2020 Washington State Cougars football team
| 2020 Washington State Cougars football | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Conference | Pac–12 Conference |
| North Division | |
| Record | Season Canceled (Season Canceled Pac-12) |
| Head coach |
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| Offensive coordinator | Brian Smith (1st season) |
| Co-offensive coordinator | Craig Stutzmann (1st season) |
| Offensive scheme | Run and Shoot |
| Defensive coordinator | Jake Dickert (1st season) |
| Base defense | 4-2-5 |
| Home stadium | Martin Stadium (Capacity: 32,952) |
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | W | L | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| North Division | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Washington x | 3 | – | 1 | 3 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Oregon y$ | 4 | – | 2 | 4 | – | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Stanford | 4 | – | 2 | 4 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| California | 1 | – | 3 | 1 | – | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Washington State | 1 | – | 3 | 1 | – | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Oregon State | 2 | – | 5 | 2 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| South Division | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 21 USC xy | 5 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Colorado | 3 | – | 1 | 4 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Utah | 3 | – | 2 | 3 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Arizona State | 2 | – | 2 | 2 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| UCLA | 3 | – | 4 | 3 | – | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Arizona | 0 | – | 5 | 0 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Championship: Oregon 31, USC 24 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The 2020 Washington State Cougars football team was to represent Washington State University during the 2020 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team were to play their home games in Martin Stadium in Pullman, Washington. They were to be led by 1st-year head coach Nick Rolovich and compete as members of the North Division of the Pac-12 Conference.
On August 11, 2020, the Pac-12 Conference cancelled all fall sports competitions due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[2]
Previous season
The Cougars finished the season 6–7, 3–6 in Pac-12 play to finish tied for fifth in the Northern Division. They were invited to play in the Cheez-It Bowl, where they lost to Air Force 31–21. On January 9th, head coach Mike Leach departed the program to accept the vacant head coaching position at Mississippi State.[3][4] Less than a week later, athletic director Pat Chun hired Hawaii head coach Nick Rolovich.[5][6]
Schedule
Washington State had games scheduled against Utah State, Houston, and Idaho, but cancelled these games on July 10 due to the Pac-12 Conference's decision to play a conference-only schedule due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[7]
| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 26 | at Oregon State | ||||||
| October 3 | California |
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| October 10 | Utah |
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| October 17 | at Stanford | ||||||
| October 31 | Arizona State |
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| November 7 | at Colorado | ||||||
| November 14 | at UCLA | ||||||
| November 21 | Oregon |
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| November 27 | Washington |
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#WeAreUnited controversy
In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, student athletes of the Pac-12 Conference formed a unity group to negotiate with the conference to get more fair treatment for student athletes ranging from COVID-19 safety protocols to racial equality messages under the threat of opting out of the fall season with the hashtag #WeAreUnited.[9]
On August 2nd, 2020, Washington State wide receiver Kassidy Woods alleged that head coach Nick Rolovich threatened his status on the team, while also being removed from the team chats and being told to clear out his locker.[10] Woods also released an audio conversation between him and Rolovich to the Dallas Morning News, where Rolovich was understanding of Woods opting out due to COVID-19 but was still critical of the unity group.[11] Rolovich said in a statement that the said conversation between him and Woods occurred before the release of the #WeAreUnited group's article, and Washington State spokesman Bill Stephens clarified that Woods did not lose his scholarship or has been cut from the team, while ESPN reported that no one has been cut, but is not allowed to participate in team activities if they choose to opt out due to safety reasons.[12][13]
Personnel
Staff
| Name | Position | Seasons at Washington State |
Alma Mater |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nick Rolovich | Head Coach | 1 | Hawaii (2004) |
| Brian Smith | Offensive Coordinator / Running Backs | 1 | Hawaii (2005) |
| Jake Dickert | Defensive Coordinator / Linebackers | 1 | Wisconsin–Stevens Point (2007) |
| Michael Ghobrial | Special Teams Coordinator | 1 | UCLA (2011) |
| Craig Stutzmann | Co-Offensive Coordinator / Quarterbacks | 1 | Hawaii (2002) |
| Andre Allen | Wide Receivers | 1 | Ashford (2014) |
| Mark Weber | Offensive Line | 1 | Cal Lutheran (1980) |
| A. J. Cooper | Defensive Ends | 1 | North Dakota State (2006) |
| Ricky Logo | Defensive Tackles | 1 | North Carolina State (1992) |
| Mark Banker | Safeties | 1 | Springfield (MA) (1978) |
| John Richardson | Cornerbacks / Recruiting Coordinator | 1 | North Dakota State (2010) |
| Dwain Bradshaw | Head Strength and Conditioning Coach | 1 | Arizona State (2014) |
| Jason Cvercko | Chief of Staff | 1 | Connecticut (2011) |
Rankings
| Week | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | Final |
| AP | ||||||||||||||||
| Coaches | RV | |||||||||||||||
| CFP | Not released | Not released | ||||||||||||||
References
- ^ Pac-12 Conference. "Pac-12 announces resumption of football, basketball & winter sports seasons". Pac-12 Conference. Retrieved 24 September 2020.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ "Pac-12 Conference postpones all sport competitions through end of calendar year". pac-12.com. August 11, 2020. Retrieved August 11, 2020.
- ^ Mickanen, Dylan. "Reports: Mike Leach hired as Mississippi State head coach". NBC Sports. Retrieved August 4, 2020.
- ^ Sallee, Barrett. "Mississippi State hires Washington State's Mike Leach to be next head coach". CBS Sports. Retrieved August 4, 2020.
- ^ Shapiro, Michael. "Report: Washington State to Hire Hawaii's Nick Rolovich as Head Coach". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved August 4, 2020.
- ^ Thamel, Pete. "Sources: Washington State finalizing deal to hire Hawaii's Nick Rolovich as next football coach". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved August 4, 2020.
- ^ Bromberg, Nick. "Pac-12 follows Big Ten's lead and won't play non-conference games in 2020". Yahoo News. Retrieved 10 July 2020.
- ^ "2020 Washington State Football Schedule". FBSchedules.com. Retrieved February 27, 2020.
- ^ Bumbaca, Chris. "Group of Pac-12 athletes unite, threaten opt out unless athletes' demands of conference are met". USA Today. Retrieved August 4, 2020.
- ^ Peter, Josh. "Washington State player says head coach threatened his status over Pac-12 unity group". USA Today. Retrieved August 4, 2020.
- ^ Blum, Sam. "Full transcript: Washington State coach Nick Rolovich critical of PAC-12 unity statement in conversation with WR Kassidy Woods". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved August 4, 2020.
- ^ Evans, Jace. "Washington State coach Nick Rolovich attempts to clarify position on #WeAreUnited group". USA Today. Retrieved August 4, 2020.
- ^ Rittenberg, Adam. "Washington State football coach Nick Rolovich tells WR Kassidy Woods joining unity group would create 'an issue'". ESPN. Retrieved August 4, 2020.