Mike Leach, Cougars talk USC

With four games to go in the regular season and a 2-6 record, WSU will have to win out if its going to reach a bowl game for the second straight year. That would make for one heck of a finish, but in order to keep that hope alive even for another week, the Cougars will need to knock off Steve Sarkisian and USC this week.

Mike Leach and WSU held it's usual media availability on Monday to discuss last week and the upcoming game against the Trojans. Leach made his weekly appearance and was joined by some familiar faces this week with quarterback Connor Halliday, wide receiver Vince Mayle and linebacker Jeremiah Allison also holding media sessions.

You can see what they had to say in the videos below:

Mike Leach

Connor Halliday

Vince Mayle

Jeremiah Allison

Football:

Kickoff time set for WSU at OSU - SportsLink - Spokesman.com - Oct. 27, 2014
The Pac-12 conference announced this morning that Washington State's Nov. 8 game at Oregon State will kick off at 1 p.m. It's the earliest start time for a WSU game this season and will mark the third consecutive week the Cougars have had an afternoon game after beginning the season with seven consecutive night games.

Eliminator -- College football's Week 9 victims and survivors - ESPN
Washington State: This isn't how Mike Leach's third season at Washington State was supposed to go. After going bowling last season, the Cougars were supposed to be even better this year. But Wazzu dropped its first two games, falling to Rutgers in Week 1 and at Nevada 24-13 on Friday night.

Coaches taken aback by Washington St. coach Mike Leach's rip on New Jersey football - NJ.com
"One year we went to New York and New Jersey," Leach said. "Basically, New Jersey has good players, but bad football. They got a lot of people and some of them can play, but overall, my opinion, they start the season late and end it early.

Southern Cal at Washington St. - Spokesman.com - Oct. 28, 2014
What it means for WSU: Everything. The Cougars simply have to win or they won’t be eligible for the postseason and that means a step back in year three under Mike Leach after playing in a bowl game last season. The Cougars have a senior quarterback and other talented players who won’t be with the program next season so if WSU is going to continue to grow as a program it needs to turn what’s been a disappointing season into something positive.

With no losses to spare, Cougars cling to bowl hopes - Spokesman.com - Oct. 27, 2014
The Cougars waited until their backs were firmly against the wall, but with four games left and needing four wins to be eligible for a bowl game, Washington State football players admitted to a little big-picture thinking during Monday’s press conference.

Soccer:

Utes drop "embarrassing" game to WSU - The Daily Utah Chronicle
Things went from bad to worse this weekend for Utah. The Utes had a chance to redeem their weekend after a loss to No. 18 Washington on Friday, but Sunday brought even more disappointment. "It was a farmers market of bad soccer plays," said head coach Rich Manning. "Very embarrassing to have people come out to watch us play and put on a performance like that."

Volleyball:

Los Angeles Matches Next for Volleyball - Washington State University Official Athletic Site
The Washington State University volleyball team (10-12 overall, 1-9 Pac-12) travels to Los Angeles to take on a pair of nationally-ranked teams