Welcome back, Cougar football

September 3.

The day that has been marked on our calendars since we came down from the euphoric high experienced after Washington State defeated Miami 19-16 in the 2015 S(now)un Bowl.

September 3 marks the 2016 season opener against Eastern Washington, located just 67 miles north off of Highway 195 in Cheney (CHEE-ney, not CHAIN-ey).

Well, Cougar family, that day is here.

This evening, Washington State will take the field at Martin Stadium against an opponent for the first time since last November when the Cougars dismantled the Colorado Buffaloes 27-3.

Tonight, however, Beau Baldwin and his Eagles look to start of their own season with an upset win over Washington State. Just like last year’s Portland State team, this Eastern squad is no “cupcake”. Lead by WR Cooper Kupp, Eastern Washington is ranked No. 14 by the STATS poll and will challenge for an FCS championship.

Despite going 0-4 in season openers under Mike Leach, tonight’s game is the perfect way to erase that zero in the win column. Luke Falk is healthy, the wide receiving corps only got stronger, and although they lost some key starters on defense, Alex Grinch knows how much his unit can improve in year two of his tenure.

Here are some questions to consider for tonight’s game and for the rest of the season:

• How many times does James Williams juke a defender out of their shoes?
• Will ESPN’s College Gameday make it to Pullman this year?
• What’s the over/under on Mike Leach gifs this season?
• And can this please be the year where a kick is returned for a touchdown?

Those questions and more will all be answered this season and that season starts tonight.

Welcome back, Cougar football. Welcome back.