The losing tradition and slide into mediocrity among Washington State’s top three football teams really began at the end of last season when Washington State ended their season by traveling to Seattle and beating archrival Washington 42-35. at Husky Stadium. The Cougars finished their season with a 5-7 record.
Washington then traveled to Hawaii and lost to the Warriors 35-28, finishing their season with a 4-9 record.
The Seattle Seahawks finished their regular season last year with a 10-6 record before beating the Washington Redskins 35-14 in their first playoff game and then being eliminated 42-20 by the Green Bay Packers in the second round.
What has happened to the Washington Huskies, Washington State Cougars, and Seattle Seahawks since then has been horrifying: The state’s three flagship football teams have inadvertently turned defeat into an art form. Here is the score:
The Washington Huskies haven’t won a game this season, losing 6 times in a row (and 8 times, including the two season-ending losses last year). They have been beaten by Oregon 44-10, Brigham Young 28-27, Oklahoma 55-14, Stanford 35-28, Arizona 48-14 and Oregon State 34-13. They have been out scored 244 to 106.
Not to be outdone, the Washington State Cougars managed to beat 1-AA Portland State 48-9 but have lost another 7 games. They have been beaten by Oklahoma State 39-13, California 66-3, Baylor 45-17, Oregon 63-14, UCLA 28-3, Oregon State 66-13 and Southern California 69-0. They have been out scored 385 to 111.
The Cougars have given up 60+ points 3 times, and their 69-0 shutout loss to Southern Cal was the first time Washington State has gone scoreless in 280 straight games, since 1984, 24 years ago. First-year coach Paul Wulff has to be beside himself implementing his system with players on the field he didn’t draft.
The Seattle Seahawks managed to beat the St. Louis Rams 37-13 but have lost another 5 games. They have been beaten by Buffalo 34-10, San Francisco 33-30, New York Giants 44-6, Green Bay 27-17 and Tampa Bay 20-10. They have been out scored 171 to 110.
In total, Washington’s three flagship teams this season have a current combined record of 2-18 and have been out scored 800 to 327. Having a football team anywhere near Seattle or in Washington State is currently not a good idea.
The talent pool in Washington and Washington state is terrible; the losses suffered by the Seahawks’ talent pool are inexcusable. Apologies aside, Washington coach Tyrone Willingham, Washington State coach Paul Wulff and Seattle Seahawk coach Mike Holmgren are all having terrible seasons.
But what about the fans and the followers? Thought you’d never ask. They’re not taking it very well. They are angry, upset, and intolerant of failure. Sounds pretty normal to me. Who wants to back a bunch of losers?
It certainly doesn’t take any talent to lose. Unfortunately, the chance of any of these teams doing a great job this year is slim to none, and Slim left town a long time ago.
Copyright © 2008 Ed Bagley
