Washington State Opens Pac-12 Play With 26-6 Loss to Fresno State

The Cougars fell to 1-4 in their Pac-12 opener at Gesa Field and now face a short week before a Friday night game at Utah State.

Washington State began Pac-12 competition with a 26-6 loss to new conference opponent Fresno State on Saturday at Gesa Field in Pullman, where an announced crowd of 26,471 booed the home team as the game slipped away. The defeat left the Cougars at 1-4 overall, their worst start through five games since 2010, and 0-1 in league play.

The offense never got going. Sophomore quarterback Caden Pinnick passed for just over 150 yards and committed two turnovers, including his fifth interception in five games this season. Washington State ran 10 drives of fewer than five plays, converted only 3 of 14 third downs and managed 65 total yards across its first five possessions. After reaching halftime tied 6-6, the Cougars were held scoreless in the second half.

Pinnick completed just four passes of 10 or more yards, his longest an 18-yarder to junior wide receiver Branden Ganashamoorthy during the seven-play drive that set up kicker Jack Stevens' 32-yard field goal in the second quarter. Late in the fourth, a Pinnick pass glanced off senior receiver Daniel Blood's hands for a turnover on downs at the Washington State 8-yard line, and he threw an interception on the following series while trailing by 17. Coach Kirby Moore said he kept Pinnick in the game to avoid disrupting the offense's rhythm, and no offensive players, including Pinnick, were made available to reporters afterward.

Moore took responsibility after the game. "They deserve better," he said of the fans, adding that everything had to be reevaluated and that it starts with him as head coach. He said the staff had determined before the game that 27 points were needed to win. "If we score 27, we win this game, and we didn't do that," Moore said.

Fresno State finished with 375 total yards, 246 of them passing from quarterback Jayden Mandal, who completed 24 of 33 attempts. The Bulldogs relied on trickery: a 38-yard pass thrown after several players handled the ball in the backfield led to a second-quarter field goal and a 6-3 lead, and a 27-yard flea flicker set up senior wide receiver Josiah Freeman's 3-yard end-around touchdown run in the third quarter. Fresno State pulled away in the fourth on an 8-yard touchdown run by Gillick plus field goals of 31 and 33 yards from Watanabe, who had earlier connected from 27 and 22.

Washington State's defense kept Fresno State out of the end zone until the second half and produced a highlight when junior defensive tackle Jirah Leaupepetele forced a fumble that set up Stevens' first field goal.

The game marked a turnaround for Stevens, who opened the season 2 for 7 on field goals amid issues with snaps, protection and accuracy. He made both of his attempts Saturday, including a career-long 50-yarder as time expired in the second quarter, improving to 4 for 9 on the season with three straight makes.

Junior defensive tackle Kaden Beatty said he understood the crowd's frustration. "Yeah, I heard the boos. Everyone did. This isn't Cougar football," Beatty said. "We're gonna clean it up, fix it up for them, and give them something to cheer about, not boo."

Washington State is one of four Pac-12 teams to open conference play 0-1, while four others began 1-0, including Oregon State and Boise State, both of whom the Cougars will face before the end of the month. Next comes a short week and a Friday night road game at Utah State (1-4, 0-1). "We've got a short week. That's the only way I know how to improve the product on the field," Moore said.