- Kinnard runs wild as Cougs try to snap the skid in San Diego
Key moments
Kinnard scores again
2nd, 12:32 - SDSU 14, WSU 7: Kinnard breaks through the WSU defense to score a 10-yard rushing touchdown, his second of the game.
Cougars even score
1st, 2:19 - WSU 7, SDSU 7: Owen Eshelman keeps the ball and rushes up the middle for a 4-yard touchdown.
Aztecs get on the board
1st, 7:27 - SDSU 7, WSU 0: Javion Kinnard makes a defender miss and rushes nine yards into the end zone.
Pregame
Washington State gets another crack at earning its first Pac-12 Conference and FBS win of the season, this time on the road against San Diego State.
Owen Eshelman and the Cougars’ offense should have room to operate after a tough game against Boise State last week.
The Aztecs (3-5, 2-2) are giving up about 36 points per game and allowing 462 yards per contest, some of the worst numbers nationwide.
For the WSU’s special teams, they will need to limit the threat of returner Jaylon Hawkins. The Cougar offensive line will also need to hold up against the Aztecs’ defensive front.
The game is scheduled to kick off at 4 p.m. on CBS Sports Network.
Series history
Washington State has won three of the four meetings between the Cougars (1-7, 0-4 Pac-12) and the Aztecs.
Notatable stat
Three. That’s the amount of kickoff return touchdowns engineered by SDSU redshirt freshman wideout Hawkins. He took one back 100 yards against FCS Portland State, one 96 yards against Texas State and one 97 yards against Oregon State.
Game preview
More on the Cougs
- Owen Eshelman and Branden Ganashamoorthy made the scoreboard hurt a little less
CORVALLIS, Ore. – Branden Ganashamoorthy insisted the sunlight was no problem. When he strode open toward the Oregon State end zone, he said, all he saw was the ball. He tracked it in the air, on its descent, into his hands as he fell onto the black turf for six.
“When you’re in those moments,” Ganashamoorthy said, “it’s almost like tunnel vision. Everything kinda slows down. The amount of tennis balls, the amount of footballs I’ve caught. I feel like I can catch those balls almost blind.”
In his Washington State group’s 48-30 loss to Oregon State, the Cougars’ fourth straight loss, Ganashamoorthy enjoyed the best outing of his career: He logged 11 catches for 147 yards and the one score, which came on a 40-yard pass in the second quarter, pulling the Cougs to within 27-10.
It amounted to a huge day for Ganashamoorthy, an indicator of what he’s capable of. It also went a long way in illustrating how he accomplished it, finding a sharp rapport with quarterback Owen Eshelman, who made his first start. By his number, you would never have known it: He completed 32 of 49 passes for 289 yards, two touchdowns and one meaningless interception in garbage time. He also totaled 11 carries for 147 yards and another touchdown, racking up the second-most yards in one game by a WSU QB in program history.
A redshirt freshman from Oklahoma, Eshelman shattered expectations for his first real game action. He looked willing to air it out deep, which the Cougars didn’t get from Caden Pinnick, who started each of the first six games of the season. He made the right reads in the pocket, bailing at the right times to scramble for yards on the ground. And he made a fantastic decision on his rushing touchdown, pulling the ball and jetting straight into the end zone, cruising in for a 20-yard score.
“We just had a much better rhythm,” WSU coach Kirby Moore said of Eshelman’s outing and what it provided to the team. “That takes all 11 being on the same page, whether it’s communication, whether it’s in the run game, the RPOs, obviously the pass game. It’s about landmarks and alignments there with the receivers and guys winning versus man and the quarterback trusting them. Today it was much better on first and second down. Third down, obviously did a better job in the second half than the first half.”
“It was definitely excitement,” Eshelman said of his emotions headed into his first start. “Obviously Oregon State’s been playing really good football, and to have the opportunity to come here and showcase what our offense is capable of … There’s that Cougar mentality that we’re just gonna keep swinging, and I thought that showed up tonight, even with some missed opportunities. I was just really proud of all of our guys. We kept swinging, kept swinging, kept swinging, and making the most out of opportunities.”
In this one, Eshelman and the Cougars’ offense was hardly perfect. They converted just 7 of 17 third downs, and through three quarters, the number was 0-for-9. They still are getting almost nothing from the running back trio of Maxwell Woods, Kirby Vorhees and Leo Pulalasi, who combined for only 26 yards on 13 carries. Under a coach like Moore, who unlocked Missouri’s rushing game to incredible results in his three years as the Tigers’ offensive coordinator, that will raise eyebrows for all the wrong reasons.
The Cougars also slogged through four three-and-outs, but their biggest problems didn’t center on things they did. They were about things they didn’t. On two spots in the first half, fourth-and-1 from the Beaver 48 and fourth-and-3 from the Cougar 49, Moore chose to punt. In both scenarios, Oregon State turned those into long touchdowns, both on the very next play. Chalk those up to misses for Moore and his game management.
“No, I’ve got a ton of confidence in our defense,” Moore said about whether he regretted punting on those plays. “Obviously, when you punt the ball and they have the ball inside their 15-yard line, you get a stop, you’ve got great field position. That didn’t happen. Give them credit. They’ve got good players. They executed and made plays.”
But overall, WSU’s offense looked far more capable than it ever has this season. The Cougars’ 30 points are their most against FBS competition all season. Outside of Eshelman’s late interception, a truly meaningless development, they avoided turnovers for the first time all season. It’s clear that Eshelman is the right quarterback for this team.
With Eshelman at the controls, and with Ganashamoorthy playing one of his favorite targets, a few more wins could be on the docket for this group.
“With the new change at quarterback, obviously, I would say just meshing together,” Ganashamoorthy said. “Now that we have that set, Owen at quarterback, I’d say meetings and everything can start to flow a little bit easier. Practices and everything, with his leadership, I think everything will come together when it does.”
- Cougs turn to Owen Eshelman at QB, Pinnick benched for Oregon State
PULLMAN – Six games into the season, Washington State is making a change at quarterback.
Redshirt freshman Owen Eshelman will start WSU’s road game at Oregon State on Saturday, coach Kirby Moore said on Monday, replacing starter Caden Pinnick.
It’s a major shakeup for the Cougars’ offense, which has scored just four touchdowns in five FBS games this season, ranking as one of the country’s worst offenses in several categories. A transfer from UC Davis, Pinnick has thrown just three touchdowns against five interceptions, including just one FBS touchdown pass. He has lost seven total turnovers, including a fumble in a Friday road loss to Utah State.
“Caden understands that this is a team-first decision, and it’s about what’s doing best for the team moving into the second half of the season,” said Moore, who added that he made the decision on Saturday and informed each player on Monday morning. “Owen has been right there pushing the quarterback room for the past 10 months and has prepared like the starter, and done everything we’ve asked of him.”
A native of Norman, Oklahoma, Eshelman’s only college experience came earlier this season, playing two snaps in the final moments of a blowout win over FCS Duquesne. Listed at 6-foot-3 and 204 pounds, Eshelman redshirted his true freshman season last fall. Now as a starter, he figures to provide the Cougars with a sharper passing attack and even some more mobility, which he showed during fall camp practices back in August.
A class of 2025 prospect out of Norman North High School, Eshelman played three seasons as the team’s starter, totaling 6,666 yards of total offense and 79 touchdowns in that span. As a senior, he threw for 2,507 yards and 29 touchdowns, plus 1,312 rushing yards and 19 scores on the ground, earning all-conference honors.
Eshelman, who also started three seasons on the basketball team, originally committed to FCS South Dakota State before flipping to WSU, following former coach Jimmy Rogers in that transition.
“There’s definitely some similarities in terms of playmaking ability,” Moore said, comparing the two QBs’ playstyles. “I think the big thing is we gotta continue to work on accuracy with the football, and when something’s there, we gotta take advantage of it and be more efficient on first and second down. Had opportunities there to drive in the red zone and didn’t take advantage of it, and then on third down, we gotta make sure we we do a good job of taking care of the football. And sometimes it’s OK to punt. We’ve had some turnovers in those situations the last few games that have put our defense in bad positions.”
The move was necessary for WSU (1-5, 0-2 Pac-12), whose offense had almost no life under Pinnick. In Friday’s game, Pinnick completed 23 of 36 passes for just 156 yards. He did not complete a single pass further than nine yards downfield, according to Pro Football Focus, highlighting one of his main weaknesses: He either can’t or won’t stretch the field vertically.
Underscoring that reality is this statistic: Pinnick is one of three QBs in the country to attempt at least 150 passes and total less than 1,000 yards, which illustrates how little he was willing to move the ball downfield.
After six games, WSU’s offense has scored just 12.6 points per game, which ranks No. 133 of 138 FBS teams in the country. The Cougars are producing 236 yards per game, one spot up from dead last, and their 8.5 yards per completion also ranks one place better than last in the nation.
“Owen does a great job in the meeting room. He really does,” Moore said. “He’s a student of the game. He’s worked like heck throughout this offseason. He’s gonna continue to tackle that, and that’s gonna translate to the practice field throughout this week with more reps and more on his plate. Naturally, that’s play-to-play. Sometimes there’s checks with plays. Sometimes we’re calling and hauling. Sometimes there could be protection checks that are on the quarterback. But we feel very confident about Owen making all those decisions.”
Can Eshelman turn around WSU’s moribund offense on Saturday against Oregon State, which boasts the country’s best offense? The Cougars can probably count on better accuracy – in Friday’s game, Pinnick missed a wide open Leo Pulalasi, who could have scored on the play – and improved pocket presence. Pinnick has taken 11 QB-fault sacks, according to Pro Football Focus, tied for the most nationally.
Moore, who called plays for the first time in Friday’s game, might get better QB play this time around. Whether it leads to the Cougars’ first FBS win remains to be seen, but the program was due for a change.
“I think there’s not a lot of guys that could do what he does and he’s a very mentally strong person,” Norman North High coach Justin Jones told Sports Illustrated back in 2023. “He’s an ultimate competitor and I think him playing multiple sports and being an exceptional basketball player as well, he brings that to the game and gets some tough runs. … He takes a lick a lot and he just has a growth mindset and doesn’t worry about the previous play. Moves on to the next one and that’s why he’s having some success right now.”
Extra points
• Left tackle Ashton Tripp is day-to-day with an ankle injury he sustained against Utah State, Moore said. If Tripp can’t play against Oregon State, the Cougars will turn to Washington transfer Maximus McCree, who filled in when Tripp went down
• Safety Kyle Peterson and defensive ends Malachi Wrice and Michael Hughes will return to practice this week and will be game-time decisions against Oregon State, Moore said. Wrice has missed the past four games, Hughes has been out since the Apple Cup and Peterson has missed the past two contests
