Washington State vs. Baylor IN-Game chatter discussion

[The General]

Let's have a good game

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[The General]

Washington State coach Paul Wulff said the Cougars aren't necessarily throwing all jobs open for competition in practice this week.

But it would be hard to blame them if they were after a 66-3 home loss to Cal on Saturday that was the worst defeat in school history in terms of margin of victory.

Wulff, now 0-2 in his first season as WSU's coach, says the team will stay the course with its schemes and overall plan. But there could be some significant changes for the Cougars when they take on Baylor this Saturday, specifically at quarterback as Wulff said starter Gary Rogers, a senior, and backup Kevin Lopina, a junior, will compete all week for the starting job.

Wulff said a decision may not be made until shortly before kickoff in Waco, Texas.

"We are probably going to go through the week, giving them equal reps as much as we possibly can and probably going to make it a game-time decision unless something changes," Wulff said.

But if Rogers gets the boot to the bench, Wulff wants it made clear the coaches aren't saying he is the sole problem with an offense that has scored just 16 points in two games.

"There's no question this is not a one-person issue with the lack of execution; it is hard to pinpoint any one thing because it is never just one thing," he said. "It's a multitude of things, and that's really what we are dealing with here. Quarterback isn't the only position we are trying to evaluate. Our receiving corps is just getting healthy, but it's going to take a few weeks to get that completely settled, and the offensive line is the same situation. It's just getting some kind of consistency of the personnel so they can all jell together. We haven't had that opportunity yet. That's no one's fault, just our circumstances right now."

Amazingly, for a team coming off a 63-point loss at home, the Cougars entered the week as five-point favorites against Baylor, owing more to that program's historic struggles than anything else.

No matter the quarterback, the offense will have to get the passing game going better, with Wulff hoping senior receiver Brandon Gibson will start to get more comfortable in the new scheme.

Defensively, Baylor's biggest strength is its receiving corps, and the assumption is the Bears will try to test the Cougars through the air.

Wulff says the key this week is to simply have some success in any way possible.

"They'll see when we do things right that things will be successful," he said. "I'm not really worried about that. I think we have a plan and what we do is right. We've just got to keep working at it. The more we stay the course and keep driving the message home, than ultimately we will have more success."

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[The General]

Baylor broke its nine-game losing streak last week, handing first-year coach Art Briles a victory in the process.

But that was last week, and it came against a 1-AA opponent.

While Waco preps for the Bears to pick on someone its own size, this weekend's game might be just what BU needs. Washington State is a beatable FBS team and the Cougars, off to an 0-2 start for new coach Paul Wulff, have been outscored 105-16.

With Big East sleeper UConn and Big 12 bully Oklahoma on deck, has Briles readied his must-win speech?

"It's a big benefit to play the first three games at home and we need to finish it up and take advantage of it," Briles said after the win over Northwestern State. The Bears are 1-1 having suffered a loss to No. 23 Wake Forest in the opener.

Briles and his staff was encouraged by the Bears' intensity last week, which turned into a party on the night Robert Griffin debuted as a Baylor starter.

"We just have to be us," Briles said. "That is the main thing. We just have to continue to get better as a football time and fight hard for a victory. That is what we are going to do. That is what we control and that is what we will take care of."

Griffin, a true freshman, was about as close to perfect as any coach would want, going 15-for-19 for 293 yards and three touchdowns passing and running for 42 yards and a score.

Briles isn't shocked Griffin has exuded a veteran calm despite his rookie status, citing his play in a pair of state championship games in high school and Griffin's early arrival for spring ball as two reasons he's ahead of most true freshmen.

He could put another notch in his -- and Baylor's -- belt if he can take care of Washington State this weekend. The 0-2 Cougars rank 101st in total defense and last week were smashed by California, 66-3. Washington State is 117th in total offense.

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[The General]

THIS WEEK'S GAME: Baylor vs. Washington State, Sept. 13 -- The third of three straight home games is a must-have for the Bears, who travel to UConn next week and then host Oklahoma. This is a team Baylor should handle at home, even though the Bears are 2 1/2-point underdogs.

PLAYERS TO WATCH


QB Robert Griffin -- After coming off the bench and winning the job in the opener, the true freshman made his first start against 1-AA Northwestern State and was outstanding.

RB Jay Finley -- Baylor coach Art Briles thought Finley was a runner who could go for 1,000 yards and, after just five on three carries in Week 1, he romped for 91 yards and two scores on just eight carries in Game 2.

"He is tough. He is unselfish. He has good balance," says Baylor coach Art Briles.

LB Joe Pawelek -- A special leader on the defense. He has 25 tackles and two quarterback hits in the first two games.

ROSTER REPORT


--Freshman K Ben Parks has missed his first extra point attempt each of the first two weeks before recovering.

"PATs have to be automatic," said Baylor coach Art Briles. "Every time he jogs out there we have to go from six to seven or 20 to 21 and so forth."

--Three Bears -- QB Robert Griffin, FB Andrew Judy and RB Jeremy Sanders -- all made their first college starts in the 51-6 rout of Northwestern State.

--P Derek Epperson had a 61-yarder in the win.

--The Bears had lost five straight at home before winning last week.

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[The General]

THIS WEEK'S GAME: Washington State at Baylor, Sept. 13. A rematch of a 17-15 WSU win in Seattle in 2006. Cougar faithful looked at this one as a sure-win when the season began but don't know what to expect now after Saturday's debacle.

PLAYERS TO WATCH
QB Kevin Lopina -- The junior transfer from Kansas State could get the first start of his career with the job open to competition this week with the struggles of Gary Rogers. Lopina is a better runner than Rogers and possibly a better fit for the no-huddle offense of new coach Paul Wulff. He had a long run of 15 yards during his brief time on the field in the loss to Cal while also completing three for seven passes for 32 yards, though he also tossed an interception. Even if he doesn't get the start he could see the field as the coaches likely won't be patient with whoever is the starter.

WR Brandon Gibson -- The Pac-10's leading receiver a year ago is still struggling to get acclimated to the new offense. He has just nine catches for 83 yards in the first two games. The Cougars will need him to begin turning in more big plays to have a chance at winning often.

SS Chima Nwachukwu -- Converted from cornerback before the season, he has struggled at safety, taking bad angles and being out of position. This week, his pass-defending skills may be put to more use with Baylor likely to throw it often.

MLB Greg Trent -- The senior is regarded as one of the team's main leaders and will have to step that area of his game up this week after the devastating loss to Cal. He also has to play better on the field as the Bears got a lot of long gains up the middle with the linebackers appearing not to be in the right position on too many occasions.

ROSTER REPORT


--LB Cory Evans, who suffered a stinger in his shoulder, could be limited this week.

--WR Jeshua Anderson made a surprisingly quick recovery from hernia surgery Aug. 11 and had one catch for five yards against Cal. His playing time should increase this week.

--JC transfer DE Jessy Sanchez has an injured shoulder and may be forced to redshirt.

--Sophomore DT Toby Turpin, expected to fill in depth up front, has been unable to play after recent thumb surgery.

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[The General]

SCOUTING THE OFFENSE
The Cougars may be starting over at quarterback, with junior Kevin Lopina, a transfer from Kansas State, possibly getting the call ahead of senior Gary Rogers, who has struggled mightily. The Cougars are last in the Pac-10 in scoring at eight points per game, and last in total offense at 181.5, averaging just 2.9 yards per play. It's quite a comedown from the last two decades when the one thing WSU could almost always count on was moving the ball. The problems are all over -- protection is spotty, the QB play is erratic, and the young receiving corps is struggling to get open. Lone bright spots have been the play of running backs Dwight Tardy and Christopher Ivory, each doing what they can with what they've been getting. More than worrying about anything Baylor may do schematically this week, the Cougars need to simply execute some of the fundamentals to get the offense going.

SCOUTING THE DEFENSE
The picture is about as ugly on this side of the ball with WSU allowing 52.5 points per game and 436 yards per game. The problem Saturday was gap control and penetration up front, allowing some huge holes for Cal's running backs, who gained 391 rushing yards. The Cougars have allowed 10 rushing touchdowns. With six seniors starting, it was hoped the defense might be able to hold the fort this season while the younger offense adjusted to the new no-huddle spread look. Baylor likes to throw the ball and the strength of its team is its veteran receiving corps, so WSU's secondary -- the youngest part of its defense with three sophomores and one true freshman starting -- will get tested.

QUOTE TO NOTE
"We've got a lot of things that need to be corrected here in every aspect of the program," -- WSU coach Paul Wulff after two blowout losses to start his Cougar career.

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[The General]

SCOUTING THE OFFENSE
The team is firmly in the hands of freshmen Robert Griffin. After coming off the bench in the opener, he made his starting debut in Week 2 and was outstanding.

"We thought he had the opportunity to play as a true freshman," said Baylor coach Art Briles, who said Griffin has emerged from a three-way battle with Kirby Freeman and Blake Szymanski. "He's a good football player and he has a great passion for the game, so that's what allows him to come in here and play at this level."

Last week, the Baylor running game arrived, providing the balance that tends to take the pressure of the quarterback.

SCOUTING THE DEFENSE
Baylor allowed just 190 yards of total offense in drubbing 1-AA Northwestern State last week. The Bears now face an offense that has 16 total points on the board in the first two games of the season. The Baylor defense yielded 52 yards rushing last week and Washington State has been outrushed 565-171 and the Cougars have had 23 first downs in two games.

"We've got to be dominant up front if we want to be a good football team," says Baylor coach Art Briles. "They're got to be warriors and we're going to lean on them every week."

QUOTE TO NOTE
"He handled it very well. He's very poised for his age, I guess you could say." -- Baylor coach Art Briles on freshman quarterback Robert Griffin.

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[The General]

Baylor has a true frosh QB so that tends to lead me to believe Washington State could hang in there for their 1st win. QB, FB, RB and kicker young for Baylor.

[pvcpipe]

on baylor but what network is showing the game? my fox regional channels aren't showing it....

[The General]

I don't think it is a televised game here either.

[pvcpipe]

somebody help a brother out....