Remember the old days of 2026 Washington State University football?
You know, the ones where sloppy and inconsistent offensive play was mixed with courageous but worn-down defensive play?
People seemed to have forgotten that brand of football from losses at Washington and Kansas State after the Cougars rushed for 316 yards in a 48-7 win over FCS opponent Duquesne in Week 3.
Yes, a strong run game and stout defensive play are a good formula to win games.
Could the Cougars take that success and replicate it against another legitimate FBS program Saturday in Pullman?
In the end … no.
Recovering from an early two-touchdown hole, Arizona’s pass game behind quarterback Noah Fifita, resurgent second-half run game and pressure-oriented defense paved the way for the Wildcats’ 34-24 come-from-behind victory at Gesa Field in Martin Stadium.
The frustrating part is that for the first 10 minutes, WSU had everything going its way.
Quarterback Caden Pinnick and the offense easily put together their most impressive drive of the season on their first series, marching 71 yards in 10 plays for a touchdown.
The drive had rhythm. It had balance. It had tempo.
And it converted two third downs, including Pinnick’s 28-yard pass to Daniel Blood that eventually set up the quarterback’s 11-yard touchdown run.
Eight minutes later, after getting early pressure on Fifita from its defense line, the Cougars’ defense scored on Jackquintin Bal’s interception return for a touchdown to grab a 14-0 lead.
The Cougars were flying high. Could they keep this up and post the biggest win in the short Kirby Moore era?
Didn’t happen.
Familiar problems return for Washington State
The issues that held the offense back in losses at Washington and Kansas State – spotty offensive-line protection, no run game, untimely Pinnick mistakes and yes, another missed field goal – crept back into the picture later Saturday.
As dynamic as Pinnick can be, the key to the WSU offense is getting its outside-zone run game working.
Against Duquesne, the Cougars rolled up 316 yards and had two 100-yard rushers in Maxwell Woods and Kirby Vorhees. Again, it was an overmatched lower-level opponent.
In the three games against Washington, Kansas State and Arizona, the team has totaled 295 rushing yards. No running back has even eclipsed 50 yards in any of those matchups.
On Saturday, the Cougars rushed for a season-low 94 yards, averaging 3.1 yards per carry. They had two runs of 10 or more yards – Pinnick’s 11-yard scoring dash and Woods’ 14-yard carry in the third quarter.
The Wildcats simply set the edge and dared the Cougars to try and run inside. It didn’t happen.
“There were some ID things (on inside or outside zone runs) there, but give (Arizona) a ton of credit in how fast and hard those guys play,” Moore said.
Caden Pinnick remains a work in progress
Then, there’s the good and bad with Pinnick, who showed more rhythmic-pass flashes Saturday than he had against his previous two FBS opponents. That was a positive.
But Pinnick also committed two more turnovers against Arizona, bringing his season total to five in four games. Four of them were interceptions.
Then there was the aforementioned get-down slide early in the second quarter on a third-down scramble that easily should have netted a first down and extended a WSU drive.
Instead, replay officials determined he began his slide a half-yard short of the first down, which led to a Cougars’ punt.
“We are all in this together, so it starts with me,” Moore said. “Obviously with the offensive staff, it’s just having that dialogue with him, whether it’s in practice, on the headset, (or) reminders in making sure he knows exactly the stipulations.”
Mistakes aren’t new for Pinnick, especially the turnovers. In his season as the UC Davis starter a year ago, in which he was named the Big Sky Conference freshman of the year (2,527 passing yards, 24 touchdowns), he committed 14 turnovers, including 10 interceptions.
Can Washington State find answers before Pac-12 play?
As the Cougars move to Pac-12 play starting next week against Fresno State, the overlying question about the offense is this:
Was the first-quarter flash against Arizona enough evidence that the Cougars can find a long-term breakthrough?
That answer awaits in October.
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