Other than calling the “popcorn guy” awesome, Washington State Head Football Coach Mike Leach didn’t say much else in his press conference Monday. The players were equally soft-spoken, just a couple of days removed from their loss to the Stanford Cardinal. 

Leach said he was pleased with the effort of his players, but said the difference in the game against Stanford came down to something simple. 

“It wasn’t a lack of effort. It was trying too hard,” Leach said. “We were trying too hard. I think we’re a highly motivated team.” 

While complimentary of the technique used by the man who poured popcorn into his mouth in the stands, he said his own team needs to relax and play on the field. He said they tried to make too much happen against Stanford, and that contributed to the plethora of dropped balls by the receivers. 

The Cougars returned to practice Sunday night and had already put the loss behind them. More importantly, quarterback Connor Halliday, who exited Saturday’s game with an injury, participated in the practice. 

Now, the game against the California Golden Bears looms in the team’s mind. 

“This game is really big. Every game is a big one, no matter what,” running back Marcus Mason said. “The main goal is to just get the victory and we need to bounce back. We need to get back on pace because our ultimate goal is to go to the Rose Bowl, and it’s gonna be hard unless we win all these games.”

Safety Deone Bucannon spoke on behalf of the defense, and said its mindset has not wavered since Saturday. He said the team just wasn’t playing Cougar football against Stanford, and the problems should be fixed in time for the next game. 

“We really haven’t changed. We’re still going to play hard and fast,” Bucannon said. “No matter what happens, we still know who we are and we still know how we play.”

Leach said the Cougars are looking forward to this week because the game against Stanford didn’t allow themselves to put their best foot forward. The coach is proud of the way the team has worked and continued to harp on the fact that there is always room for improvement. 

Mason seemed to agree, and said the team remains confident in who they are. 

“All we know this week is that we’re going to go out and prove everyone wrong and just play our game and play how we’re supposed to, because that’s what we do,” Mason said. “We don’t care about how other people see us outside the conference, the city or anyone else. We know who we are inside the locker room.”