Washington State coach Jake Dickert said his team is now the hunted.
The 21st-ranked Cougars still have hunting to do during the last four games if they want to have a chance at reaching the College Football Playoff.
Washington State comes back off its bye week Saturday night when it welcomes Utah State to Pullman.
The Cougars (7-1) last played on Oct. 26, rallying for a 29-26 victory at San Diego State after trailing 26-14 with 13:45 left in the game. Quarterback John Mateer led the comeback, throwing to Carlos Hernandez for a 34-yard touchdown and then scoring the game-winner on a 2-yard run with 5:08 remaining.
It’s possible that no player in FBS is doing more for his team than Mateer, who has not only thrown for 2,153 yards and 18 touchdowns with only six interceptions but also leads Washington State in rushing with 575 yards and 10 scores.
“Just stay true to himself,” Dickert said when asked how Mateer can improve. “Stay true to what got him here, and that’s the work ethic, what got him here and what he can do to get better. He just needs to be himself and keep demanding excellence around him because he can’t do it himself.”
The good news is that Mateer has gotten enough help.
Oregon transfer Kris Hutson has 40 catches, while Kyle Williams has followed up a 61-catch 2023 with 37 catches, five for touchdowns. And the defense, although it has allowed nearly 27 points per game, has come up with big plays in critical spots.
Case in point: Taariq Al-Uqdah’s interception midway through the fourth quarter at San Diego State that squashed a drive after it had reached the 14. From there, Mateer produced the game-winner.
The Cougars are hoping that they don’t have to resort to such dramatics against the Aggies (2-6), who also had a bye last week after a road win. They snapped a six-game skid on Oct. 26 with a 27-25 nailbiter at Wyoming as Tanner Cragun converted a 40-yard field goal as time ran out.
Utah State’s problem isn’t offense. It’s 19th in FBS in total yardage at 459 yards per game with Iowa transfer Spencer Petras (1,825 yards, 13 touchdowns) hitting nearly 66 percent of his passes and Rahsul Faison (797 yards, 6 TDs) taking care of the running game.
But the Aggies’ defense has experienced serious issues stopping anyone. It’s permitting more than 240 yards per game on the ground and they’ve lost eight players on their two-deep, most of them starters, since the season opener.
However, defensive back DJ Graham II said snapping their lengthy skid has given the team confidence it needed.
“That win was a huge morale booster,” he said. “We had something to prove. We have carried that over into Washington State. We want the result that we wish for and that is the W.”
This will be the fifth meeting between the programs. The series is tied at 2-2 with Utah State taking a 26-23 win three years ago in the season opener.
