Optimistic, Pessimistic, Realistic: Part Two

Optimistic

The true optimist in me wants the Cougs to go 13-0. We'd win every easy game easily, and every hard game would be won in a way that gets us an ESPN Classic marathon five years from now. But let's be somewhat realistic here. This is a decent team, and with skill and a LOT of luck (read: no injuries), they can overcome depth issues and make some noise. With that in mind, here's the 2007-08 season (hone team in all caps):

9/1: WISCONSIN 27, Washington State 24: The cougs put up a good effort at Camp Randall, trailing by 3 at halftime and unable to make up the difference in the second half. Brink makes it close on a 20-yard TD pass to Brandon Gibson with 2:30 remaining, but the Badgers do run out just enough of the clock to seal it. Our offensive line is dominated but the defense makes up for it with a solid effort in the secondary.

9/8: WASHINGTON STATE 33, San Diego State 13: The cougs don't play around with the Seattle game this time. Dwight Tardy rushes for 142 yards and 3 touchdowns against an overpowered SD State team. The cougs outdraw the huskies in Seattle. Again.

9/15: WASHINGTON STATE 56, Idaho 14: Robb Akey's patented "give up the big play" defense falls victim to Michael Bumpus (2 TDs) and the cougar offense. Brink throws for 378 yards and Rogers throws 2 TDs with the game out of reach, because Akey's defenses are awful in the fourth quarter (IR, YK).

9/22: USC 35, Washington State 33. The cougs come back from 17 down in the fourth against a tired Trojan defense, only to fail on the two point conversion to tie with :09 seconds left. The play: bubble screen to Bumpus.

9/29: Washington State 21, ARIZONA 3. Snooze fest. Stoops can't coach, and 2 Brink pass TDs and 1 Tardy rush TD is enough to do in the Wildcats.

10/6: WASHINGTON STATE 41, Arizona State 35. NOW Coug nation can get excited. A legitimate upset (at home even!) against a legitimate team coached by a legitimate jackass. The Cougs are now 4-2 and staring a bowl game in the face for the second straight year

10/13: Washington State 35, OREGON 21: Winning in Autzen is never easy, but the revamped Doba defense shocks Dennis Dixon and the Oregon offense. Snoop rushes for 5 yards before getting both ACLs torn on a hit by Greg Trent (just kidding, injuries are NOT SOMETHING TO JOKE ABOUT!! (angry emoticon)).

10/27: WASHINGTON STATE 56, UCLA 50 (5 OT): Here's your ESPN classic game. Brink mans up and leads a TD scoring drive with under 2 minutes remaining to tie the Bruins at the end of regulation. Four overtimes occur with nothing but deadlocks, even an 8-8 tie in the 4th OT. Finally, in the fifth OT, the Coug defense recovers a fumble, and on the ensuing possession Jed Collins breaks loose for a 10 yard TD run. Field rushing occurs.

11/3: Washington State 35, CALIFORNIA 28. The Cougs shock the Bears on the road to become (officially) bowl eligible. Jeff Tedford dies a little inside.

11/10: WASHINGTON STATE 24, Stanford 14: Stanford puts up a surprisingly good fight, but is done in by a Michael Bumpus punt return TD with 5:04 remaining.

11/17: WASHINGTON STATE 36, Oregon State 33 (OT): The beavers' new uniforms look ridiculous, then the team looks ridiculous by managing only a FG in overtime before giving up a 25 yard Brink-to-Gibson TD pass on the Cougs first (and last) play of the extra period.

11/24: Washington State 21, WASHINGTON 20: The huskies shock the Cougs. Tied 13-13 with :45 seconds left, an Alex Brink pass is intercepted and returned for a touchdown. The huskies think they have a win until the kickoff is returned 94 yards for a touchdown by Brandon Gibson. The cougs then shock the crap out of husky stadium by faking the extra point: Alex Brink (the holder) rolls right and throws to Michael Bumpus for the win. Tyrone Willingham retires and joins the senior PGA tour.

The cougs await their bowl game with a 10-2 record and a #7 ranking. USC makes the national title game, meaning the cougs sneak into the Rose Bowl!!

Rose Bowl: 1/1: Washington State 35, Michigan 21: The Cougs stun the Big Ten champion and get revenge for the 1997 Rose Bowl game. Alex Brink throws for 375 yards and four touchdowns and is named MVP. He finally goes down in Cougar history as one of our greatest QBs and is vindicated after years of bashing from the Swogger/Rogers camp. He is then drafted #27 overall by the New Orleans Saints.

OK, maybe that's a little too optimistic.