Martin Stadium, home of the Washington State Cougars.
If nothing else, 2021 was a very memorable year for Washington State Cougars football. Controversy followed the team from February through November, yet the players found a way to overcome. Here is a look at the Cougs crazy 2021.
February 6, 2021, is a day quarterback Jayden de Laura will never forget. The 19-year-old from Honolulu was arrested on suspicion of DUI in Pullman. Head coach Nick Rolovich suspended de Laura indefinitely. Rolovich never said what the QB had to do to rejoin the team, and his suspension went through spring practice and the beginning of summer camp.
One of Nick Rolovich’s most head-scratching decisions (non-vaccination division) was not making Jayden de Laura the starter from day one. In a season with so many tight games and a program struggling to regain national relevance, losing to Utah State in the opener with graduate transfer Jarrett Guarantano under center was a killer. Losing due to a self-inflicted wound made it all the worse. It wouldn’t be the last time Rolovich’s decision-making came into question, but it was one of the worst that he made.
After Guarantano was injured, de Laura came in and almost led the Cougars to victory. While far from polished, playing de Laura gave the Cougs their best chance to win. He led his team to a winning season, including a shellacking of rival UW in the Apple Cup. WSU would have been on the cusp of the national rankings with another victory or two.
For the better part of the season, the team dealt with the weekly soap opera of Coach Rolovich’s vaccination status. Depending on the day, Rolovich might imply he was vaccinated, or maybe hadn’t, or maybe he was thinking of doing it. His opaque responses only led to more attention and distracted the team. Rolovich again made a simple situation far more difficult than it needed to be.
Without taking a side in the overarching discourse on mandates, there were less-disruptive ways of handling his status. Rolovich could have applied for his exemption earlier in the season rather than waiting until the last possible day to do so. He could have notified the University that this was a personal conviction and tried to work out a resignation/ buy-out. Finally, the coach could have accepted the terms of his employment as the highest-paid state employee in Washington and gotten the same vaccination that every other D1 coach did.
Instead, Rolovich chose to drag out the situation by waiting until the last minute and forcing the school to terminate his contract. On October 18, the university fired him and four of his assistants.
In response, he filed a lawsuit against Washington State that manages to have little merit while essentially ensuring he won’t get another Division 1 head coaching job again. Suing your employer tends to tank your future employment prospects.
On the field, Rolovich seemed overmatched. Including the Utah State defeat, WSU started the season 1-3. Their lone victory in that stretch was over Portland State, an FCS school. It wasn’t just that the Cougars lost those games, and they looked really bad doing it, highlighted by a 45-14 loss to USC and their backup quarterback. As October began, WSU started to turn it around. They won six of eight and finished second in the Pac-12 North behind Oregon.
Defensive Coordinator Jake Dickert took over as Interim Head Coach after Rolovich’s dismissal. He kept the team together by embracing an “us against the world” mentality. The University was impressed with the way Dickert handled himself and represented the school under difficult circumstances.
Wins over Arizona, Arizona State, and Washington, as well as a good showing against Oregon down the stretch, showed he could do a good job leading the team on the field, as well. After destroying UW in the Apple Cup, Dickert had the interim removed from his title, getting the job permanently.
After finishing the 2021 season 7-5, the Washington State Cougars received an invitation to play in the Sun Bowl. Original opponent Miami had to drop out due to Covid-19 issues. After a scramble to find a replacement, Central Michigan, whose bowl opponent also canceled, stepped in to play WSU.
Playing without 60 percent of the offensive line, their top two running backs, starting corner, and backup quarterback, the Cougars found themselves shut out and trailing by 21 points at halftime. They came out in the third quarter and made a game of it before ultimately falling 24-21. The loss was a bitter pill to swallow but laid a positive groundwork for 2022.
What did you think about the Washington State Cougars’ 2021? Let us know in the comments section below or on social media.