College Football Predictions – Washington St Cougars 2017 NCAA Football Preview
2016 Recap
2016 Record – 8-5
2016 ATS – 6-7
The Cougars had a great run last season winning EIGHT consecutive games after starting the season 0-2. They ran out of steam late in the year losing to Colorado, Washington and then Minnesota in the Holiday Bowl. They came very close to winning the PAC 12 North. Do they have what it takes to contend once again ? Let’s dig in.
2017 MEGALOCKS Opening Power Rating
PAC 12 – TBD
North Division – TBD
OFFENSE
QB Luke Falk returns for his senior season and will become the school’s all-time passing leader sometime in September. That is pretty impressive considering the QBs that Washington St has had over the years. Falk threw for 4,400 yards and 38 TDs last season and should come close to those numbers once again. The Cougars lose two of their top three WRs but still have a lot of talent on board AND this offensive system will always generate passing yards.
The rushing attack cracked the 100 yard per game barrier last season for the first time since 2011 and they should be even more effective this year. It’s all about the passing yards with this offense but having just a little bit of balance makes them close to unstoppable. Their top-3 (!) RBs are back this year and they combined for over 1,500 yards rushing and 22 TDs in 2016. This offensive line looks good and brings back three starters.
DEFENSE
Washington St finished mid-pack in the PAC 12 in both total defense and scoring defense last year. They were decent against the run (#3 PAC 12) but struggled vs the pass. They also failed to get enough PENETRATION tallying only 19 sacks all season (#10 PAC 12). This year they should be a bit better with 9 starters returning to the mix. The Cougars have 9 of the 10 tacklers back as well as the entire starting secondary from 2016. We feel like this defense is good enough to keep them in contention in the PAC 12 North provided they find a way to get more pressure on the QB. <grabs popcorn>
SPECIAL TEAMS
The Cougars bring back their PK and P but both struggled last season. Robert Taylor had a 100 yard KO return TD in 2016.
Potential ATS Trouble Spot
October 28 – at Arizona. This will be the Cougars’ 3rd road game in four weeks and they have a big game with Stanford on deck.
MEGAmazing Tidbits
The only player in Washington St history to finish in the top five in Heisman voting is your pal Ryan Leaf who finished 3rd in 1997.
The Cougars have only one win in four Rose Bowl appearances. The only victory was the infamous and controversial 14-0 win over the Brown Bruins in 1915.
MEGALOCKS ATS Value Rating (10) 8.0
MEGALOCKS says:
Overall, we give the COUGARS a 8.0 ATS Value Rating (Very Good) this season.
The Cougars look more than ready to make a run at the PAC 12 North title. They still have to deal with the JUGGERNAUT Washington Huskies and Stanford (and Oregon ?) but they could very easily find themselves in a winner-take-all Apple Cup battle on November 25th.
Washington St is known for their great passing attack and kooky head coach but they are really good when they have a decent defense. That seems to be the case this season. Mike Leach is 16-7 ATS (69.6%) as a road dog with the Cougars and that may be a good place to focus once again when building your weekly card.
Want more Washington St Football ?
Website
http://www.wsucougars.com/index.aspx?path=football
Forum
Free
http://scout.com/college/washington-state/Board/Football-Forum-103296
https://washingtonstate.forums.rivals.com/forums/the-cougar-lair.8/
News
http://www.spokesman.com/cougs/
http://bleacherreport.com/washington-state-football
http://sportspyder.com/cf/washington-state-cougars-football/news
Hashtag – #GoCougs
Accounts
https://twitter.com/wsucougfb @wsucougfb
https://twitter.com/StefanieLoh @StefanieLoh Stefanie Loh