rushing yards
7 stories filed under rushing yards on Wazzu. The newest of them: “A Freeman grad named Boen Phelps just broke a Coug heart in Boise”, “One bad snap cost the Cougs a chance at an upset in Boise”, and “Boise State's offense is the test WSU's D hasn't passed yet”. A Freeman High grad named Boen Phelps just broke a Coug heart in Boise. One bad snap. The unofficial read for people who left Pullman and stayed Cougs. The list below is every rushing yards story on Wazzu, newest first.
A Freeman grad named Boen Phelps just broke a Coug heart in Boise
A Freeman High grad named Boen Phelps just broke a Coug heart in Boise. The junior linebacker, a former walk-on, picked off an Owen Eshelman pass early in the fourth quarter and returned it 13 yards to set up a touchdown that put the Broncos up by 14. That's the kind of play that makes you groan into your beer. Eshelman and running back Kirby Vorhees weren't on the same page, Vorhees went the wrong way, and the ball went right to Phelps. Two plays later, Boise State scored. Game over. Phelps finished with six tackles, but it was Dylan Riley who twisted the knife. The Broncos' star back struggled for three quarters against a WSU defense keying on the run. Then the fourth quarter happened. Riley ripped off a 33-yard score right after the pick, then bounced outside for a 72-yard dagger on the next possession. He finished with 128 yards and two touchdowns on 13 carries. Ranked No. 6 nationally in rushing entering the game, he's now at 963 yards for the year. One bad snap. One missed read. That's the difference between a tight game and a runaway loss. For deeper coverage on how that fourth quarter unraveled, check out "One bad snap cost the Cougs a chance at an upset in Boise." Go Cougs.
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One bad snap cost the Cougs a chance at an upset in Boise
One bad snap. That's all it took. Owen Eshelman and Kirby Vorhees got their wires crossed on a simple route, and the ball landed in a Boise State linebacker's hands. Just like that, a tied game turned into a 31-10 loss. It stings because the Cougs were right there. For three quarters, WSU's defense held firm against one of the best rushing teams in the country, bottling up Dylan Riley until the fourth quarter finally broke them. The offense, though? Stuck in the mud all day. Eshelman had some nice moments with his legs, but the downfield passing game was missing, and the running backs combined for 20 yards on 10 carries. That's not going to beat anyone, let alone a ranked team. Kirby Moore's first season is officially a lost one at 1-7, and the postseason is gone. But here's the thing: a month ago, a tied game in the fourth quarter against Boise State felt impossible. The Cougs aren't good, but they're less bad than they were. That's not a victory lap, but it's something. For more on how that pick unfolded, check out "Moore's sideline bench talks get real after WSU's bowl hopes vanish." Go Cougs.
Boise State's offense is the test WSU's D hasn't passed yet
All season, Washington State's defense has been a little tricky to parse. On one hand, the Cougars have excelled in tough spots, jumping into action after short fields thanks to offensive turnovers. The pass rush has been above average. So has the tackling. But when you're playing No. 21 Boise State, above average won't fly. That's why we're picking WSU to fall Saturday afternoon in Pullman. The Cougars are tasked with doing something only Oregon has done this season: slow down tailbacks Dylan Riley and Sire Gaines. Riley ranks second in the country with 139 rushing yards per game. Gaines has cleared the century mark in each of his last two. Complicating matters is Boise State's average time of possession: 36 minutes, which leads the entire country. That puts serious strain on the defense, especially if the offense commits a turnover. New quarterback Owen Eshelman did well to avoid that in meaningful settings last weekend in his first start. It's a lot to ask out of this WSU team, and there's no shame in losing to this Boise State squad. But the Cougars will have to look elsewhere for their first FBS win of the season. Final score: Boise State 30, WSU 20. If you need a break from the defensive math, go check out how Kamie Ethridge and the Cougs broke down 2026 WBB at Media Day. That squad is still the top of the West, and it's a better kind of stress. Go Cougs.
Boise State comes to Pullman for the first time since 2017
The last time Boise State came to Pullman, Tyler Hilinski came off the bench and won it in triple overtime. That was 2017. This Saturday, the Broncos are back at Gesa Field, ranked No. 21, and WSU is still looking for its first FBS win of the season. The Cougs are 14-point underdogs. That feels about right. Boise State has won five straight since losing to Oregon, and running back Dylan Riley is averaging 139 yards per game. Quarterback Maddux Madsen has thrown 13 touchdowns and zero picks. Zero. That offense is a machine, and WSU's defense just gave up 347 passing yards to Oregon State. But there was something to like last week. Owen Eshelman got his first start and looked like a different offense. 32 of 49, 289 yards, two touchdowns, and 136 rushing yards. The running backs? Still stuck in neutral, 26 yards on 13 carries. Moore said it starts up front, and he's right. This is also a full-circle game for Kirby Moore, who played at Boise State and built the coaching connections he uses now. You can read more about what worked for him after the Oregon State win in our piece "Kirby Moore breaks down what worked after the win over Oregon State." It's a long shot. But it's Pullman, and it's Boise State, and that 2017 game still echoes. Go Cougs.
Owen Eshelman and Branden Ganashamoorthy made the scoreboard hurt a little less
You can't sugarcoat a 48-30 loss, especially the fourth straight. But if you watched Owen Eshelman and Branden Ganashamoorthy work together in Corvallis, you saw something that looked a lot like a future. Eshelman, a redshirt freshman making his first start, threw for 289 yards and ran for 147 more. That's the second-most total yards by a WSU quarterback in a single game, ever. He looked nothing like the guy who started the first six games. He trusted his arm, trusted his legs, and trusted Ganashamoorthy, who hauled in 11 catches for 147 yards and a touchdown he described as tunnel vision. The offense put up 30 points, its best against FBS competition all season, and for the first time all year, they didn't turn the ball over (unless you count a meaningless late pick). So that's the good part. The bad part is real. The running game is stuck in neutral, 26 yards on 13 carries from three backs. That's a problem for a coach who made his name unlocking the run at Missouri. And Kirby Moore's decision to punt twice on fourth-and-short in the first half cost them 14 points on the very next play. He says he trusted the defense. It didn't work. But for the first time this season, the Cougars had a quarterback. If Eshelman and Ganashamoorthy keep that rhythm, a few more of these losses might start looking different.
Kirby Moore finally had something to say, and it wasn't about a tie
Kirby Moore finally looked like he had something to say, and it wasn't about a tie. After WSU's 48-30 loss to Oregon State, the head coach showed up to the postgame microphone visibly frustrated, animated, and far more fired up than we've seen all season. For a guy who usually sounds like he just finished a scrimmage, this was a real shift. He benched Pinnick, started Owen Eshelman, and the offense finally looked alive. Eshelman completed 32 of 49 passes for 289 yards and ran for 136 more, the second-most rushing yards by a WSU quarterback in program history. If you didn't know it was his first start, you'd have called your buddy a liar. Moore also punted on fourth-and-short from midfield twice, both times leading to long OSU touchdowns. He defended the calls after the game, saying he has confidence in the defense. That's the right thing to say to the room. But you can tell he's learning. The Cougs are 1-6 and this season is basically a lost cause. But Eshelman changes the look of the rest of the schedule. They might not beat Boise State next weekend, but San Diego State and Colorado State suddenly feel different. Moore took too long to make this call. That's fair to say. But he made it, and that matters. For more on the bright spots from that game, check out our piece on Eshelman and Branden Ganashamoorthy making the scoreboard hurt a little less. Go Cougs.
Cougs need to prove the offense can show up against FBS defenses
If the Cougs can't score against FBS defenses, Saturday in Tucson is going to feel a lot like the last two weeks. One offensive touchdown and four turnovers across two games against that level of competition. That's not going to cut it against Arizona, even if the Wildcats have been generous enough to force only one turnover all season. The good news: the offensive line that just ran for 300 yards against Duquesne is back intact. They don't need to duplicate that number, but they need to make Arizona respect the run. If they can't, it's going to be a long day for whoever is taking snaps. On the other side, the defense needs to get to Noah Fifita. He's completing 80 percent of his throws. That's not a typo. But he's also taken eight sacks, and when he's pressured, his numbers drop. Jaylen Thomas already has a pick-six this season. Another one would help. The problem is Arizona ranks 18th nationally in pass blocking, so Matyus McLain and Linus Zunk have their work cut out for them. The Cougs have talked about being more detail-oriented since Week 1. They'll need every bit of that attention to detail to pull the upset. If you want a look at how things went sideways last time these teams met, check out our story from that game: "Arizona lands a punch Wazzu never quite answers." Go Cougs.