Oct. 30—PULLMAN — At the beginning of the week, when the frustration still hung in the hair like a bad smell and several questions lingered unanswered, Kirby Moore returned to what he knew for sure. As he thought back to Washington State's last game, a home loss to conference power Boise State, he was certain of one thing.
In his second start at quarterback, Owen Eshelman may have thrown one critical interception, which is when the Cougars began to lose the lead and lose the game. But he also directed one scoring drive and kept things clean otherwise.
"I thought Owen battled his tail off," Moore said.
If the Cougars play their best in their next game, a road matchup with San Diego State set for Saturday afternoon, Eshelman shouldn't have to. That's because WSU will be going up against one of the country's worst defenses in SDSU, which ranks three spots up from last in the country in total defense and five spots up from last in scoring defense.
The Aztecs (3-5, 2-2 Pac-12) are giving up about 36 points per game, allowing some 462 yards per contest, some of the worst numbers nationwide. Looking to earn its first FBS win of the season and end a five-game slide, WSU (1-7, 0-4) would do well to take advantage of those trends.
Can Eshelman and the Cougars do so? That much will likely depend on a few factors: Can their offensive line protect Eshelman and clear space for a robust rushing attack? Can Eshelman avoid turnovers? And perhaps most importantly, what can WSU get out of its three-receiver rotation of Branden Ganashamoorthy, Daniel Blood and Tank Hawkins — and will Moore's group expand things?
Receiver Darrius Clemons, who exited early from his team's loss to Utah State earlier this month, is listed as questionable for Saturday's game. In his absence, the Cougs haven't exactly expanded their receiver rotation to include other pieces like West Georgia transfer Jordan Dees or walk-on Caleb Northcroft, who would likely be next up. Instead, Moore has asked even more out of his starters, especially Ganashamoorthy, who has played 503 snaps, the third most in the country among receivers. Blood has logged 448, which is No. 21.
WSU is one of only four teams with two receivers in the top 25, making clear what Moore seemed to indicate earlier in the week: Coaches really only trust those three starters. Is that conducive to a win, especially on the road? The temptation is to say no, but crazier things have happened.
"We talk about deliberate practice," Moore said, explaining his use of only three wideouts. "That really starts with bringing great energy, having verbal combat, doing your assignment, making sure you're not thinking out there, that you're just reacting. I think we've had too many errors from a practice standpoint with guys (not) knowing their assignments, whether it's motions, details within the position. We've got a lot of trust in the guys who are out there on the field. If other guys improve and they're to the standard, they'll be out there."
Regardless of how that trend pans out, WSU will want more out of its offensive line, and it'll be interesting to see whether Moore shakes things up at that position group. As currently constructed, the group of left tackle Ashton Tripp, left guard Jonny Lester, center Noah Dunham, right guard Nick Bakken and right tackle Jaylin Caldwell aren't just giving up sacks. They're also struggling to run-block, which is making things exceedingly hard on the Cougs' tailback trio.
Just how much has that limited the production of Kirby Vorhees, Maxwell Woods and Leo Pulalasi? In seven games against FBS competition, those running backs are averaging only 15 carries for 48 yards. They've enjoyed a stray long rush — against Utah State, Pulalasi broke free for a 52-yard touchdown jaunt — but more often, they haven't seen any running lanes.
Could that change against San Diego State? Check out the patterns and the possibility seems to emerge. The Aztecs rank No. 109 nationally in rush defense, yielding an average of 178 rushing yards per game. Here's the kicker to that, too: SDSU is allowing opponents to convert third downs at a 47% clip, which is No. 129 nationally.
That would be music to the ears of the Cougs, who are converting only 30% of their third downs, ranking six spots up from last in the country in that department. They've tried running up the middle to no avail. They've tried dropping back, which has often failed thanks to offensive linemen getting blown up. They haven't found any easy answers.
Maybe they'll get one this week in the form of the SDSU defense, which is a week removed from giving up a 50-spot in a 56-49 loss to Colorado State. The Aztecs have also been burned for 66 points against Oregon State, 41 against Toledo and 29 against Texas State, the last result a win. SDSU and third-year coach Sean Lewis have lost two of its last three.
Meanwhile, the Cougars will get a real challenge from the Aztec offense, which is prepared to start redshirt freshman quarterback Stone Saunders in place of Jayden Denegal, who ranks among the nation's worst QBs in EPA per dropback. Last week against Colorado State, Saunders completed 23 of 33 passes for 369 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions, including a pick-six shortly before halftime.
But there's another phase of the game that WSU will have to be sharp in: special teams. SDSU redshirt freshman receiver Jaylon Hawkins leads the nation with three kickoff return touchdowns, matching the single-season school record. He took one back apiece in games against FCS Portland State, Texas State and Oregon State.
The good news for the Cougars: They rank No. 16 nationwide in kickoff return coverage, permitting an average return of only about 16 yards. That should serve them well this weekend. If things go well for them, so it should for their quarterback, too.
