Will Luke Falk set records in 2016?

Cougar quarterback Luke Falk led the FBS in pass completions and attempts in 2015 while missing action in three games. He looks primed to be atop the leader boards in 2016, and may be in position to take down records along the way.

Thursday, Athlon Sports published their "10 Most Important Storylines" for Pac-12 football in 2016. Falk going for records came in at number seven on the list. While the distinction would be cool for Falk and WSU, I'm not sure how necessary that outrageous numbers by the quarterback will be to a successful season for the Cougs

If the Cougs beat up on a few of their early season opponents (Idaho, EWU), Falk could be pulled from the game early, limiting his counting stats. If WSU can pull off the gas pedal in games it might not be the worst thing, but it won't help the box score. However, if Falk is torching defenses that's going to help the Cougs win football games, and pad his stats.

Looking at his numbers from 2015, only a slight uptick in overall usage and accuracy should put him within striking distance of the pass attempts and completion records. Falk was 65 completions short of Graham Harrell's record 512, and 75 attempts shy of B.J. Symons' 719.

If he would have been injury free last year Falk may have claimed the latter record. He averaged 53.67 passes a game (644 on the season), so if he kept that pace in the Apple Cup he would only need 21 more passes in the time he missed against Colorado and UCLA. Alas, let us not dwell too much on the missed opportunities of the past.

A final record to consider is Symons' season passing yards total of 5833. Falk fell well short of that number last season (he threw for 4561 yards), but I expect the Cougs offense to be improved in 2016. Regardless, in order for Falk to beat out former Leach pupils themselves, WSU will need to protect its star quarterback.

Do you think Falk will break any of these records this season?

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