WSU Football: Where do we go next?

In case you haven’t heard, the sky is falling on the WSU football program. Thursday started off with an Outside the Lines segment about Mike Leach’s comments after practice Tuesday ... and that was the third-most newsworthy event to happen.

We then heard news of the meeting between Bill Moos, Kirk Schulz and Pullman Police Chief Gary Jenkins.

But the story of the day was that starting nose tackle Robert Barber was expelled from the university by the Student Conduct Board. Barber’s expulsion stems from his involvement in the much-publicized fight at a party in July that resulted in a student’s jaw getting broken.

This is all coming after a disastrous 0-2 start on the field that had Leach eviscerating his team’s toughness on Monday. The timing of the Barber news is really only fitting with the rest of the week. Everything seems to have gone very wrong, very quickly. As Jeff Nusser pointed out on Twitter last night, it was just three weeks ago that the most pessimistic author on this site expected the Cougs to finish 7-5.

But what does WSU need to do now for fans to feel okay going into 2017? For starters, it would be great if the Cougs came out and smacked the Vandals on Saturday. Getting to six wins would be great, but that would require winning five conference games with what will likely be a depleted roster. I think I’d be happy with a 5-7 team that looks competitive in its losses.

I know moral victories don’t do it for everyone, but WSU could really use one right about now. What are your expectations from here on out?

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WSU defensive lineman Robert Barber expelled | The Spokesman-Review
Robert Barber, a starting nose tackle and lynchpin of the Washington State football team’s defense, has been expelled from the school.

WSU's Leach getting his messages mixed | The News Tribune
In the span of two days, Washington State coach Mike Leach compared his players to JC softball players and said Pullman police were unfairly targeting his players. This takes some of the heat off the Cougars, who have started the season 0-2.

Washington State athletic director, president meet with chief of Pullman Police Department
Washington State AD Bill Moos and president Kirk Schulz met with the chief of the Pullman Police Dept. two days after coach Mike Leach expressed concern that football players were being targeted.

Weaver, Dederick Lead Cougars Past Seattle - WSUCougars.com | Washington State University Athletics

Baylor Volleyball Hosts Weekend Baylor Classic | KCENTV.com
Baylor volleyball (7-4) hosts its second tournament of the season and the fourth and final tournament of the regular season, starting play in the 2016 Baylor Classic on Friday, Sept. 16 vs. Virginia (3-6) at 6 p.m. in the Ferrell Center.