It just takes one to turn it around

Senior+wide+receiver+Vince+Mayle+avoids+a+Rutgers+defender+after+making+a+catch+at+CenturyLink+Field+in+Seattle%2C+Thursday%2C+Aug.+28%2C+2014.

Senior wide receiver Vince Mayle avoids a Rutgers defender after making a catch at CenturyLink Field in Seattle, Thursday, Aug. 28, 2014.

Cougar football looks to avoid disaster Saturday at Martin Stadium.

The Cougars (0-2) seek their first win of the season against the Portland State Vikings (1-1) in WSU’s first game in Pullman this season. WSU is coming off a loss to the Nevada Wolf Pack in which they couldn’t get any momentum on offense.

Portland State won their first game of the season last week against Division II Western Oregon. Despite being a member of the Big Sky conference in the FCS, the Vikings nearly upset Oregon State in their first game of the season.

Portland State led 14-13 at half before faltering in the second half, losing 29-14.

The Vikings can compete with FBS level opponents as they proved against Oregon State and last season when they came within one possession of beating the California Golden Bears.

One thing the Vikings do well is run the ball, something the Cougar defense is still working on stopping after struggling in the first two games. 

The Cougars will have to make adjustments on both sides of the ball in order to turn their shaky start around. Here are a couple keys to success for the Cougars.

WSU Run Game vs. Portland State Front Seven

WSU has one of the most prolific passing offenses in college football thanks to Head Coach Mike Leach’s Air Raid offense, but that doesn’t mean they can’t have success on the ground.

Generally, the passing game is dependent on a running game that will keep the defense drawn in to be prepared for either the run or pass. This season, the Cougars have rushed for a combined 44 yards on 32 carries, resulting in a dismal 1.4 yards per carry average.

Leach said when the running backs are going well they should lead the team in yards.

“Well in the end they should have more yards than everybody,” Leach said. “Historically we’ve had guys lead conferences in all-purpose yards, you know, without even doing a lot of special teams. In one guy’s case he didn’t do any special teams, led the conference in all-purpose yards.”

Portland State will undoubtedly bring in a game plan expecting the Cougars to throw on almost every down. If WSU can establish even the smallest running threat, Portland State will be off-balance and the Air Raid will thrive in Pullman.

WSU Front Seven vs. Portland State’s Offensive Line

After the first two games of the season, WSU has only one sack. As a result, the defense has just one turnover to start the season, and that came in the opener against Rutgers.

A big reason for some of WSU’s success on defense last season came from their ability to put pressure on the quarterback and force inaccurate throws resulting in big turnovers for the defense.

Defensive line coach Joe Salave’a said the biggest issue for the defensive line is mental.

“They’re still kids, you know? They psych themselves out so much, you know? The last thing that they need is to put undue pressure on themselves,” Salave’a said. “So when time that ball snaps the thing that they’re supposed to be great at attacking the ball and playing fast they’re so mentally frazzled, you know, not operating on a normal setting.”

Salave’a said that it’s his job as the coach to get them back into the right mindset and a high-energy attitude. 

The key for the Cougar defense is the battle up-front. If WSU can come out and assert their dominance up front early, then the secondary should be able to capitalize on potential Portland State mistakes.

What arguably could be the biggest difference in WSU’s performance won’t be seen in the X’s and O’s. The Cougars will have to come out focused and ready to execute their game plan if they want to come away with their first win of the season.

Junior linebacker Jeremiah Allison said at Monday’s press conference that the biggest thing the Cougs can do to improve is to buy into more of a winning mindset.

“One thing coach Loko, or Loscalzo (WSU Football Strength and Conditioning Coach) told us is, you know, we only can control effort and our attitude,” Allison said. “Once more people start buying in and doing that I mean you’re gonna see the difference, you’re gonna, we can feel the difference, so that’s all just buying in.”

The Cougars will have to hope they can fully believe in a winning mindset, if not, then both the team and their fans will be in for a long season.

WSU will host Portland State at 5 p.m. Saturday. The game can be seen on the Pac-12 Networks.