Washington State Football Escapes Week One With 13-10 Win Over Rival Idaho

Washington State fans in attendance at Gesa Field got a much closer game than they probably preferred, but the Cougars were able to pull out a 13-10 win over Idaho in Jimmy Rogers' first game as head coach.

Rogers noted his team's got plenty to clean up, including third-down execution after the Cougs went three-for-12 on third down attempts. But with a group of so many newcomers, it may take a minute for them completely gel on the field.

Here's what stood out from WSU's bumpy 1-0 start to the year.

Jaxon Potter Starts At Quarterback

After Zevi Eckhaus stepped up to replace John Mateer in last season's Holiday Bowl after Mateer entered the portal, many assumed Eckhaus would be the starting Cougs starting quarterback in Week One. However, as the weeks went by without a starter named, it wasn't clear who to expect under center.

Redshirt sophomore Jaxon Potter ended up with the start, finishing with 24 completions on 31 attempts for 209 yards and a touchdown. Rutgers transfer Julian Dugger also saw some time, but missed his only pass attempt and rushed four times for a net of -14.

South Dakota State Transfers Make Immediate Impact

Particularly on the defensive side of the ball, several of the players that followed Rogers to Pullman from South Dakota State made their presence felt. Linebacker Caleb Francl finished with 11 total tackles, leading the team. Anthony Palano and Matthew Durrance also added nine tackles each, while Durrance added a forced fumble.

Offensively, running back Kirby Vorhees caught five passes for 18 yards and was the team's leading rusher with six carries for 19 yards. WSU's rushing game as a whole was completely ineffective with a net total of three yards on the day.

A Tricky Fourth Quarter

While the Cougs had built a 10-0 lead by the start the fourth quarter, Idaho mounted a 16-play, 75-yard touchdown drive that ate up nearly nine minutes of clock. That drive was capped by a three-yard rush by Art Williams.

After the lead was cut to three points, the Idaho defense backed the Cougs into their own end zone, forcing a punt that gave Idaho the ball in WSU territory with 5:40 remaining. The Cougs, their defense held, giving them the ball again inside their own ten-yard line. WSU started driving and looked to be in a position to run the remaining time out...however, Idaho's Matyus McClain stripped the ball from Angel Johnson and the Vandals recovered just before the two-minute timeout. Idaho kicker Cameron Pope tied the game with a 21-yard field goal with 1:42 remaining.

Potter then mounted a nine-play, 59-yard drive for the Cougs down to the Idaho 15-yard line. setting up a 32-yard field goal for Jack Stevens, leaving three seconds on the clock. Idaho got one more play from their own 25-yard line, but didn't get far before Raam Stevenson made the game-sealing tackle.

The Cougs will return to action on Saturday, September 6 against San Diego State in the Cougs' homecoming matchup.