Washington State University Athletics - Official Athletics Site
Cougs pack the bags, first real test away from Martin Stadium
Cougs are about to find out if this team travels. The first real road test away from Martin Stadium is here, and it's not a tune-up. Packing the bags for a hostile crowd means we get to see who shows up when the Palouse wheat fields are a thousand miles behind them. Road wins build a different kind of confidence. Win this one, and the chatter changes. Lose it, and you learn something else about the roster.
This is also a good time to remember that Cougs show up everywhere. Gardner Minshew just got named the starter for the Arizona Cardinals, and he's been telling anyone who will listen that Mike Leach pulled him off Alabama's bench and gave him a shot. We wrote about that in "Minshew credits Leach for saving him from Alabama's bench." Worth a read if you want to remember what happens when a coach sees something nobody else did.
But back to the bags. The team needs to handle the noise, handle the routine, and handle the other sideline. Martin Stadium is a fortress. Road games are where you prove the fortress wasn't doing all the work. Go Cougs.