Throughout the offseason, I have maintained that the WSU football program does itself a disservice by scheduling games against teams with grossly underfunded athletic departments like that of the University of Idaho.

The least-funded of all FBS schools, the Vandals football program has been victimized by expansion efforts of Power Five conferences, a recruiting trend in which lower-tier prospects frequently choose to play at a bonafide FCS school rather than a lower-rung FBS program and, more than anything, apathy among its own fanbase.

The Big Sky Conference will suit the capabilities of the university’s athletic department more favorably come next fall, and even though WSU (0-2) has no business making a habit out of annually playing two games versus such opponents, the timing for a matchup this week could not be better.

Pullman is reeling as the Cougars sit winless following back-to-back three-point losses in games the team likely wins if not for self-inflicted wounds on both sides of the ball.

In the Cougars 45-42 loss to FCS Eastern Washington, 12 penalties for more than 100 yards and 600-plus yards allowed on defense sealed the team’s fate as Eagles redshirt sophomore quarterback Gage Gubrud ran wild in his first collegiate start. WSU redshirt junior linebacker Isaac Dotson said after the game that there were plays in which not all 11 defensive players received the play call.

Last week against Boise State, three failed fourth down conversions, a missed field goal attempt in the second quarter and redshirt junior quarterback Luke Falk’s pick-six on the team’s opening drive virtually handed the Broncos a 31-28 home victory.

In Monday’s press conference, Leach told reporters that the atmosphere surrounding the team was like a junior college softball team. He noted that it seems like the team that has the most fun wins. Leach stressed that the team needs to get out of that mentality.

As the program rumbles its way on to week three, there may have never been a more quintessential fit in the program’s history for a home game against UI. Simply put, the Cougars need a win to inject some air into a deflated program and community, and it does not matter who it comes against.

To the Vandals credit, they took care of business against a Big Sky opponent, pulling out a 20-17 win over Montana State in week one. Right now, that is more than WSU can say.

Under Leach, the Cougars have fostered a nauseating trend of playing to the level of their competition, as evidenced by 11 of their past 15 games being decided by one score. At some point, particularly this Saturday, the team has to realize that it has better athletes than opposing teams from conferences like the Sun Belt.

Saturday’s game is over by halftime if WSU plays up to its full potential. UI is neither efficient nor deep enough at either end to keep pace with Falk and company’s aerial assault.

However, I liken that to having a 50-50 probability of being the case. WSU underwhelmed in last year’s 31-14 week three win over Wyoming in a game with a similar feel and season implications. Both the offense and defense are notoriously slow starters, as was the case last week when the Cougars dug themselves a 14-0 first quarter hole against BSU that they could not climb out of.

Though much of the WSU student body and alumni base may in fact sit in stunned surprise at halftime on Saturday as the Vandals trail by just one score, such a scenario will not surprise me unfortunately. Despite having advantages in every imaginable area of a football program over the Vandals, WSU has not yet established a consistent winning culture for as much as players and coaches are preaching it.

For the Cougars to win and have their name mentioned among the west coast elite year in and year out, Saturday’s game must be a stepping stone taken toward achieving that goal.

A winning program thrashes the opponents it schedules as a tune up affair, will not leave the game in the balance and does not need its head coach to call out players for having a lack of toughness in order to salvage a season.

Against the Vandals, WSU can get by on raw ability alone, but let’s see how the team handles the mental side of playing tough. That is, meeting or exceeding expectations on the field and in this case, beating a team the program originally had no business scheduling.