of us suffered.

Craig (Dancing Football): I've had similar experiences to Grady and Jeff. When I was student teaching and came back to Pullman for every football game, I would usually enjoy pregame beverages at a friend's house, then sneak into the front few rows of the student section about 10 minutes before kickoff. (Props to Legion of Coug, for which I am an honorary non-Beta member.)

Before you get mad about that, know that I earned it. I came to every game at least five hours early. I dressed up like a complete idiot (my moniker was the "Crimson Communist"). I spent four years going to football games without a drop of alcohol in my body; that student teaching year the idea of waiting five hours in line after driving three and a half to get there was no longer appealing.

As for those Saturdays I spent on the pavement outside Martin Stadium, I know exactly what you are talking about, Grady. At least five hours prior was the rule. There were certain groups that knew where they were going (the 20, the 35, and the 50) and we all stayed out of each other's way. Cards were most definitely a savior. My group of friends discovered a pretty entertaining set made by the Cranium folks. I don't remember what the rules were or what it was called, but it was awesome.

When my college days were finally over and I had assigned seats for the first time, that's when I experienced some real tailgaiting. My best friend's aunt and uncle are from the Tri-Cities and they go all out. Many of you would probably recognize their setup. They cook the best chili around (and offer it to all passer's by), have a dog named "Butch" that will growl and bark at the word "Huskies," and they have a giant picture of the real Butch on the side of their RV. Spending pregames with them is a blast. The aforementioned chili, shots of Tuaca, and an endless supply of cheap beer, then the promise of the same after the game finishes makes the beat downs a little easier to bear.

In cases like Apple Cup 2008, it makes a truly memorable experience. Nothing beats taking celebration shot after celebration shot with complete strangers after putting your hated rival on the brink of an 0-12 season. (Photo evidence at the top of this post -- I'm the one on the right.)

Brian (cougfan): My tailgating traditions were similar to all of yours. At WSU, the tailgating isn't like most schools. For undergrads, it consists of either waiting in line for the student section, or drinking at various houses throughout College Hill.

A typical Saturday for me meant waking up for College Gameday, having a few beverages in the morning, and watching the early games on a big screen in the basement. In the event of a Thursday night game -- Idaho during my early days there -- it meant getting out of class and seeing just how much fun we could have before the game. I've never seen so many falling down drunk students as I have during a night game in Pullman.

As I moved on from WSU, tailgating home games shifted to spending time at the Fieldhouse. The Fieldhouse is an underrated aspect of the WSU gameday experience. I highly suggest Mikey's gyros to go with your pre-game beers.

The first real tailgate I experienced was at the first Qwest Field game I went to. They've cracked down now -- to the point of not allowing it anywhere -- but the first time I went was a giant party that spread from Touchdown City to the South lot at Qwest. There was food, drinks, and WSU flags waving everywhere. As we left, it looked like a Busch Light factory exploded in the parking lot. It was a sight to behold.

Jeff: Trust me, Brian -- as a Seahawks season ticket holder, there is still tailgating around Qwest. You just gotta know where to find it. And I actually have tailgated once for a game in Pullman -- the same 2008 Apple Cup that Craig referenced. (How it is we never met that day is beyond me.) Unfortunately, before the game, I spent it with a bunch of Huskies. Fortunately, after the game, I spent it with a bunch of Huskies.

With that, we throw it open to you guys. We're especially interested to hear from those of you who tailgate regularly at WSU games. What's your routine? Where do you hang out? What do you consider the ideal tailgate?

And, of course, most importantly: To which game this year are we invited to join you?

This is the second of a week-long series of posts sponsored by EA Sports NCAA Football 11.

Jeff Nusser: This is a no-brainer for me. I was a junior at WSU in 1997 and editor in chief of The Daily Evergreen. You know what that means: I had a front-row seat to perhaps the greatest sports story in the history of Washington State University. There were some expectations coming into the season -- after all, we were a Chad Carpenter toe away from going to a bowl game the year before -- but nothing could have prepared us for what we were going to witness that year.

The funny thing is that it almost didn't even get off the ground. We opened the year with UCLA, and only a game-saving stuff at the goal line by perhaps my favorite Coug of all time, Leon Bender, got the season off to a 1-0 start. We could never have imagined at the time how enormous that play would be, as that head-to-head victory over the Bruins proved to be the tiebreaker that got us to our first Rose Bowl in 67 years.

I have so many memories from that season -- Ryan Leaf doing otherworldly things; the Fab Five; the Fat Five; Michael Black running past, around and through defenders; Dorian Boose killing quarterbacks; Brandon Moore decapitating running backs -- it gives me goosebumps just thinking about it again.

Brian (cougfan): Showing our generational gap, mine is the 2002 team. The season began with WSU football being brought to my doorstep in Seattle and the birth of the Qwest Field game. It also introduced the world to Will Derting, who became a cult-like figure during his time at WSU. There wasn't a better way to start of a season than in front of a sold out Qwest Field and a standout performance from a middle linebacker, of all people.

The defense was a who's who of Cougar stars. Marcus Trufant, Erik Coleman, Rien Long, Jason David, and Karl Paymah all spent time in the rotation. Looking back on it, the star power of that defense was something we haven't seen in a long time.

On the offensive side of the ball, it was the Jason Gesser show. With Mike Bush, Devard Darling, and the rest of the Coug receivers stepping up, Gesser put on a show of fortitude and heart throughout the season, giving the fans a show the whole way. The Cougar offense was exciting to watch and much of that stemmed from Gesser being at the helm.

The season itself was in the midst of the "golden years" at WSU. The Cougs lost at Ohio State early in the season and didn't "lose" again until November. Along the way, Drew Dunning became a household name and the Cougs became the conference champions. (It wasn't a backwards pass, by the way.) In the end, it didn't matter. WSU was back in the Rose Bowl for the second time in recent history. For me, that team, and the three years culminating with the Holiday Bowl win, were the height of Cougar football.

Grady: Nothing compares to those three 10-win seasons. That may easily be the greatest era in Cougar football. And even though I was in school at WSU for the tail end of it, I still can't bring myself to place any of those teams higher than the '97 squad.

There was a certain magic behind those 1997 Cougars. Jason Gesser won games, certainly, but Ryan Leaf was a phenomenal talent. Anyone who says they foresaw the downfall of Leaf in the NFL either had intimate knowledge of Leaf's personal issues, or is lying. Because Ryan Leaf the quarterback possessed all the physical tools imaginable in a college quarterback. And the surrounding cast? Exceptional. On both sides of the ball. I still believe if Michael Black had stayed healthy throughout the whole Rose Bowl, the Cougars win that game.

There was no letdown, no you-know-whatting it, in any game. Sure, they had a rough game on the road against ASU, but that was forgivable. That team finished the regular season by storming the shores of Montlake, and tearing apart the Huskies' defense in a game they absolutely had to win. There's nothing more satisfying than humbling your rival in their house, especially when it had been previously been deemed unthinkable that the Cougs could be the dominant program in the state.

The Rose Bowl finish was disappointing, but they took Michigan to the final buzzer. They went down swinging, and they made everyone proud in the process. That year was the closest thing we've ever had to a perfect season.

Jeff: I was at that game at ASU. What a surreal experience. It was definitely a forgivable loss, but man it sure felt like a game we could have won. Even as we were coming back at the end, if only Leaf had hesitated on his cadence, rather than allowing the blitzing linebacker to time his way through the line perfectly before dislodging the ball, which would eventually be returned for a touchdown.

My most vivid memory from that game was Mike Price crying in the postgame news conference. He kept blaming himself for all of these things, and I remember thinking that he was taking it way too hard. It was only later that I realized why he was crying. They were only the No. 10 team before the loss, but Price already knew what it would take the rest of the season for all of us to figure out: That team was national championship quality. 

We found that out once and for all in the Apple Cup. When Chris Jackson ran over Tony Parrish, I knew it was our day. (Putting Brock Huard on his back 30 times didn't hurt, either.) I'll never forget the feeling of storming the field at Husky Stadium and celebrating on that ugly purple W with about 5,000 of my closest friends.

To me, that's why no other team -- barring an actual national championship -- will supplant them in my eyes. They were, without a doubt, the best football team ever to don the crimson and gray.

Craig (Dancing Football): Considering the fact that I have only been a Coug fan since 2003, when I enrolled at WSU, it shouldn't take you long to guess which is my favorite football season.

My freshman year of college, the school was still buzzing about its second Rose Bowl trip in six seasons. However, reading preseason polls and predictions had me believing that I missed the glory days of Coug football. Lucky for me, the nine returning starters on defense thought differently.

My first WSU football game did little to squelch my fears. WSU played a terrible Idaho team at Qwest field and came away with about the ugliest 25 point win I've ever seen. What had me worried was the terrible play on offense. What I clearly should have been focused was the dominating shutout performance by the defense.

The defense is what made that 2003 team special. We haven't seen anything come close to it in the seasons that had followed. While Matt Kegel, Devard Darling, Sammy Moore, and Scott Lunde provided some great moments, the defense was turning close games into blowouts. It seemed that every time the opposing team came close to pulling an upset, Jason David would step in front of an out route and take it the distance. D.D. Acholonu would introduce a quarterback to the Martin Stadium turf. Will Derting would do his best to remove someone's head from his body. It was the only time as a Coug football fan I've ever felt confidence in the defense.Because of them, the Cougs were actually able to prevail in a game when their quarterback threw five interceptions. That's pretty ridiculous to think about when considering the drubbings that have been happening these last few seasons.

The defense made it's stamp on national television against the fifth-ranked Texas Longhorns and it is a big reason why Robb Akey has a head coaching job right now. That game was as much fun as I will ever have watching a Cougar football game, and I still point it out to any new person I meet who tries to scoff at our program's relevance.

Thanks to my timely arrival, I didn't see the Cougs lose a game in person my for an entire year. Maybe I should have retired while I was ahead!

Jeff: That 2003 team is actually a close second for me. The reason? I was at the 2003 Holiday Bowl on my honeymoon. How awesome is my wife?

Brian: That 1997 team may have been the best, but from 2001-2003 we saw a run of success we'd never seen before. The Cougs played an entertaining brand of football en route to those three consecutive 10-win seasons. In the last decade, I believe only Oregon and USC accomplished the same feat. It may seem like a long time ago, but there was a time when the Cougs were the powerhouse, not the doormat.

Jeff: The one weakness I see in our list here is nothing before 1997. Surely there has to be someone out there who's been around longer than us with a personal favorite not tied to the recent past. Maybe the Palouse Posse? Older? What do you all think?

This is the first of a week-long series of posts sponsored by EA Sports NCAA Football 11.

Jeff Nusser: I imagine my story starts out like a lot of other Cougs. I grew up in Western Washington, was a Husky fan -- my dad had football season tickets until this past year -- and since my college financing options were limited, I was faced with the choice of going to UW or WSU. After being taken on what amounted to a recruiting trip to Pullman by one of my teachers, I was hooked -- I just flat-out loved the idea of going to school in a college town.

That said, there's a big difference between choosing a school and becoming the kind of crazy fan who will devote insane amounts of hours to writing about a school's sports teams. You know when I first knew I was going to love this place? When I learned the fight song during orientation. Seriously. I got goosebumps singing it with the other incoming freshman at the end of the second day.

Brian (cougfan): I also grew up in Western Washington, but in a family that was all Cougs. My dad's entire side of the family went to Washington State, so we had deep roots there. One of my first memories was watching the "Snow Bowl" with the family and watching Philip Bobo slide into the snow banks in a game that looked like the best thing in the world to a 7 year old.

Being a Seattle sports fan conditioned me for life as a Coug. I found out I was accepted to WSU while watching the Cougs battle undefeated Stanford on the hardcourt in 2004. One minute I was celebrating what looked like a sure win over the No.1 Cardinal; the next I was wondering what happened as Matt Lottich had his prayer answered while falling out of bounds. I knew then that I was in for a rough time as a Coug, but a time that I would love every minute of.

Jeff: Funny thing about that Snow Bowl -- I was heartbroken as a Husky fan. Now I own it as a Coug. Is that legal?

Craig (Dancing Football): You paid thousands of dollars in tuition and interest on student loans to "own" that game, Jeff. So own away!

My story is similar to Nuss. I grew up in Yakima rooting for the Huskies because they were the team on television. I never formed any real strong bond with their teams and I don't really have any lasting memories from any particular game. They were the "local" team so I felt the need to give them my allegiance.

When it came to applying to college I had two criteria: the school had to be in-state and the school had to have major college athletics. Needless to say, I only sent applications to two schools.

Contrary to a common myth in Husky circles, I did get into the University of Washington (so did my WSU-grad girlfriend). I chose WSU because of the scholarships and because my two best friends were headed there. The biggest allure for me to UW was living in Seattle, because I "never would live there otherwise" and I wanted to
experience life in a big city. Turns out I made an excellent choice. Pullman was a perfect college experience and I moved to Seattle right after college anyway.

Now it's seven years later and I'm one of those crazy fans that Jeff mentioned, spending hours of my life each week on my beloved Cougs.

Brian: With Pullman being so isolated, and being a true college town, it seems like it's easy to become a die-hard fan without even realizing it. The sense of community created by living in Pullman and attending WSU translates directly into fandom. Where else does it seem normal to camp out all night for basketball and football games, braving temperatures well below freezing?

The fact that there's nothing else to do in Pullman besides drink and go to football games almost breeds die-hard fans. The town shuts down on Cougar Football Saturdays -- and I wouldn't have it any other way.

Jeff: I think that's the thing that people from more metropolitan areas have a hard time understanding. They can't for the life of them fathom why someone would enjoy being there. And on its surface, they're sort of right -- I mean, Pullman isn't as big or diverse as any other city in the Pac-10.

But as Paul Wulff has continually sold to recruits, that's the charm. With nothing else around, everyone is stuck there together -- something commuters at UW will never understand. And, by the way, you can actually walk the streets at 2 a.m. without worrying about getting stabbed.

Grady, you're actually from a WSU hotbed -- how did your fandom form?

Grady: No doubt I was in the right place -- Spokane. But I also had the fortune of being there at the right time. My family moved around a lot when I was a kid, before we finally settled in the Lilac City. When your first college football experience is in Pullman, and the year is 1997, it's hard not to get hooked.

I thought at the time I was seeing a juggernaut -- we went to the 77-7 routing of the Lousiana-Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns. It was like someone had turned the skill level down to junior varsity on NCAA Football for the XBox (plug!) and was beating up on the opposition just for fun. However, I was also hooked on the atmosphere (one of the reasons I'm falling for the Sounders now), and the joy of the pilgrimage to the middle of nowhere just to support your team. Everyone else there was in the same boat.

Of course, being a Coug fan is a series of ups and downs. And the high of the '97 regular season was followed by the sting of the fact there should still be two seconds left in the 1998 Rose Bowl. It was then that I truly 'got it'. Not only were WSU the underdogs, but the odds were stacked against us too. Not all college programs were created equal. It made me want to root harder for the Cougs to succeed. It also made me hate Lloyd Carr. But I digress.

My Coug fandom leveled off for a few years before I spurned Oregon and Washington to come to Pullman in 2003. I chose Wazzu because, among many reasons, it felt like home. I can't help but think driving down there with my dad on a few random Saturdays had something to do with that. I was a staunch Gonzaga basketball fan at the time. But Dick Bennett made me fall in love with defense -- and college basketball for that matter -- and by the time the Zags came to town for the first time in my college career I came dressed in crimson, rooting against GU and for the Cougs. The Cougs lost that year, but they put up a better fight than they had put up against Zags in years. I didn't matter; I was a Coug fan. I never looked back.

Jeff: I suppose we all have those moments that we look back on and realize that was "it" for us. So we throw it out to you guys: How did you become a died in the wool, bleeding crimson Coug?