WSU’s 2020 football schedule: Another Black Friday Apple Cup

A scant eight months before its season is slated to begin, the Washington State Cougars have released their 2020 football schedule. The non-conference dates have been known for some time, as have the home and away splits, but now we have the order of events for the conference run. Get your hotel reservations ready.

The first thing to note is that the conference is back to a single bye week, and the Cougars’ bye week falls in late October, right in the middle of the conference schedule. There are seven Friday night games in the conference schedule this year (and one Thrusday night tilt) but WSU will only play in one of them, everybody’s favorite Black Friday Apple Cup. And that is preceded by everybody’s other favorite, the home game before Thanksgiving Break.

Nick Rolovich will begin his regime on the Palouse on September 5th against a familiar foe in the Mountain West’s Utah State Aggies. After the trip to Logan, the new head coach will make his Martin Stadium debut against the Houston Cougars, followed by a visit from FCS Idaho. Then the Pac-12 slate begins with a visit to the Oregon State Beavers. Overall, the Cougs will play in the friendly confines of Martin Stadium seven times and travel five times. There is only one back-to-back set of road games, with the Cougs going to the Colorado Buffaloes and to the UCLA Bruins on consecutive weekends.

How do you think the Cougs will fare in 2020? Does Nick Rolovich find six wins and continue the program-record bowl run started by Mike Leach? More? Less?