Washington State Cougars: Game 4 vs. California – TV, Weather, More
Ed Stein
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Washington State Cougars Football opens Pac-12 play as the Cougs host Oregon. Pacific Northwest Sports has all you need to know.
PNWS presents what you need to know as the Washington State Cougars begin their Pac-12 Conference schedule at home against Oregon. PNWS has Washington State football fans covered.
Details
Who: California Golden Bears (3-1 overall, 1-0 Pac-12) at Washington State Cougars (3-1, 0-1).
Where: Gesa Field at Martin Stadium – Pullman, Washington
When: Saturday, October 1, 2022 – 2:30 p.m. PDT.
TV: Pac-12. Announcers: Roxy Bernstein, Lincoln Kennedy.
Weather: It doesn’t get much better than this. During the game, temperatures will hover around 70 degrees under sunny skies and a very slight breeze. (weather.com)
Line: Washington State -4. Over/Under: 53 (Odds Shark).
Interesting Trends
The Washington State Cougars have been doing pretty well recently, winning 5 of 7. They also covered in 6 of them. Speaking of the spread, Wazzu is 11-3, going back to last season. The total has gone over in the Cougs’ last 6 conference games.
Cal has both won and covered in 4 of 5. They are also 6-2 against the spread against Pac-12 teams. The Bears haven’t been Road Warriors lately, going 1-8 away from Berkeley.
Injury Report
Washington State Cougars
Out – WR Zeriah Benson (eligibility), WR C.J. Moore (undisclosed), OL Rodrick Tialavea (lower body). Questionable – S Jordan Lee (undisclosed), LB Cooper Mattews (undisclosed).
California Golden Bears
Out (season) – DL Brett Johnson (lower body).
Outlook
It will be an interesting contrast of offensive styles. Cal’s plan will be to feed the Cougars a steady diet of running back Jaydn Ott left, Ott right, and Ott up the middle. Meanwhile, Wazzu wants to open it up with quarterback Cameron Ward.
It’s up to the Washington State Cougars defense to stop Cal’s dynamic freshman rusher. Expect them to put 8 players in the box to prevent Ott from breaking big runs.
That means once again, Wazzu will feature plenty of single coverage on the outside. If Cal can establish the run, it will open up passing lanes for quarterback Jack Plummer.
He has two very good receivers to work with, Jeremiah Hunter and speedster J. Michael Sturdivant, who had top 10 finishes in the 100 and 200 meters at last spring’s Pac-12 Track Championships.
The big question for Cal’s offensive line is can they keep Wazzu’s bookends Brennan Jackson and Ron Stone out of the backfield? If they do, then there is still Daiyan Henley to contend with.
Wazzu can take advantage of California’s pass defense which ranks 10th in the Pac-12 for yards allowed. De’Zhaun Stribling, Renard Bell, Donovan Ollie, Robert Ferrel, and Lincoln Victor will be zipping all over the field at Gesa Stadium.
Related Story: 5 questions for Washington State before California
Catch up with PNWS on Sunday when we present our biggest takeaways from the game.