Cougs hope to see their future today

TUCSON, Ariz. -- Ugly losses, a frustrated fan base, a coach under fire; it's been a rough first two seasons for Paul Wulff at Washington State.

Mike Stoops knows all about it. The Arizona coach experienced everything Wulff is going through and more, because the Wildcats failed to post a winning record or go to a bowl game in Stoops' first five years in Tucson.

Arizona athletic director Jim Livengood, a former Washington State AD, refused to satisfy the critics by firing Stoops. The result was an 8-5 season last year and Arizona's first bowl game in 10 years, and now the Wildcats are 5-2, ranked 21st in the country and bidding for the Pac-10 championship.

"It is a blueprint," said Wulff, 3-18 as coach of the Cougars. "The blueprint is, if you want to get it right and you want to get it done like Arizona has done it, it takes patience.

"You bring in high school, young guys with high character. You build them up, and you let them grow. As they grow up, you have a program that can turn over each year and still have success."

Cougar AD Jim Sterk has repeatedly pledged support to Wulff during the rebuilding process and asked fans to stay patient. Three freshmen are expected to start for WSU on each side of the ball today at Arizona, and the two-deep is jam-packed with others in their first or second year in a Cougars uniform.

The Cougars are 1-7 overall and tied with UCLA for last in the Pac-10 at 0-5. Their five-game losing streak certainly does not appear likely to end this afternoon at Arizona Stadium.

Arizona, alone in second in the Pac-10 at 3-1, is favored by 32 points. The Wildcats are loaded with the type of experience, talent and speed that WSU simply can't match.

In addition, it's homecoming at Arizona, and the Cougars will be playing their third straight road game before 50,000-plus fans. As an added bonus, the Wildcats are much better prepared to handle the predicted 85-degree afternoon sunshine.

Add Stoops to the long list of coaches who have praised the Cougars for their grit -- "I see a team that plays awfully hard" -- and Wulff continues to rave about the spirit and dedication of his players.

"I don't have one complaint about attitude," he said. "It's been outstanding."

EXTRA POINTS: Redshirt freshman Jay Matthews is penciled in as the 11th freshman to start for WSU this season. He replaces junior strong safety Chima Nwachukwu, who will miss at least one game with the sprained ankle he suffered last week against Notre Dame. ... Senior walk-on Zach Tatman appears set to make his first start for the Cougars at tight end. Tony Thompson suffered a slight concussion Tuesday at practice. ... Nic Grigsby, who ran for more than 185 yards each of the past two years against WSU, likely will sit out with a lingering shoulder strain. ... WSU quarterbacks have been sacked 22 times the past three games. Arizona quarterbacks have been sacked four times all year (tied for first in the nation). ... The Wildcats rank first in the Pac-10 and 14th in the nation with 445.4 total yards per game. The Cougars rank last in the Pac-10 and next to last in the nation with 511.1 yards allowed per game. ... WSU has lost four straight to Arizona, and 10 of the past 15 meetings.