Baseball. Cougars Win in Grand Style

Source: WSU Cougars (Official Site)

P.J. Jones picked a great time for his first-collegiate home run. The freshman catcher blasted a grand slam in the bottom of the ninth inning in front of a regional television audience and 1,253 fans at Bailey-Brayton Field to give Washington State (26-25, 11-15 Pac-12) a 9-5 Pac-12 Conference victory over No. 20 Oregon State (34-18, 14-12 Pac-12), Saturday.

PHOTO: Mike Leach Shot A Big Bear

Source: CougCenter by Brian Floyd

Okay, so we were kidding around a bit on Friday because we didn't have visuals on the bear Mike Leach took down. Leach said he shot a bear somewhere in the neighborhood of 7-feet and 350 pounds, but it's kind of hard to visual what that might look like. Personally, I was thinking something like Shaq.

Now, we have established actual visual contact.

Via @Coach_Leach

If you're interested in the hunt, you'll also be able to

What Might We Surmise From Jeff Hironaka's Reassignment?

Source: CougCenter by Jeff Nusser

We know Ken Bone and Jeff Hironaka have known each other for a long time. We know they're friends. And we know that Hironaka is an immensely respected basketball strategist.

What we don't know, is what exactly caused Bone to pull the trigger on reassigning Hironaka now.

Here was Bone's explanation Thursday. Via Christian Caple:

[Bone] said the move is motivated primarily by

HOT COUGAR ACTION: Power Rankings Galore

Source: CougCenter by Mark Sandritter

If you like power rankings, then today's post is right up your alley. On the football side of things, the ESPN Pac-12 blog has post-spring power rankings. Then, Bud Withers was kind enough to go along with the theme of today's post and give us a projected basketball power ranking.

Let's start with football. Washington State checks in at No. 8 with the following blurb.

8. Washington State: Of the four new coaches, it's Mike Leach who will probably have

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Source: Yahoo! NCAAB

Baseball. Big First Inning Hurts Cougars

Source: WSU Cougars (Official Site)

Oregon State used a 13-hit attack to defeat Washington State 10-2 in Pac-12 Conference baseball, Friday at Bailey-Brayton Field.

W. Tennis. Lisa Hart Named ITA Northwest Region Coach of the Year

Source: WSU Cougars (Official Site)

Washington State University Head Coach Lisa Hart has been named the 2012 Intercollegiate Tennis Association Northwest Region Coach of the Year, it was announced recently.

CougCenter Exclusive: Video Of Mike Leach Bear Hunting

Source: CougCenter by Mark Sandritter

As you probably know, Mike Leach went bear hunting in Canada earlier this week and shot a 350 pound bear. What you probably didn't know is CougCenter has a source in Saskatchewan who videotaped Leach's exploits.

It took a few days for our source to make his way out of the woods, but the video arrived at CougCenter headquarters earlier today. It's a bit grainy and there is no audio, but you can still see Leach's encounter with one very large bear. As you can tell, this isn't any regular bear, coach had his hands full with this one.

I'd be lying if I said I didn't get a little nervous there for a

Mailbag: Best Big Ten-Pac-12 matchups

Source: Pac-12 Football Blog

Happy Friday. This is where you follow me on Twitter. To the notes. Dave from Birmingham writes: Not sure I get you. Why would you not want the four best teams to play in a playoff? That's what a playoff is about. I know there's a subjective part to this but that's inevitable. Is everyone that afraid of a consensus favoring the SEC because the SEC is the best conference? Ted Miller: In a word, yes. And no matter how you frame it, that so-called consensus remains subjective.

W. Rowing. Katie Dick Selected to Capital One Academic All-District Team

Source: WSU Cougars (Official Site)

Washington State University redshirt junior rower Katie Dick has been named to the 2012 Capital One Academic All-District Women's At-Large Team, as voted on by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA), the organization announced Friday.

Video: Entering the offseason -- Arizona St.

Source: Pac-12 Football Blog

Arizona State enters the offseason uncertain at quarterback, and that means the competition is ongoing, even without coaches around.

WeAreSC links: Heck of a week

Source: Pac-12 Football Blog

Greg Katz writes : Any sort of May malaise USC fans might have been in was eradicated with two four-star RB commits, a Hall of Fame inductee, a goodwill mission and long-awaited control of their home stadium. WeAreSC Mailbag : In this weekly feature, Erik McKinney answers reader questions on the strength of Kenny Bigelow's recruitment, out-of-state recruits and the presence of negative recruiting in sales pitches.

Pac-12 links: Leach shoots a Bear (really)

Source: Pac-12 Football Blog

Happy Friday. My take-away from this interesting column from George Schroeder about Arizona coach Rich Rodriguez is how good a dude Mike Stoops is. Former Arizona State QB Brock Osweiler knows he's made it now. Checking in with California RB Brendan Bigelow. Some Colorado hand-wringing, but guys did you see this! A 4-0 start is possible. Oregon's athletic department revenue is good, but not as good as some numbers suggest. A look at BYU, a team Oregon State, Utah and Washington State play this fall.

USC, Oregon lead top-25

Source: Pac-12 Football Blog

Mark Schlabach has published another iteration of his way-too-early power rankings, that now no longer seem that way too early. You can see them here. LSU is No. 1, which makes perfect sense to me. USC is No. 2. Ditto on that. Oregon is No. 4. Alabama is No. 3. That means we could end up with the SEC and Pac-12 giving us a pair of national semifinals in the BCS's penultimate season. Schlabach on the Trojans: With 19 starters coming back from a 10-2 team in 2011, including star quarterback Matt Barkley, USC seems armed to return to national prominence.

Imitation is the highest form of flattery

Source: Pac-12 Football Blog

SEC and Big 12 folks been tweaking the Big Ten and Pac-12's love of the Rose Bowl of late. That made me grin because the primary motivation for those tweaks was jealousy. Don't buy that assessment? Well, then what do you make of this? The SEC and Big 12 champions, starting in 2014 after the current BCS contract expires and we presumably adopt a four-team playoff, will meet annually in a prime time New Year's Day "bowl" game. Unless, of course, the SEC and/or Big 12 champions are selected for the four-team playoff, which one is almost certain to be and both are likely to be.

Take 2: Pac-12 games we can't wait for

Source: Pac-12 Football Blog

In case you haven't noticed, we've got a bit of a theme going on this week -- important games in the Pac-12. Obviously, everyone is circling the Nov. 3 showdown between USC and Oregon in Los Angeles. But there are other games to enjoy along the way. So this week we're looking at games we're most excited about. Ted Miller: I like measuring-stick games, games that perhaps reveal the talent and heart of a team, as well as, of course, where they rank in the Pac-12 pecking order.

Pac-12 post-spring power rankings

Source: Pac-12 Football Blog

So where do things stand after spring practices and heading into the offseason. Let's see. (You can check out our January power rankings here). 1. USC: The Trojans are expected to contend for the national title (typing that strikes up a not unfamiliar feeling). Best starting 24 -- specialists included -- in conference and probably in the nation. Some nagging depth questions. Key is staying healthy, particularly on the lines and at running back. 2.

2012 Sneak-a-Peek: BYU

Source: WSU Football Blog

Happy Friday Cougs, and as always we hope your week is winding to a nice close as we roll into another weekend. 

So, earlier this week it was announced that the WSU - BYU game would move to the Thursday night ESPN time slot on August 30th.  Prime time game prior to the opening weekend of NCAA football, and what a great TV slot for national coverage!  If you are scoring at home, that makes at least two known ESPN appearances for WSU in '12, as the UNLV game was moved to Friday 9/14, and will also be shown on the Worldwide Leader. 

I know some aren't real thrilled with the new Pac-12 deal as it relates to games not played on the traditional Saturdays in the fall.  And believe you me, there is nothing I love more than a full college football Saturday experience!  There's just not much like it, whether you are rolling in to Pullman for a weekend of tailgating fun or setting up at home in front of the big screen as the college football glory kind of washes over you in a wave, from ESPN Gameday in the early morning through the night games on ESPN, ABC, etc, it's just fantastic.  So losing out on that is kind of a drag when you get the Thursday or Friday night slot.

Then again, it's just part of the new world order of the Pac-12.  Things are going to be different under Larry Scott, I mean we already know all that stuff and it has been talked about for two years now.  We were warned that there could be things like this, such as the Apple Cup on the Friday after Thanksgiving in Pullman, but we'll just deal with it.  It's a reasonable trade-off considering what WSU gets at the Pac-12 table.

Anyway, with the BYU game announcement it got me thinking more about the Cougars from Provo.  I know, it's flippin' MAY, I mean who the hell should even write a preview in MAY!?!  It feels way, way, WAY too early for this stuff.  Although I do have to say that this is about the time when we would roll out those horrible Spring Fish Wraps, remember those things?  PEE-U!  Don't worry, they aren't coming back or anything.  But you know who believes that it's never too early for a preview??  How about Phil Steele!

That's right, the guy who watches like 20 games simultaneously every weekend has started to release his 2012 previews.  The same previews that will be released next month in his annual Phil Steele magazines, in FULL FURY!  One of the cool things is that Steele is releasing his top 40 for 2012, and is even including his big-time writeups for some select teams.  And what is the first team for 2012 where he has posted his preview?  How about WSU's first opponent of '12 - BYU.  Check it out here.  Continue on for a few thoughts on the preview, plus what the Cougs (WSU) might look to do to the Cougs (BYU).....

USC gets another A-list RB commit

Source: Pac-12 Football Blog

If things stay as they are, USC's recruiting class will feature the nation's No. 1 incoming freshman backfield. Just two days after landing a commitment from running back Ty Isaac (Joliet, Ill./Joliet Catholic), the Trojans received one from Justin Davis (Stockton, Calif./Lincoln). Davis is rated the nation's No. 48 prospect by Rivals. He is No. 18 overall with Scout . ESPN Recruiting ranks him the No. 24 running back in the country. Most recruiting services are torn between Isaac or Davis as the nation's No.

HOT COUGAR ACTION: Pre-Season All-Pac-12

Source: CougCenter by Mark Sandritter

Phil Steele released his pre-season All-Pac-12 team yesterday and six Cougars made the list. Steele's pre-season teams include first through fourth team. There are 12 positions on both offense and defense.

On the offensive side of things, Jeff Tuel checked in as the fourth team quarterback. Matt Barkley, Keith Price and Matt Scott filled out the first through third

Most important game: Colorado

Source: Pac-12 Football Blog

Every game counts. But some games count more. Or tell us more. We're going through the Pac-12 and picking out one game that seems most important -- or potentially most revealing -- for each team from our vantage point today. We're going in alphabetical order. Colorado Most important game: Sept. 22 at Washington State Why it's important: Imagine it, Colorado fans, a 3-0 start. Colorado State, Sacramento State and Fresno State to open the season, and victories in those three games are achievable.

Mike Leach Goes Hunting for Bear, the First of Many

Source: Bleacher Report NCAAF

Washington State head coach Mike Leach has already shared his thoughts regarding the carnage that would ensue if the Pac-12 mascots fought one another to the death. With this important batch of information on the table, Leach put some of his philosophy into action on a recent hunting trip.

PETA on line one.

Yesterday, I shot one of the biggest bears the guide had ever seen.He has been guiding for over 15 years.Over 7 feet and over 350 lbs.

— Mike Leach (@Coach_Leach) May 17, 2012

Now, the offensive guru teased the fact that he would be hunting bear in the near future via his Twitter page, although we were unaware of what exactly would take place. It indeed happened and it appears that the pirate came home with a massive souvenir.

Of course, he nailed a gigantic bear (he’s coming for you next, Cal, UCLA and other bear-related teams and actual bears) and of course he decided to share this information with the rest of the online world. He's Mike Leach, and expecting anything else from him at this point would be careless.

We never quite know what he's going to do, which can explain our (or at least my) extreme infatuation with just about everything he does.

Now, recruiting a 7-foot, 350-pound lineman, well, that's the next stage, obviously. This is just a tease. And just to show you he can do it, he'll play him at wide receiver. He'll have 13 touchdowns and average 17 yards a catch next year.

Just watch.

Read more Washington State Football news on BleacherReport.com

WeAreSC links: Another RB in the house

Source: Pac-12 Football Blog

Erik McKinney writes : Stockton, Calif., four-star running back Justin Davis became the second blue-chip running back to commit to the Trojans this week, choosing USC over California and Washington on Thursday. WeAreSC Roundtable : WeAreSC's panel of writers gives their opinion on what they think the most necessary renovations to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum are.

Baseball. Cougars Host Beavers in Pac-12 Series

Source: WSU Cougars (Official Site)

Washington State (25-24, 10-14 Pac-12) continues its five-game homestand with a three-game Pac-12 series against Oregon State (33-17, 13-11 Pac-12).

Examining Travis Long And Logan Mayes At 'Buck,' Via Cougar Sports Weekly

Source: CougCenter by Jeff Nusser

For this week's edition of Cougar Sports Weekly, I went back and watched the spring game again to get a sense of how new defensive coordinator Mike Breske will be using Travis Long in his new "buck" position. Here's a snippet of the 1,700-plus words I devoted to the topic:

Defending modern college football offenses requires an ability to provide multiple looks in order to match their opponents’ ability to attack them in multiple ways. Flexibility is key, so simply labeling WSU’s defense a "3-4″ doesn’t do it justice — most especially because it doesn’t really seem to function like a true

Poll: Best shape without starting QB

Source: Pac-12 Football Blog

Last week we gave you our thoughts on which team yet to name a starting quarterback was in the best shape in the Pac-12. Kevin Gemmell went -- overwhelmingly -- with Oregon, given the history of new quarterbacks under Chip Kelly, the weapons the new guy is going to inherit and the offensive line that is going to be protecting him. Ted Miller went further south, picking UCLA because the burden of expectation isn't going to be as high on the Bruins as it is with Oregon.

College Football 411: Spring's best

Source: Pac-12 Football Blog

Cassidy Hubbarth and the college football bloggers bring you the best from the spring and what that means for the games in the fall.

Pac-12 chat wrap

Source: Pac-12 Football Blog

If you missed our weekly chat, you can read it in its entirety here. No -- just kidding -- here. Or, you can just enjoy the thrills and chills of these highlights. KL (Washington, DC) How does moving the WSU opener against BYU to Thursday night impact the game? Does it put increased pressure on a coach like Mike Leach - or has he been around long enough that this sort of move has little/no impact on his Cougar debut? I would guess Leach looks at such games as opportunities to market his offense and WSU.

Mike Leach's Bear Hunt Was A Rousing Success

Source: CougCenter by Brian Floyd

Remember when we said Mike Leach was heading out to hunt bears this week? It was all fun and games and most got a nice chuckle. You probably figured Leach was just going to hang out in the woods with Mike Pawlawski for a couple days. If you wondered whether or not he'd actually find and take down a bear, though, you've probably underestimated Leach.

So this happened:

Yesterday, I shot one of the biggest bears the guide had ever seen.He has been guiding for over 15 years.Over 7 feet and over 350 lbs.

— Mike Leach (@Coach_Leach)

Phil Steele's preseason All-American team

Source: Pac-12 Football Blog

Phil Steele has released his preseason All-American teams -- four, no less. Here's how things stack up for the Pac-12. First team Offense Matt Barkley, QB, USC Robert Woods, WR, USC Marquess Wilson, WR, Washington State Defense Star Lotulelei, DT, Utah Shayne Skov, LB, Stanford T.J. McDonald, S, USC Second-team Offense Stepfan Taylor, RB, Stanford Khaled Holmes, C, USC Defense Chase Thomas, OLB, Stanford John Boyett, S, Oregon Special teams KR De'Anthony Thomas, Oregon Third-team Offense John White, RB, Utah Kenjon Barner, RB, Oregon Keenan Allen, WR, California Special teams PR Jamal Miles, Arizona State Fourth-team Defense Nickell Robey, CB, USC Jordan Poyer, CB, Oregon State Special teams Jeff Locke, P, UCLA Did you notice a shocking omission?

Jeff Hironaka Loses Assistant Coach Title, Will Be More Of A Consultant

Source: CougCenter by Brian Floyd

I had a plan for this offseason. I'd become kind of disenfranchised with the basketball team and hadn't written much about it, but had some kind of a plan for after the season ended. It was one post with a point, and an effort to spotlight someone I think very highly of.

Time started flying by and I never got around to writing it -- at least while it was relevant. I wanted to write about how Jeff Hironaka was too good to just be an assistant; how he deserved to be a head coach at a Division I school. In theory it seemed like a good plan.

It doesn't much matter anymore and I never expected it would be like this. If I were to take a guess what Hiro's next move would be, it would have been as a head coach somewhere. Instead,

Kiffin not $4 million man

Source: Pac-12 Football Blog

Lane Kiffin's salary at USC has long been an issue. It's been widely reported as $4 million annually, and when reported as such, widely mocked. But finding out the real number has been difficult, because USC is a private school and doesn't have to provide the media with his contract. Ah, but USC does have to pay taxes! USA Today got a look at the school's returns and it turns out the Kiffins do make nearly $4 million. Yeah, Kiffins. As in both of them.

Lunch links: Drew Bledsoe the sommelier

Source: Pac-12 Football Blog

A little citrus. Maybe some strawberry. Mmm. Passion fruit, mmm, and, oh, there's just like the faintest soupçon of like, uh, asparagus, and, there's a, just a flutter of, like a, like a nutty Edam cheese. Arizona commit Dylan Cozens ended his prep baseball career on a high note. ASU running back Cameron Marshall could finish as one of the top backs in ASU history. Cal picked up a preferred walk-on commitment late Tuesday night. More quarterbacks in Colorado is a good thing.

College Football Relegation: Hello Idaho, My Old Friend

Source: CougCenter by Brian Floyd

If you've missed it, Jason Kirk and the college football friends over at SBNation.com have deemed this week Relegation Week. With all the conference expansion and realignment, it was decided that relegation should be attempted, and what followed was a pretty amazing exercise. This wasn't simply throwing teams around and taking a dartboard approach to relegation: They explained why is should happen, how it would happen, arranged the conferences into tier and, finally, got to relegatin'.

Let's catch up before we get to the good stuff.

Spencer Hall on

Baseball. Baseball's One-Two Punch

Source: WSU Cougars (Official Site)

The one-two punch of senior outfielder Derek Jones and redshirt-junior first baseman Taylor Ard are back on the diamond for Cougar baseball for the 2012 season.

Video: Entering the offseason -- Arizona

Source: Pac-12 Football Blog

New Arizona coach Rich Rodriguez called out his team's conditioning this spring. It's the players job to heed his words.

WSU vs. BYU Football Game Moved for ESPN Coverage: A Fan's Reaction (Yahoo! Contributor Network)

Source: Yahoo! NCAAF

The Washington State Cougars will now start their season two days earlier than previously thought. The WSU opener, coming against Brigham Young University, has been moved from Saturday, Sept. 1 to Thursday, Aug. 30. The reason for this is that the game is part of ESPN's 2012 College Football Primetime Thursday night schedule.

Not Built To Last

Source: WSU Football Blog

 

Hello Cougar Nation!  A tremendous Thursday to you all.

Today, we continue the saga which has become America’s 28^th favorite dramady, a feature that we call “Khan-tucky Fried Thursday.”

Yesterday, Huddy started the midweek off with a bang, offering a post that was historic for us with respect to page views.  Then later in the day, it was announced that our Cougies are going to open the 2012-13 campaing on the season’s first night, and in front of a nationally televised audience no less.

And me?

Well, I spent the night checking out some videos, such as this, this, and this from our best friends at ESPN’s Pac12 blog.  And as I watched a few choice clips from our new head coach Michael Leach and compared his charisma, allure, intelligence, and personality to the other newbies in the conference, it just all hit me.

For more on that, read on.

Pac-12 spring breakout players

Source: Pac-12 Football Blog

Every spring, players break out. Here are a few that stood out in the Pac-12. Ka'Deem Carey, RB, Arizona: Carey was a hyped recruit from Tucson -- Canyon del Oro High -- and the local boy seems likely to make good this year after rushing for 425 yards as a freshman. He led a solid crew of backs this spring. Brice Schwab, OT, Arizona State: It's been a long time coming for Schwab, who has gone from heralded junior-college transfer to bust to likely starting right tackle.

HOT COUGAR ACTION: 15 Weeks Until Football

Source: CougCenter by Mark Sandritter

With yesterday's official news that the opener against BYU will move to Thursday and be broadcast on ESPN, we are now exactly 15 weeks from football. To be even more precise, at the time this posts, we will be 151,995 minutes away from Cougar football.

Now, the question becomes how will you spend the next 9,119,700 seconds? Here are just a few things you could do to keep you busy until kickoff.

You could watch Mike Leach's introductory press conference 5,929 times.
You could drive from Pullman to Provo and back 104 times.
You could listen to the

Most important game: California

Source: Pac-12 Football Blog

Every game counts. But some games count more. Or tell us more. We're going through the Pac-12 and picking out one game that seems most important -- or potentially most revealing -- for each team from our vantage point today. We're going in alphabetical order. California Most important game: at Ohio State, Sept. 15 Why it's important: While a midseason Big Game against Bay Area rival Stanford would be the obvious choice -- particularly one in newly remodeled Memorial Stadium -- we're going to be contrarian.

Ed Rush Hired As Pac-12 Coordinator Of Men's Basketball Officials

Source: CougCenter by Brian Floyd

The Pac-12 hired Ed Rush, former NBA Director of Officials, to lead its men's basketball officiating crew, the conference announced on Wednesday. We all know about Pac-12 officials by now, so it goes without saying that something needed to change. Rush will, hopefully, spearhead that change.

The press release can be found here and a quote from Larry Scott is below.

"I am delighted that we have been able to attract someone of Ed's experience and expertise to lead our officiating program," Commissioner Larry Scott said. "He has been an expert and leader at all levels of

Three pleasant surprises this spring

Source: Pac-12 Football Blog

CBS Sports Bruce Feldman made a top-10 list of his "most pleasant surprise guys of the spring," and it included three from the Pac-12: Washington DT Danny Shelton, UCLA RB/WR Steven Manfro and Oregon QB Marcus Mariota. Three good choices. Here's what he said about Shelton: Danny Shelton, Washington, DT: The U-Dub defense was brutal in 2011, ranking 108th in scoring D and 106th in total D. They also were No. 87 in TFLs and No. 76 in run defense.

Cougs open on Thursday vs. BYU

Source: Pac-12 Football Blog

Washington State's season-opening game at BYU has been moved to Thursday, Aug. 30, and will be televised nationally on ESPN. Kickoff will be at 7:15 p.m. ET. The game had previously been scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 1. This is the second game on the Cougars' 2012 schedule that will be televised by ESPN. It was previously announced that WSU’s game at UNLV will be played Friday, Sept. 14, in Las Vegas on ESPN.

M. Basketball. Cougars Add Australian Big Man James Hunter

Source: WSU Cougars (Official Site)

James Hunter (Sydney, Australia/Gillette College-Wyo.) has signed a National Letter of Intent to compete with the Washington State University men's basketball team beginning next season, head coach Ken Bone announced Wednesday.

Cal prep stars take wait and see approach

Source: Pac-12 Football Blog

California is the lifeblood of Pac-12 recruiting. Sure, coaches talk about putting up fences in their backyards and keeping their state's elite talent within. But the majority of the top-notch players from the conference hail from the Golden State -- Northern, Southern and everywhere in between. So it was an interesting read in SI to see that the bulk of top-rated players in the state are holding out before making a commitment. Bravo. It would be nice to see players make their commitment after some careful consideration and then stick with it.

Sporcle Quiz Wednesday

Source: CougCenter by Kyle Rancourt

Sporcle Quiz Wednesday

82/99. Holy cow I missed some obvious ones. I'm pretty upset with myself. There are also some names on this list where you think WUT, HOW.