Wednesday, Sep. 17, 2008

Hicks to start for WSU after 3-game suspension

From Herald news services

SPOKANE -- Winless Washington State won't be looking past lower-level Portland State when the teams play Saturday in Pullman, WSU coach Paul Wulff promised Tuesday.

Washington State (0-3) is one of the worst teams in the six BCS conferences, having been blown out in three games by a combined score of 150-33. Portland State (1-1) of the Big Sky Conference has a high-powered offense under former NFL coach Jerry Glanville.

"It's no foregone conclusion we are going to win this game," Wulff said. "We are not taking care of our own business.

"We cannot get caught up in who we're playing."

Wulff, in his first season after moving up from Eastern Washington, should know the danger of playing a Championship Subdivision team. His Eastern teams upset Connecticut in 2001, Idaho in 2003 and lost just 21-19 in 2000 to an Oregon State team that finished 11-1.

Still, Portland State is perhaps WSU's best bet for a win before it plays eight Pac-10 games, then finishes the season at Hawaii. The Cougars are 40-2 against Big Sky teams, although this is the first time they have played the Vikings.

It is not difficult to figure out why the Cougars are struggling to avoid their second 0-4 start since 1968. In addition to being outscored by an average margin of 50-11, WSU has been blasted 476-234 in total yards per game and 330-83 in rushing yards per game.

WSU holds a 153-145 edge in passing yards per game, but run-happy opponents have thrown 26 fewer passes. Rivals hold an 8.0-2.3 edge in yards per rush, and 7.5-3.5 for all offensive plays.

As a result, Wulff is making some big changes in his lineup this week.

Xavier Hicks, suspended for the first three games for off-field troubles, will start at safety. Alfonso Jackson, who was moved to cornerback in the spring, will move back to safety. Myron Beck is moving from safety to linebacker.

Offensive tackle Vaughn Lesuma is moving to guard, while Steven Ayers and Joey Eppele will battle for his tackle job. Lesuma is more naturally a guard than a tackle, and the Cougars have had problems protecting the quarterback, Wulff said.

Kevin Lopina, who showed some good things in his first extensive college experience last Friday at Baylor, will start at quarterback again. But he has been slowed by a wrist injury this week.

"We have to get a lot better," Wulff said.

Washington State's problems are deep-seated, and many can be traced to the recruiting woes of the previous coaching regime of Bill Doba. The lack of recruits coming in was a main reason that Doba was forced out after last season's 5-7 campaign and replaced by Wulff.

But Wulff has found the cupboard nearly bare, emptied by graduation, injuries, discipline problems and the loss of scholarships because of NCAA violations.

"We've got a lot of players who haven't played a lot of football," he said.

The Vikings, a Football Championship Subdivision (formerly NCAA Division I-AA) team, are 2-23 all-time against Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly I-A) teams, including 0-6 against the Pac-10. Big Sky teams like PSU are 0-20 against the Pac-10 since 2000.

The Cougars are 13-0 against FCS teams since I-AA was created in 1978. Las Vegas does not post odds on FCS-FBS games.

"We've hit rock bottom," Lesuma said, "so we have that much more respect for whoever we play."

Portland State opened the season with a 31-14 win over Division II Western Oregon, then gave up 588 yards in a 38-24 loss to FCS rival UC Davis last week.

Glanville is 4-9 in two years as coach of the Vikings. Former PSU head coach Mouse Davis is the offensive coordinator and still masterminding the run-and-shoot offense, which usually features four or five receivers, no tight end, gobs of passing and few running plays.

Just 2,000 tickets remain for WSU's homecoming game Sept. 27 versus No. 17 Oregon (3:15 p.m., FSN).

A crowd similar to that for the home opener (27,906) is forecast for the Portland State game. The Sept. 6 turnout for California was the smallest crowd at a Pullman opener since 2000.

Despite the 0-3 start, the Cougars have set a sales record for all-sports passes to WSU students (11,533) for the second straight year. The 13,222 football season tickets sold ranks fifth in school history.

The Cougars made a relatively paltry $150,000 for playing at Baylor, the same amount WSU paid the Bears to come to Seattle two years ago. The Cougars had to fork out $300,000 to get Oklahoma State to visit Seattle last month, but WSU reels in $300,000 for visiting Hawaii in November.

Portland State earns $225,000 this week. WSU athletic director Jim Sterk is a former Portland State AD who took some grief for scheduling PSU instead of Eastern Washington, but the Cougars are now talking with the Eagles about a game in Pullman.

Former WSU running back DeMaundray Woolridge has transferred to Idaho and hopes to play for ex-Cougars assistant coach Robb Akey next year.

Woolridge had transferred to NAIA Division I Langston (Okla.), but was academically ineligible.

The Whitman County Prosecutor's Office continues to investigate charges filed against WSU kicker Wade Penner and ex-Cougars lineman Andy Roof.

Penner allegedly shot a makeshift "potato gun" that caused minor injuries to a woman boating on the Snake River during the summer.

Roof was kicked out of school after being involved in a campus brawl. Roof plans to play at Division II Central Washington next year.