Year 1 of the Jake Dickert era begins in Pullman, and the Washington State Cougars have hopes of reaching a bowl and possibly surprising in the Pac-12 North. As of mid-July, the Cougars have a win total of 5.5 and the sixth-best Pac-12 Championship odds in college football betting.
Dickert was named the interim coach a year ago and showed enough over a 3-2 finish to the season to be brought back as the program’s leader. He hired Eric Morris as offensive coordinator after having some flashy offenses at FCS school Incarnate Word. Quarterback Cameron Ward, Morris’s quarterback from a year ago, is a potential breakout star as the leader of this Air Raid scheme. Only 10 starters return, and the new offense must click to avoid a down year.
52 days until the 2022 #FCS season: In one of the best games last season, UIW beat SLU 55-52 in November.
UIW's Cameron Ward went 34/52 for 610 yards and 7 TDs. SLU's Cole Kelley went 50/68 for 647 yards and 3 TDs + 3 rushing TDs.
📸 Aaron Bota/@UIWFootball pic.twitter.com/boO6bmhdM5
— HERO Sports FCS (@HEROSports_FCS) July 6, 2022
Here’s a look at Washington State’s schedule with dates, times, opponents, and analysis:
Week 1 – vs. Idaho Vandals
Date: September 3
Time: 9:30 p.m. ET
Cameron Ward and this new-look offense get a chance to shine in Week 1 against the Idaho Vandals. The Cougars have won nine straight in this series.
Week 2 – at Wisconsin Badgers
Date: September 10
Time: 3:30 p.m. ET
These teams have only played twice, with Washington State dropping both contests. This is a challenging non-conference road test, and the Cougars figure to be significant underdogs.
Week 3 – vs. Colorado State Rams
Date: September 17
Time: 5:00 p.m. ET
The lone meeting between these schools came in the 2013 New Mexico Bowl when the Cougars collapsed in the fourth quarter to lose 48-45. The Colorado State Rams will be in the first year of the Jay Norvell era and will have a new-look offense.
Week 4 – vs. Oregon Ducks
Date: September 24
Time: TBD
Conference play starts with a home game against Dan Lanning and the Oregon Ducks. Washington State has played the Oregon Ducks surprisingly close, splitting the last eight meetings.
Week 5 – vs. California Golden Bears
Date: October 1
Time: TBD
This marks the fourth home game in the first five weeks. The home team has won five of the last six games in this series, and the Bears return only seven starters.
Week 6 – at USC Trojans
Date: October 8
Time: TBD
Washington State has struggled in this series, going just 10-65 against the USC Trojans. Lincoln Riley makes a brief stop in the PAC-12 before jumping ship to the Big Ten.
Week 7 – at Oregon State Beavers
Date: October 15
Time: TBD
This marks the second of back-to-back road games. The Cougars have won eight straight meetings against the Oregon State Beavers.
Week 8 – BYE
Week 9 – vs. Utah Utes
Date: October 27
Time: 10:00 p.m. ET
The Cougars have some winnable games at the end of their schedule, but this is a difficult matchup against the reigning PAC-12 Champions. Both teams will be coming off a bye for this Thursday’s matchup.
Week 10 – at Stanford Cardinal
Date: November 5
Time: TBD
Washington State has won five straight in this series. The Stanford Cardinal went just 3-9 a year ago but return 17 starters and have a talented offense.
Week 11 – vs. Arizona State Sun Devils
Date: November 12
Time: TBD
Washington State has won three of the last four in this series. The Arizona State Sun Devils were one of the most talented teams in the conference a year ago. However, they had many players transfer out during a tumultuous offseason under coach Herm Edwards, who’s likely on the college football hot seat.
Week 12 – at Arizona Wildcats
Date: November 19
Time: TBD
The Cougars had won four of the last five meetings. The Arizona Wildcats went just 1-11 a year ago but have reason to expect improvement in Year 2 under Jeff Fisch.
Week 13 – vs. Washington Huskies
Date: November 26
Time: TBD
Jake Dickert hopes to keep the good vibes going after defeating the rival Washington Huskies by 40-13 in last year’s Apple Cup.
