Washington State Cougars: 4 thoughts from 38-13 loss to USC

Ed Stein   |  

Dec 7, 2020

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Sunday night, the Washington State Cougars were beaten soundly by USC 38-13. Here are four points to ponder about the game.

For a rare Sunday evening college football game, the undermanned Washington State Cougars went to Los Angeles to play undefeated USC. In under a quarter, Wazzu found out the hard way why the Trojans haven’t lost a game yet this season.

If Washington State fans didn’t know Kedon Slovis and Amon-Ra St. Brown’s names before Sunday, they sure do now. Quarterback Slovis hooked up with receiver St. Brown for four touchdowns… in the first quarter.

Despite the 38-14 score, it wasn’t all bad. The Cougs never folded, playing hard until the final whistle. As a matter of fact, they toughened up as the night went along. Now the young team knows what level they need to reach to be a top Pac-12 team.

Here are four thoughts about the game

Physical

This was one of the more physical games I’ve seen since targeting rules came into effect. Southern Cal came out of the chute hitting hard. It was almost as if they were sending future opponents a message at Washington State’s expense.

To their credit, the Cougars didn’t sit back and let USC tee off without repercussion. WSU came around and hit just as hard as USC did. Washington State’s defense played the run like it was a matter of life and death, holding Southern Cal to 5 total yards on 20 attempts. In a game where there isn’t much to praise, Wazzu’s toughness is something positive they can take from the big loss.

The Penalty that wasn’t

Washington State’s first possession was a harbinger of bad things to come. Two false start penalties put the team at a disadvantage, although they did a decent job of overcoming the obstacle. That wasn’t the biggest issue.

The Cougs decided to go for it on fourth-and-one from the USC 35. Trojans defensive end Drake Jackson got off his mark early but wasn’t flagged. He got pretty close to Jayden de Laura, who threw unsuccessfully to Travell Harris. Turnover on downs.

Giving unnecessary opportunities

When playing against a good team, one of the first rules is don’t give them extra chances. But that’s exactly what the Washington Cougars did. Several dropped passes forced the team into poor down and distance situations or punts.

Then there were the turnovers. Jayden de Laura, who we will get back to in a little bit, threw two interceptions and lost a fumble. The picks were converted into touchdowns, and USC almost cashed in on the fumble but missed a 31-yard field goal.

QB Carousel

Look, de Laura is an 18-year-old kid. To expect him to play like a seasoned vet in the face of a superior quality opponent is unrealistic. Of course, during a game like this, he’s going to struggle, especially in tough situations. Despite the drops and picks, he still completed 18 of 29 passes for 134 yards.

By the fourth quarter, de Laura was rattled. Head coach Mark Rolovich down by 32 points, decided to get his other quarterbacks some game action. Gunner Cruz looked a little rusty at first but completed 5-of-7 for 34 yards and a touchdown. Cammon Cooper was pretty decent himself. The lefty completed all three of his pass attempts and looked very good on rollouts.

Next week, the Washington State Cougars play their second to last game of 2020 when they host California on Saturday.