Good morning Coug fans. I hope your location is warmer than the -10 it currently is in my neck of the woods. It’s so cold I swear I just saw Jussie Smollett walking out of Subway on the phone.
Anyway!
It’s too dangerous for any sort of outdoor activity, so it’s good news that there are opportunities for you to stay indoors and enjoy some WSU-related festivities on TV.
First, you’ll want to get cozy on the couch this morning, as Ron Stone Jr. will be playing in today’s Hula Bowl. The game kicks off at 9 a.m. PST, so you may be reading this while it’s happening. Or maybe even after it’s over. If you’re in the latter category, what have you been doing all day?
The game used to be held in Hawaii, but it has since moved to Orlando, Fla. beginning in 2022. While Hawaii sounds great right now, Orlando isn’t a bad place, either. But I assure you, WSU athletics graphic designer and/or social media lead: there are no beaches in Orlando:
The Hula Bowl pits more than 100 senior football players in a game to impress scouts from not only the NFL, but the CFL and whatever the XFL and USFL merger is being called. There’s not a ton of information on today’s event on the official Hula Bowl website (the rosters page lists a total of zero players and the list of coaches is from a past edition of the game), but I can tell you it kicks off at 9 a.m. PST on the CBS Sports Network.
Oh, and those rosters? At least CBS has those, as well as just about all you need to know about the game. Stone will be one of six edge rushers on Team Kai.
Bet of luck to Stone as he pursues his dream of playing the NFL.
After the Hula Bowl, take a breather and settle in for some Cougar basketball. The men are back home after a nice road win at USC to battle no. 8 Arizona. Tip off is ta 3 p.m. PST and you can watch the game on the Pac-12 Network.
This will be WSU’s toughest test of the season, and hopefully given that it’s a Saturday and Beasley Coliseum is warmer than the frigid temperatures outside, some fans and students will be inclined to swing by.
WSU comes in at 11-5 over all but just 2-3 in conference play. Arizona, meanwhile, started the season 8-0 and sits at 12-3 overall and 3-1 in the Pac-12. That one conference loss was a 100-82 stinker against a currenlty 8-7 Stanford team.
So anything is possible! And remember: WSU beat then-no. 5 Arizona on the road last season.
If you’re the looking ahead type, the WSU women are in Seattle tomorrow to take on the Huskies. That is, if they can clean the court and make it safe to play on, what with yesterday’s deluge of, ahem, purple rain falling from the eyes of Husky fans.
Go Cougs.