A closer look at WSU's Holiday Bowl week events

Right now, the Washington State Cougars are suffering through the high 20 degrees and snow in Pullman. But come Thursday afternoon, they'll be bathing in the 65 degree sunny weather of San Diego.

That's right, it's Holiday Bowl week for your Washington State Cougars. They'll take off for Southern California on Thursday to start their preparation for kickoff against Minnesota... Yep, Still Minnesota...

But it won't be all tanning and practice for the Cougars in the place they call "America's Finest City." Like every good bowl game, the Holiday Bowl has a full week of fun activities planned to get the teams acquainted to the city. So, let's take a closer look at what Mike Leach, Luke Falk and company will be doing over the next few days:

• Saturday, 12/24: Navy Ship Tour - On Christmas Eve, both teams will visit a Navy ship docked at the 32nd street Navy Base in San Diego. As far as I can tell, the specific ship isn't publicly available, but last season, Wisconsin and USC took at trip to the USS Theodore Roosevelt.
• Sunday, 12/25: San Diego Zoo - On Christmas day, the teams will split for different animal-themed activities. While the Golden Gophers enjoy SeaWorld, the Cougs will be at the San Diego Zoo. The bowl says the team will have 3-4 hours to tour the Zoo and enjoy the sights and sounds. Personally, I just hope Gabe Marks gets to see the baby pandas. He loves those baby pandas.

  Happy Monday. Here's @throwitupto9 talking about all the animals at the @sandiegozoo that he's excited to see #HolidayBowl pic.twitter.com/Ig0EQoHmic

  — Lindsay Joy (@SWXLindsayJoy) December 12, 2016

• Monday, 12/26 - The day before is a busy one for both teams. The coaches will meet at 10:30 for a pre-bowl press conference at the official media hotel. The teams will join fans at a luncheon at noon. Then, at 6 o'clock, it's the first annual battle of the bands as the Cougar Marching Band takes on Minnesota. If you're heading to San Diego, the Holiday Bowl says the battle of the bands is free to the public.
• Tuesday, 12/27: Gameday - It's just about time for the game, but first: a parade. Apparently, this one is known as "America's Largest Balloon Parade." The event will also include the "Bumblebee Seafoods 5K," which sounds... Weird. The parade/5K starts at 10 AM, which gives you plenty of time to tailgate before the 4 o'clock kickoff in Qualcomm Stadium.

Football

Minnesota vs. Washington State: Holiday Bowl pick, odds, line, watch live stream - CBSSports.com
The Holiday Bowl has received a lot of attention recently, but only because there was a chance one of the teams wouldn't show up, as Minnesota players had a brief boycott following the suspension of 10 Gophers players. They're back, though, and the game will go on.

Pac-12 position unit rankings: Linebackers - Pac-12 Blog- ESPN
Peyton Pelluer again led the Cougars with 89 tackles, and Isaac Dotson contributed 56 in a nice year, but this Washington State defense was more rooted in the versatility of its defensive backs.

Basketball

Cougars Close Nonconference Play Wednesday at Beasley Coliseum - WSUCougars.com | Washington State University Athletics
The Washington State men's basketball team (6-5) concludes nonconference play hosting Sacramento State, Saturday, Dec. 21 at 1 6 p.m. at Beasley Coliseum.

Final Non-Conference Tilt On Tap For Cougars At #18 Kentucky - WSUCougars.com | Washington State University Athletics
The Cougars take on the Wildcats in Lexington Wednesday afternoon.

UK Hosts Washington State Wednesday At Noon - LEX18.com | Continuous News and StormTracker Weather

After arguably its best defensive performance of the season last Sunday against Radford, limiting the Highlanders to just 36 points on 26.4 percent shooting, the No. 18 University of Kentucky women’s basketball team looks to continue that success Wednesday at Noon ET as it ends its home non-conference schedule against Washington State inside Memorial Coliseum.