WSU Cougars
Wazzu keeps WSU Cougars in one place: 3 stories so far. The section currently leads with “A Freeman grad named Boen Phelps just broke a Coug heart in Boise”, “Fifita shakes off the rust, hits Smith twice to flip the script on Arizona”, and “Three Coug freshmen got their first taste of Kansas State: and the lesson was loud”. A Freeman High grad named Boen Phelps just broke a Coug heart in Boise. Jackquintin Bal saw it coming before Noah Fifita let it go. The unofficial read for people who left Pullman and stayed Cougs. The list below is every WSU Cougars 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.
Fifita shakes off the rust, hits Smith twice to flip the script on Arizona
Jackquintin Bal saw it coming before Noah Fifita let it go. The Washington State safety jumped the route, snatched the ball, and ran 25 yards untouched into the end zone. That pick-six put the Cougs up 14-0 early. It felt like one of those nights in Pullman where the old magic shows up. Then the second quarter happened. Fifita shook off the rust. Arizona's veteran quarterback started slow, but he found Caleb Smith for a 41-yard bomb, then hit him again for a 38-yard touchdown on the very next play. By the fourth quarter, Fifita was dropping a pinpoint over-the-shoulder pass to Isaiah Mizell for an 11-yard score. He finished 22 of 36, 297 yards, four touchdowns. The Wildcats erased that 14-point deficit and never looked back. Bal still had a night. The Arizona State transfer led the team with nine tackles, nearly grabbed a second pick in the end zone, and made open-field stops all over the field. But one great individual performance doesn't win a game when the other side's quarterback finds his rhythm. For the full story on how that early lead slipped away, check out "Cougs jump Arizona early, then watch a 14-point lead dissolve." The script flipped. Fifita improved to 2-0 in Pullman. That one stings. Go Cougs.
Three Coug freshmen got their first taste of Kansas State: and the lesson was loud
The first time you step on a Power Four opponent's floor as a true freshman, you find out fast what you're made of. Three Coug freshmen got that lesson in Manhattan, and the scoreboard says Kansas State won by 14. But the tape says something else. Those first few minutes? That's the part that matters. Seeing the speed, the size, the way a veteran team moves without thinking, that's the real education. And for a program that's still building its identity under this staff, the question isn't whether they lost. It's whether they learned. We'll have more on the X's and O's soon. If you want to see how the coaching staff is breaking down that fight, go read "Kirby Moore on K-State: What the postgame tape reveals about Wazzu's fight." It's the kind of film-room honesty that tells you more than any box score. For now, the take is simple: these three freshmen got baptized. That's not a bad thing. You don't grow in Pullman without a few hard Saturdays. The Cougs didn't fold. They took the hit, and they'll be better for it. Go Cougs.