Washington State ranked No. 21 in season’s first Amway Coaches Poll

The season’s first Amway Coaches Poll (“powered by USA Today”) has your Washington State Cougars in at No. 21. WSU is one of five Pac-12 schools to open the season in the coaches poll. This is the first time in Mike Leach’s WSU tenure that WSU has opened the season in the top-25.

The Washington Huskies come in at No. 12, with the Oregon Ducks on their heels at No. 13. The Utah Utes—the favorite in the Pac-12 South—are No. 15 and the Stanford Cardinal are No. 23.

The Clemson Tigers are No. 1 and received all but six first-place votes. The Alabama Crimson Tide received those other six votes and will open the season at No. 2.

This is the first time since 2004 that WSU has opened the season ranked in the coaches poll. Back then, WSU came in at No. 23. We all know what happened next.

Getting five Pac-12 teams in the top-25 is a good start to the season. As we all know, the Pac-12 has a reputation problem due in large part to its performance on the field. It would be better if one of those five teams were in the top-10, but let’s take what we can get. Oregon plays No. 16 Auburn to open the season, and a lot is riding on that game already.