Other College Football News & Notes: Cougars play tough in loss to Huskies
PULLMAN, Wash. (AP) — Washington State football coach Paul Wulff spoke with quiet pride Saturday night about the rebuilding job he has performed in three years at his alma mater.
The Cougars (2-10, 1-8 Pac-10) had just lost 35-28 to archrival Washington, and Wulff was asked about rampant speculation that he would be fired after going 5-32 in his three seasons.
"I feel very comfortable, but it's not my decision," Wulff said. "I feel good about where we are at and what we have done."
Wulff said he will meet with athletic director Bill Moos starting on Sunday to evaluate the program. He said he was aware of no timetable for making a decision.
Wulff defended his efforts to rebuild the program from the ground up, even if it meant taking longer to see results.
"I have done it exactly the way I said we would do it," Wulff said. "We are getting a lot better."
He also thanked the team's fans.
"I know they have had to endure some tough seasons the last few years but it is going to all pay off because this is a bright, young football team," he said.
Moos was not available for comment Saturday night.
The Cougars played one of their best games of the season, producing 408 yards of offense and their second-highest points total. They tied the game at 28 late in the fourth quarter before Washington (6-6, 5-4) scored the winning touchdown with 44 seconds left on a 27-yard pass from Jake Locker to Jermaine Kearse.
Locker, Kearse and running back Chris Polk did most of the damage for the Huskies against WSU's defense, one of the most porous in the nation.
Polk rushed for a career-high 284 yards and two touchdowns, averaging 9.8 yards per carry. Locker ran for a touchdown and completed 14 of 22 passes for 226 yards and two touchdowns. Kearse caught six passes for 178 yards and two touchdowns.
The Cougars had two weeks off coming into the game, and it showed. Washington jumped to a 14-0 lead and Washington State did not score until Karstetter caught a 5-yard pass from Jeff Tuel with 28 seconds left in the first half. On defense, too many missed tackles led to big plays for the Huskies.
"We needed to knock the rust off earlier," said offensive lineman B.J. Guerra.
The Cougars had just 135 yards of offense in the first half, most of it on the scoring drive, which was set up by Deone Bucannon's interception of Locker in the Husky end zone.
Karstetter said the Cougars felt momentum shift late in the second quarter.
"We got them on their heels a little bit," Karstetter said. "It's a funny thing, momentum, you get the feeling in the back of your mind that we can move the ball on these guys."
Senior Daniel Blackledge caught a touchdown pass from Tuel in the third quarter. After Polk's 57-yard run gave Washington a 28-14 lead, the Cougars scored on a 1-yard run by Tuel and a 16-yard pass to freshman Marquess Wilson with 4:26 left in the game.
"Our kids fought and fought and fought," Wulff said.
Tuel, a sophomore recruited by Wulff from Clovis, Calif., completed 25 of 35 passes for 298 yards, with three touchdowns and one interception. His sophomore year statistics rivaled those of one of the spectators at the game, former Washington State star Drew Bledsoe. Blackledge caught seven passes for 132 yards, both career highs.
"We really wanted a W in this game," Blackledge said.
Karstetter had eight receptions for 71 yards. Wilson had 38 receiving yards to finish the season with 1,006 yards, only the ninth WSU player to reach that milestone.
Running back James Montgomery added 78 yards on 12 carries.
The Cougars played better football as the season progressed, and many players expressed support for Wulff.
"We support him 100 percent," Guerra said. "I love what he's doing."
"I love playing for coach Wulff," Karstetter said.
Tuel pointed to the closeness of the Apple Cup as a sign the Cougars are improved.
"We know we are a ballclub to be reckoned with," Tuel said. "We know we are going to be dangerous and we know we are going to be good."
WSU says Wulff will return next season
SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — Washington State football coach Paul Wulff will return next season, athletic director Bill Moos said Sunday.
There had been rampant speculation that Wulff, 5-32 in his first three years, would be fired. But the Cougars (2-10, 1-8 Pac-10) showed improvement in the second half of this season. Moos said school president Elson Floyd left the decision to him, and that the goal of both is to see a successful football program.
"It is my feeling at this particular time that the best course of action to move in that direction is to continue with the current leadership," Moos said in a news release.
Washington State lost to archrival Washington 35-28 in an exciting game Saturday in Pullman. The Cougars beat Oregon State in their previous game — their first Pac-10 win in two seasons.
His future was not a major discussion point in a meeting with Moos on Sunday, Wulff said.
"It was more or less about (Saturday's) game and what types of things we have to look at to make ourselves better," said Wulff, who has two years left on his contract. He did say he was relieved to learn he would continue as coach.
Improvement will depend on recruiting and improving facilities on the Pullman campus, Wulff said.
Wulff said speculation about his firing was much greater among fans than it was inside the athletic department.
"It seems like it was made a bigger deal than the reality of it," Wulff said. "There has always been a positive feeling in the department."
He will meet with his assistant coaches later and does not anticipate making any changes on his staff.
Many of Wulff's players expressed support for their coach after Saturday's game.
His supporters contend the Cougars are unquestionably better than when Wulff took over a decimated program from Bill Doba in 2008. Critics contend progress is measured in wins.
Wulff believes his efforts to rebuild the program from the ground up have paid off.
"This team is capable of going on next year and being a bowl contender," Wulff said earlier this week.
Washington State has been more competitive this season. The passing attack led by sophomore quarterback Jeff Tuel, junior Jared Karstetter and freshman Marquess Wilson ranks 48th in the nation, though Washington State's total offense and total defense statistics both rank in the bottom quarter of the 120 major college teams.
Before he became athletic director this season, Moos was part of a panel that recommended hiring Wulff.
Around the time Wulff was hired, the Cougars were hit with the loss of eight scholarships by the NCAA because of academic performance. That has changed, as the team placed more players than any other Pac-10 program on the all-academic first team this season.
Wulff is a former WSU offensive lineman who was successful as head coach at nearby Eastern Washington.
-- Nicholas K. Geranios
Oregon State falls short of postseason
CORVALLIS, Ore. (AP) — Oregon State's season will likely be remembered for how it ended, when national championship game-bound Oregon shut the Beavers out of the postseason for the first time since 2005.
But Oregon State (5-7, 4-5 Pac-10) was thwarted by an unbelievably tough schedule, one key injury and unrealistically high expectations.
"I know it's not exactly where we want to be with the record, but as far as what they've been through — the schedule ... how they've competed, how they've had some real clunkers but stayed together and not played the blame game, pulled themselves up off the mat time and again, come back and played good football," Beavers coach Mike Riley said. "They just kept doing that."
The Beavers opened the season ranked No. 24 with new quarterback Ryan Katz and dynamic brothers James and Jacquizz Rodgers leading the offense. Jacquizz Rodgers, known as Quizz, was considered an early Heisman Trophy candidate.
Oregon State had a daunting opener on national television against TCU at Cowboys Stadium. Although they lost 30-21, the Beavers were praised because they held their own against the Horned Frogs, who finished the season 12-0 and ranked third.
After a week off, a 35-28 victory over Louisville provided a shot of confidence before what many considered a considerable challenge at Boise State. Oregon State drew national attention in the week before the game by painting their practice field blue, but ultimately the Beavers lost 37-24 to a team that went 11-1.
After beating Arizona State at home, the Beavers upset Arizona 29-27 in Tucson. But the win was costly.
James Rodgers made a fingertip catch of a deep pass but was hit hard by Arizona's Adam Hall and had to be helped off the field, unable to put weight on his left knee. He needed surgery and missed the rest of the season.
At the time, James Rodgers ranked sixth in the nation with an average of 176.75 all-purpose yards. He was averaging 18.33 yards on punt returns and 28.67 yards on kickoff returns. He had the second-most career all-purpose yards among active players this season with 5,784.
More than a playmaker, James Rodgers was a respected and enthusiastic leader of the Beavers.
Oregon State went on to drop five of its last seven games, including a double-overtime loss at Washington and a humbling loss at home to lowly Washington State. The only real bright spot was a 36-7 rout of USC on Nov. 20.
Oregon State's schedule included seven ranked teams, five of those ranked in the top 10 when they faced the Beavers.
"We had such a tough schedule," said cornerback James Dockery. "It seemed like we were right there in so many games. There were so many games where just a few inches could have turned the game around."
Quizz acknowledged the week before the Civil War that his season had fallen below expectations.
He finished his junior season with 1,184 yards rushing, for an average of 98.6 yards a game — off last season's numbers of 1,440 yards for an average of 110.8. But he climbed to sixth on the Pac-10's career rushing list with 3,877 yards, passing Arizona's Trung Candidate and former Beaver Yvenson Bernard.
Quizz said he plans to be back next season. Oregon State is petitioning the NCAA for another year of eligibility for his older brother James, who never had a redshirt year.
Katz showed promise but, like the rest of the Beavers, he lacked consistency. He threw for 18 touchdowns and ran for two more, but he was intercepted 11 times.
"It was just an up-and-down season," Katz said. "We had some really good times and some really bad times. We need to find ways to be consistent, find ways to get the ball in the end zone."
All that was left for the Beavers after the 37-20 loss to the Ducks in the Civil War was to look forward to next season.
"I know it looked like we blinked a few times, but they never did," Riley said. "They worked hard, they had good practices. We didn't always play well, but when we didn't play well we picked ourselves back up and usually had a good game. I think it's a group that has been resilient. I knew every day when I went out to practice what they were going to give, and we can't ask for any more than that."
-- Anne M. Peterson
Notes
Minnesota hires Kill for football program
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Desperate to get a struggling football program headed in the right direction, Minnesota athletic director Joel Maturi spent two months conducting an exhaustive search to find the right man for the job.
The process was completed Sunday night when Maturi agreed to terms with Northern Illinois coach Jerry Kill on a five-year contract to take over the downtrodden Golden Gophers.
"We cast a wide net in this search, but the name we kept coming back to was Jerry Kill," Maturi said in a statement. "Coach Kill has won at every level of coaching and has a history of rebuilding programs. I'm confident we have chosen the right man to lead the Golden Gopher program."
Kill went 23-16 and led the Huskies to bowls in all three of his seasons there. Northern Illinois went 10-3 this season, including a 34-23 victory at Minnesota that laid the groundwork for Gophers coach Tim Brewster to be fired.
Minnesota went 3-9 and 2-8 in the Big Ten this year. Brewster was fired in October after the team started 1-6 in his fourth season on the job. Interim coach Jeff Horton finished the season with wins over Illinois and Iowa.
Kill went 6-7 in his first year in DeKalb, Ill., and 7-6 last year before the breakout season in 2010. The Huskies lost to Miami of Ohio in the Mid-American Conference championship game on Friday and were ranked as high as No. 24, the first time Northern Illinois has been in the AP Top 25 poll since 2003.
The Huskies will face Fresno State in the Humanitarian Bowl in Boise, Idaho on Dec. 18.
"It is a tremendous opportunity and, I think, great timing," Kill said in a statement. "I can promise all the people at the University of Minnesota and throughout the entire state that I am going to give them every single ounce that I can give them. I have done that on every job that I have taken."
It might just take everything he's got. Kill inherits a program in shambles.
Maturi made a big gamble when he hired Brewster, a tight ends coach for the Denver Broncos at the time who had no previous experience as a head coach or coordinator in college or the pros, to take over for Glen Mason.
It was a disaster from start to finish. Brewster went 0-10 in trophy games, lost home games to North Dakota State and South Dakota and wasn't able to capitalize on brand new TCF Bank Stadium, a shimmering $300 million project that was supposed to put the once-proud program back on the map.
Brewster's lack of success quickly took the shine off the wonderful new stadium, with the student section half-empty for most games and a lack of energy and excitement that was supposed to have been created when the Gophers moved back to campus after more than two decades of playing in the Metrodome.
At the press conference to announce Brewster's firing on Oct. 17, Maturi acknowledged the mistake and said one of the biggest selling points the university had for the new coach was, "You're not following Vince Lombardi here."
"This is a situation where, you know what, somebody can come in and win some games and people are going to feel good about him and they win a few more games and they're going to feel really good about him," Maturi said then. "And if we go to the Rose Bowl, we might even put a statue of them outside of TCF Bank Stadium."
He promised to attack the process with vigor and said he wanted to make a "Tubby Smith-type hire," referring to getting the big-name basketball coach away from Kentucky three years ago.
Head coaching experience was a must this time around after the Brewster move failed so badly, but Kill doesn't bring the big-name recognition that some of the initial names mentioned — Boise State's Chris Petersen, Mississippi State's Dan Mullen, former Tennessee coach Phil Fulmer and former Oregon coach Mike Bellotti — brought to the table.
Former Texas Tech coach Mike Leach openly campaigned for the job, but the Gophers never strongly considered him.
Kill went 4-5 in playoff games while coaching at Southern Illinois and 0-2 in bowl games with Northern Illinois. His head coaching career started at Saginaw Valley State in 1994 and went through Emporia State and Southern Illinois before he landed at Northern.
"Played hard, physical, I was cheering for him all the way this year because I know him very well," Wisconsin coach Bret Bielema said. "He plays a Big Ten style of football. Line up, play physical, play hard. He's a good coach."
He's had a few health problems in the past, including a bout with kidney cancer in 2005 at Southern Illinois. He also was hospitalized for dehydration in September, but returned in time to attend the Huskies' 28-22 loss to Illinois.
"He's a very true guy. A very, very good football coach," Bielema said. "He's won everywhere he's gone. I called him this year because I knew he probably wasn't paying attention to his doctor's orders, and I said, 'Please listen to the doctors.' I'm excited if it is true for him to come into the league. He's a tremendous ball coach."
-- Jon Krawczynski
Big Ten: No more expansion planned for near future
PARK RIDGE, Ill. (AP) — The Big Ten says it's not looking to expand again in the near future.
The conference, which is adding Nebraska as its 12th member next year, released a statement Sunday saying it "will not be actively engaged in conference expansion for the foreseeable future and does not expect to be proactively seeking new members."
However, the Big Ten says it will "continue to monitor the intercollegiate landscape."
The statement came the same day the Big Ten's presidents and chancellors held their winter meetings.
Nebraska's move is one of several by important football programs. Colorado and Utah are going to the Pac-10, TCU is switching to the Big East, and Boise State is joining the Mountain West.
Kentucky back seeks transfer, lineman may do so
LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — A University of Kentucky tailback has been released from his scholarship to seek a transfer to another school and a defensive lineman is weighing his future with the Wildcats.
Kentucky coach Joker Phillips told The Courier-Journal on Sunday that running back Donald Russell asked for his release, which was granted by the school.
Phillips also said defensive tackle Elliott Porter is battling homesickness and is weighing whether to stay with the team. Porter, a native of Waggaman, La., landed at Kentucky after LSU had too many signees and ran out of scholarships. Porter didn't play this season, but practiced with the team. Porter, a native of Waggaman, La., lost his chance to play at home-state LSU when the Tigers had too many signees qualify and ran out of scholarships. Porter did not play for the Cats this season, but practiced with the team.
Three Kentucky juniors to test NFL waters
LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — A trio of underclassman at Kentucky are planning to test their value to the NFL by having their draft stock evaluated.
Junior wide receiver Randall Cobb will be joined by linebacker Danny Trevathan and safety Winston Guy in going through the process.
Trevathan has had a first-team All-SEC caliber season and been one of the few bright spots on the Kentucky defense, leading the league and ranking 11th nationally in tackles per game (10.83) with 16 tackles for loss.
Guy ranked second on the team in tackles with 98 and also had a team-high three interceptions.
Wildcats' Coach Joker Phillips told The Lexington Herald-Leader that players looking at the NFL Draft early is just a sign of the times. Phillips said he doesn't know which direction the three juniors are leaning.
Vanderbilt begins interviews for football coach
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Vanderbilt Vice Chancellor of Athletics David Williams says he plans to meet with at least 10 candidates for the school's open football coaching job and has begun visiting with prospects.
Williams told The Tennessean that said he began speaking with candidates on Thursday and has more meetings scheduled over the weekend. Williams declined to discuss specific candidates or whom he has interviewed.
Williams expects there to be a second round of interviews, but said someone could "jump out" to him in the first round of talks that would produce an offer.
Four Vanderbilt assistant coaches are among those who have been on the road all week visiting the 14 recruits who have committed to the Commodores.
Robbie Caldwell resigned as Commodores' coach at the end of the season.
Elsewhere
Former S.C. football coach Marvin Bass dies at 91
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Marvin Bass, a former head football coach at South Carolina who posted three wins against in-state rival Clemson in five seasons, has died. He was 91.
Greenlawn Funeral Home says Bass died Friday. Nicknamed "Moose," Bass was an All-American at William and Mary from 1939-42 and served two years in the Navy.
During his stint at South Carolina from 1961-65, Bass had a record of 17-29-4. His best season was his last when the team went 5-5 overall and 4-2 in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
He was an assistant for several college and NFL teams, including for Dan Reeves in Denver and Atlanta. Reeves played quarterback for Bass at South Carolina and will be among the pallbearers at the funeral Tuesday.
