CougCenter - Apple Cup 2014, WSU vs. Washington: Huskies whip CougarsWhy Washington State? Well that's a stupid question.https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/47853/fave.png2014-12-02T09:52:49-08:00http://www.cougcenter.com/rss/stream/70714022014-12-02T09:52:49-08:002014-12-02T09:52:49-08:00Watch Steve Gleason's pre-game speech
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<p>The Apple Cup didn't turn out well for Washington State, but there was something bigger happening before and even during the game. It was Steve Gleason's day, and he was inducted in the Washington State University Athletics Hall of Fame between the first and second quarter, receiving a loud standing ovation from the crowd.</p>
<p>Before the game, though, Gleason spoke to the Cougars in the locker room, as he did three years ago before the Arizona State game. As he always does so well, Gleason delivered an inspiration message -- one that resonated players and coaches.</p>
<p>Gleason's pre-game speech was less about the task at hand and more about life and the lessons from football in general, as well as his battle with ALS. His wisdom and grace remain an inspiration to everyone that comes into contact with him.</p>
<p>You can watch the package put together by KREM's Darnay Tripp below. Also <a target="_blank" href="http://www.krem.com/longform/news/health/projectinspire/2014/12/01/steve-gleason-apple-cup-speech/19753239/">go read his longer piece on Gleason's weekend</a>, which is very much worth the time.</p>
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<p>Just one quick quote to point out:</p>
<p>"The experts might say my play clock is ticking, but I have no intention of fading away … I now have a calming sense of certainty. I plan to be here for decades."</p>
<p>#NoWhiteFlags</p>
https://www.cougcenter.com/2014/12/2/7320307/steve-gleason-speech-video-apple-cupBrian Floyd2014-11-30T13:05:13-08:002014-11-30T13:05:13-08:00Watch the Steve Gleason WSU HOF ceremony
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<p>The game didn't turn out well, but Steve Gleason's WSU HOF induction was the coolest part of the Apple Cup.</p> <p>Steve Gleason was honored on the field at Martin Stadium following the first quarter of Saturday night's Apple Cup as he was inducted into the Washington State University Athletics Hall Of Fame as the lone member of the 2014 class. The ceremony came after Gleason flew into town on Friday and spent time around the football facilities before the game.</p>
<p>He <a href="http://www.cougcenter.com/2014/11/29/7308077/steve-gleason-in-the-locker-room-for-his-pregame-speech" target="_blank">gave a speech to the team</a>, which wore <a href="http://www.cougcenter.com/2014/11/29/7307919/steve-gleason-helmet-stickers-are-happening" target="_blank">No White Flags decals on their helmets</a>, and was accompanied on the field by his wife, Michel, and his young son Rivers. Meeting him for the ceremony was Bill Doba, Mike Price and Bill Moos -- former coaches of Gleason's and the current athletic director.</p>
<p>It wasn't shown on television, but the video above is from Myk Crawford in the stands. It captures the recorded video Gleason prepared, as well as the ceremony and ovation.</p>
<p>Below is a quick transcript with a few short parts missing that I couldn't make out on the video.</p>
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<p>Hey there Cougar fans. It is a tremendous honor to be here tonight. Thank you for recognizing me. This is my third Apple Cup as a spectator. My first Apple Cup was in 1992 ... Snow Bowl. My second Apple Cup, I came to watch the Cougs ... the Huskies in 1994. I plan to keep my undefeated spectator status tonight. It feels like yesterday that I played in the 97 Apple Cup, beating the Huskies in their house to win the Pac-10 Championship and make our way to Pasadena and the Rose Bowl. Living in New Orleans for the past 14 years, I've gained a nostalgic perspective on the state of Washington. To put it very simply, I love this place. I'm here to thank the entire state, both Cougars and Huskies .. the university, thank you again for the honor tonight. Go Cougs.</p>
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https://www.cougcenter.com/2014/11/30/7310755/steve-gleason-apple-cup-ceremony-videoBrian Floyd2014-11-30T10:49:36-08:002014-11-30T10:49:36-08:00At least the dang season is over
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<p>With a <a href="http://www.cougcenter.com/2014-apple-cup/2014/11/29/7308649/apple-cup-2014-uw-dominates-wsu-31-13" target="_blank">listless performance in the Apple Cup</a> and a struggle to score even one touchdown to preserve a meaningless streak in which Mike Leach has never been shutout in his head coaching career, the Washington State Cougars limped into the offseason. Instead of looking back at the game or the season, perhaps it's good to just be thankful it's over. After a wild ride to a bowl game last year, this season … well, this season wasn't much fun at all.</p>
<p>It was a lost season, and it had been lost since sometime late in September -- never mind the loss the Rutgers that probably shouldn't have been a loss to start the year. The rest was just going through the motions: parking in front of a TV on Saturday hoping to see something good and savoring it all because it's football and there's only a finite amount of it each year.</p>
<p>I hate the college football offseason. It's a dark time without football, save for the pop-up events that are signing day and spring ball, and the appetizer to the season that is fall camp. For all but one team, the offseason begins with lamenting lost chances and works its way up towards hope. That hope will inevitably come crashing down sooner than later. The longer into the season it stays alive, the better.</p>
<p>That period of time this season was short. It lasted maybe a month, if not less. From there, it became desperation: Maybe Washington State can pull off an upset or two and claw its way to a bowl. If there was a final step, the "what about ripping off four-straight and finishing at .500," that was gone in the first quarter of the USC game when Connor Halliday went down. <a href="http://www.cougcenter.com/wsu-cougars-football/2014/11/1/7144319/connor-halliday-injury-broken-fibula-wsu-football" target="_blank">One of the last fun things about the team was gone</a>.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.cougcenter.com/wsu-cougars-football/2014/11/13/7181283/wsu-vs-oregon-state-luke-falk-recap" target="_blank">Luke Falk presented a form of hope against Oregon State</a> and managed to win in Corvallis before reminding us he's a redshirt freshman with a lot of things to learn in his final two games. That Oregon State game was one of two highlights this season -- the other being a comeback win against Utah* -- and that's not saying anything good.</p>
<p><i>*That comeback win against Utah was followed by <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/college-football/2014/10/6/6918123/california-washington-state-game-2014-stats" target="_blank">perhaps the dumbest game I've ever seen</a>. Those two games encapsulate Washington State fandom in a tidy back-to-back week package: Hope because something very cool happened followed by deflation because something very stupid happened.</i></p>
<p>Take that furious, one-point comeback win over Utah out and you have this: Paul Wulff's 2010 season almost to a perfect fit -- a win over an FCS team, a surprising win over Oregon State on the road and that's pretty much it. The 2010 season wasn't very fun, and neither was the 2014 campaign.</p>
<p>But it's over, and we can take some solace in that. There will be changes, perhaps even some drastic ones. That's almost certainly a guarantee after a season that saw serious regression over the one prior to it, and we've already heard rumblings about some of them.</p>
<p>With those changes comes hope, because college football is an endless, painful cycle with peaks and valleys that come before the emotional roller coaster of the season even begins. We'll watch the offseason, and any staff changes that will inevitably come, and recruiting and murmurs of breakout players and new wrinkles on the offense and defense because that's what college football fans do.</p>
<p>And then we'll start over again in late August and early September. You're a college football fan that gets kicked in the face more often than not because you root for or connected to Washington State. And you keep getting back up because you never know exactly what the hell will happen next, and because there's still hope.</p>
https://www.cougcenter.com/2014-apple-cup/2014/11/30/7310109/wsu-football-apple-cup-mike-leach-ugh-stupid-cfbBrian Floyd2014-11-29T22:53:37-08:002014-11-29T22:53:37-08:00RECAP: WSU whipped by UW, 31-13
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<figcaption>William Mancebo/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>The once-prolific Cougar offense could get nothing going all night as the Huskies had their way with WSU.</p> <p>In what was one of the more disappointing seasons in recent WSU football history, the Cougars suffered one final indignity when they were whipped on their home field by their rivals as Washington won the 2014 Apple Cup, 31-13.</p>
<p>WSU finishes the season 3-9, 2-6 in the Pac-12.</p>
<p>Very little in the game went right for WSU, which didn't get its first points until the game until five minutes into the fourth quarter when the Cougs were trailing by 31 points. UW had success with something very few teams have been able to pull off: Dropping seven and eight into coverage on nearly every play. Quarterback Luke Falk rarely was able to throw to his first read, and when did find open receivers, they were plaugued by a plethora of drops.</p>
<p>The game was close for a half. While WSU sputtered on offense, UW had a difficult time moving the ball with consistency early in the game. Dwayne Washington ran in a 51-yard touchdown on the Huskies' second offensive play, but it took a late turnover on a Vince Mayle fumble deep in WSU territory for the Huskies to get a second score.</p>
<p>Despite trailing 14-0, WSU had outgained UW at the break.</p>
<p>That didn't continue in the second half. UW scored on the second play of the second half on another long Washington run (60 yards this time), and when WSU went for minus-10 yards on the next drive, it was clear there would be no Cougar comeback in this one.</p>
<p>Washington used its strong second half to outgain WSU 437-376.</p>
<p>Falk finished 27-of-49 for 355 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions, while Cyler Miles finished 25-of-39 for 249 yards, two touchdowns and one interception.</p>
<p>Vince Mayle hauled in five catches for 79 yards, which will leave him short of the 1,500-yard milestone.</p>
<p>The season is over for WSU, which now will be left to wonder what went wrong. Could coaching changes also be on the horizon? There's probably very little that's not on the table after this debacle of a season.</p>
https://www.cougcenter.com/2014-apple-cup/2014/11/29/7308649/apple-cup-2014-uw-dominates-wsu-31-13Jeff Nusser2014-11-29T21:28:41-08:002014-11-29T21:28:41-08:00Connor Halliday's senior day moment<h3 class="link-title"><a rel="nofollow" href="https://twitter.com/DarnayTripp/status/538915754721046528">Connor Halliday's senior day&nbsp;moment</a></h3>
<div class="description"><p><p>This wasn't how it was supposed to happen, but it was a nice moment, regardless.</p></p></div>
https://www.cougcenter.com/2014/11/29/7308577/connor-hallidays-senior-day-momentJeff Nusser2014-11-29T21:21:50-08:002014-11-29T21:21:50-08:00What a photo of the Steve Gleason ceremony<h3 class="link-title"><a rel="nofollow" href="https://twitter.com/DarnayTripp/status/538915216113672192">What a photo of the Steve Gleason&nbsp;ceremony</a></h3>
<div class="description"><p><p>Such a great shot with a lot of WSU legends -- most of all the man of the day, Steve Gleason.</p></p></div>
https://www.cougcenter.com/2014/11/29/7308561/what-a-photo-of-the-steve-gleason-ceremonyBrian Floyd2014-11-29T21:10:27-08:002014-11-29T21:10:27-08:00Halftime update: WSU trails 14-0 at the break
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<p>It's been a half of frustration for Washington State in the first half of the 2014 Apple Cup as the Cougars trail the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.uwdawgpound.com/">Washington Huskies</a> 14-0 at halftime.</p>
<p>WSU has struggled to find any consistency moving the ball, as drops caused drives to stall and a pair of turnovers terminated the final two drives.</p>
<p>UW was able to convert the first of the two turnovers -- a fumble by <span>Vince Mayle</span> deep in WSU territory -- into a touchdown when <span>Cyler Miles</span> found <span>Kasen Williams</span> with a jump ball right over the head of Marcellus Pippins. Pippins had a free shot at an interception when Miles underthrew <span>John Ross</span> earlier, but he dropped the ball.</p>
<p>The second turnover came with about 30 seconds left in the half when Falk bought time before trying to hit <span>Isiah Myers</span> down the field, but Falk never saw Ross, who had read his eyes and dropped into the passing lane.</p>
<p>For his part, Falk looks tentative, rarely throwing to his first read. He's just 12 of 24 for just 141 yards and that interception. His receivers haven't exactly helped him out, but he looks as if he's suffering some ill aftereffects from last week's five turnover performance against Arizona State.</p>
<p>Outside of that touchdown, Miles has been worse; he's 13 of 22 for 93 yards and an interception.</p>
<p>Mayle leads WSU with 68 yards receiving on four catches, while <span>Jaydon Mickens</span> leads UW with 54 yards on six catches.</p>
<p>A hugely frustrating half for WSU, which has outgained UW 183-167. The Huskies will receive to start the second half.</p>
https://www.cougcenter.com/2014-apple-cup/2014/11/29/7308493/apple-cup-2014-score-update-uw-wsuJeff Nusser2014-11-29T20:20:30-08:002014-11-29T20:20:30-08:00Steve Gleason takes the field at Martin Stadium<h3 class="link-title"><a rel="nofollow" href="https://twitter.com/BrianMFloyd/status/538909998915801088">Steve Gleason takes the field at Martin&nbsp;Stadium</a></h3>
<div class="description"><p><p>With Rivers on his lap. Great moment in Pullman</p></p></div>
https://www.cougcenter.com/2014/11/29/7308389/steve-gleason-takes-the-field-at-martin-stadiumBrian Floyd