The battle of man vs beast has occurred since the beginning of human history, and the two again will clash in a Friday night showdown on the Palouse. WSU (3-0) and San Jose State University (3-0) collide in a matchup of two schools looking to stay perfect on the season.
The matchup for WSU comes following a dramatic win over the rival Washington Huskies in Seattle, calling to question whether the Cougs can lock back in on a short week.
“Great teams, play nameless, faceless opponents and live up to their standard. What type of competitors do we have at nature? In our heart, in our minds? It’ll show up on Friday night. We learned from [the Apple Cup], we moved on, and we understand how to attack this week,” head coach Jake Dickert said.
The matchup of Cougs vs Spartans dates back to 1955. The two teams have faced off 13 times, with WSU leading the series 8-4-1 and winning the last three matchups. They have only played once in the 20th century, back in 2018 when Wazzu won 31-0 in Pullman.
Despite two Power 4 conference wins in a row for WSU, SJSU is more than just a potential trap game, Dickert said. “They’re the best team on the West Coast.”
After going 7-6 a year ago, the Spartans are undefeated coming to Pullman with wins over Air Force, Sacramento State University and Kennesaw State University.
SJSU is a dangerous aerial threat, led by former Coug Emmett Brown at quarterback. Brown, a redshirt sophomore from San Marco, Calif. spent his first two seasons at WSU, backing up Cam Ward and John Mateer in 2023. He saw limited action for the Cougs, attempting nine passes in the 2023 week three win over the University of Northern Colorado.
Brown is off to a scorching hot start to 2024, already throwing for 915 yards and nine touchdowns through three weeks, including 355 yards, four touchdowns and no turnovers in a 31-10 win over KSU a week ago. Dickert recognizes how talented Brown was and is, and takes pride in the QB room of 2023.
“First off, look at our QB room from last year. One’s the Heisman favorite [Cam Ward at the University of Miami (Fl.)], one’s the biggest sensation on the West Coast [Mateer] and one has thrown for almost 1,000 yards [Brown],” Dickert said. “I’m proud of Emmett. For him to have success, we know him well. He’s got probably the quickest release of all the three guys I just mentioned. Extremely accurate quarterback throws a great deep ball… I’m proud of him, I’d like to see him take a week’s break on [being successful] right? But I’m glad he’s getting a chance to play.”
The WSU defense has to deal not just with Brown, but his best weapon. SJSU currently has the top receiver in the nation, and his name is Nick Nash. The senior wideout leads the country in receptions (34), receiving yards (485) and receiving touchdowns (6). In week three, Nash set the program record for catches in a game with 17, coming in fifth all-time in yards in a game with 225 and tying the record for touchdown catches in a game with three.
The WSU defense allowed over 300 yards passing in week three and a 150+ yard receiver, but the strategy for the Cougar defense is bend but not break, Dickert said.
“Our guys were nails in the red zone. To hold them to one big play and four field goals. If you’re mentally sturdy and strong, however they got down there doesn’t matter. If you give that group an inch, they’re going to defend it. They play with great emotion and energy. I think we can win a lot of games on that side of the ball,” Dickert said.
Even though the WSU defense has allowed the ninth most yards per game in the nation, they are allowing just 21.67 points per game, including just 19 to UW and 16 to Texas Tech University, who scored 52 in week one and 66 in week three.
How Nash is used Friday remains a question, but the presumable matchup will be Nash against senior cornerback Steve Hall, a team captain. Hall has the team’s lone pick-six this season, also leading the team in tackles with 17. With such a large task on Hall’s plate, the pass rush could help him out allowing Brown less time to throw.
The biggest impact rushing the passer this season has come from senior edge Raam Stevenson, who has a sack in each of the last two games. The Cougs only have a total of four sacks through three weeks, and SJSU has allowed only five.
On the flip side, SJSU has just four sacks as well, while the WSU offensive line has allowed only two through three weeks. The Cougar O-line effectively “neutralized” the UW pass rush, Dickert said, and they could receive even more reinforcements Friday.
“[Fa’alili Fa’amoe] will make his return this week. As long as we have a good week of practice, which we anticipate him having, he’ll be out there in some form or fashion, or a rotation,” Dickert said.
Fa’amoe, a redshirt senior right tackle, was named to the preseason Outland Trophy and the Lombardi Trophy for the nation’s top lineman watchlist. He was also named to the Polynesian Player of the Year Watchlist. Although expected to be limited, his presence in practice, and now potentially on the field is immense, Dickert said.
The Cougar offense is led by redshirt sophomore QB John Mateer. Despite a historic lineage of QBs, Mateer is one unlike any other in WSU history, already having set the program record for rushing yards in a game with 197 in week two. He also comes into week four leading all NCAA QBs in rushing yards with 314 yards, adding four touchdowns.
Mateer is a threat with his legs but has shown at times in 2024 to be a threat with his arm as well, throwing for 712 yards and seven touchdowns with two interceptions. He has only completed 37 of 70 passes this season (52.8%), but the Cougs are not turning away from the passing game, Dickert said.
The team has fallen out of the rhythm they had passing in week one, and needs to regain it, Dickert said. Senior receiver Kyle Williams who led the team in receiving in week one has been playing at “70%” the last two weeks, Dickert said, but they need to find more ways to get him the ball. One option to keep turning to is redshirt junior receiver Josh Meredith.
Meredith broke out in week three recording a career-high seven catches for 111 yards and a touchdown. The totals were not just career highs for a game but for a season. Primarily working from the slot, WSU could look to turn to Meredith once more.
Despite rushing for over 200 yards a week in 2024 so far, WSU running backs took a step back a week ago. Freshman Wayshawn Parker ran 10 times for 49 yards, but 37 came on one run. Outside of Parker, Cougar running backs received only two carries for 6 yards. While the running backs are often asked to block for Mateer more than run, the group is looking for a bounce-back against SJSU.
The SJSU defense, albeit against non-Power 4 and FCS opponents, has been stingy this season against the pass, allowing just 361 total passing yards through three weeks, and reeling in six interceptions. On the ground, however, they have allowed 128 yards per game, an area WSU could look to attack if the passing game is not in a rhythm early.
The last aspect of the game to look at for WSU is special teams, specifically the kicking game. Senior kicker Dean Janikowski has struggled this year hitting just two of four field goals and missing one extra point. He has been both kicking and punting in 2024 due to an injury to punter Nick Haberer, which could be making things more difficult, Dickert said.
“First off, we’re asking him to do a lot. We put a lot of pressure on him, and now his attention is not all on field goals and what he needs to do now. I’m not creating excuses, Dean would be the first to come up here and say he needs to put that between the uprights,” Dickert said. “But I trust Dean. He knows the expectations, and we need to continue to put the ball between the uprights when he’s called upon.”
WSU is diving into the portion of the schedule where they will face non-conference Mountain West Conference opponents under their 2024 scheduling agreement. Despite the change in league opponents, the skill level is still high, and the focus is still the same, said senior linebacker Kyle Thornton.
“Any time you can build up some early momentum, it’s huge for the program. Obviously, we’re headed into a new stretch of the schedule, but that isn’t a step down whatsoever. I’ve seen a lot of [MWC teams] are doing good. We have a 3-0 opponent coming up right now,” Thornton said. “We’re fully aware of what’s heading our way, and we’re more than ready for it.”
The 3-0 start for WSU may surprise some, but it does not surprise anyone on the team, Dickert said. After a strong start to the season for the third straight year, receiving 30 votes in the most recent AP Poll and going into a MWC slate, the Cougs have much more to prove.
“We’re 3-0. We wanted to be here, we expected to be here,” Dickert said. “Let’s keep getting better and see where we can take this year’s football team… We’re not satisfied.”
