SPOKANE, Wash. — Week 10 of the college football season has arrived. Hard to imagine bowl season/FCS playoffs are right around the corner.
All three of out Division I programs will be playing on Saturday.
No. 15 Idaho and Eastern Washington will be renewing their rivalry and Washington State is looking to end a three game losing streak.
Washington State
We'll start with the Cougs, who are set to face Stanford on the road.
It's been a bit of a fall from grace of late for WSU, who started the season 4-1 and now are at an even .500 at 4-4.
When you look at this game on paper, it's a fairly even matchup. WSU is a 4.5 point favorite heading into Saturday. Stanford sits at 3-5 on the season.
The one glaring weakness for the Cardinal is their inability to stop the run. This season, Stanford is giving up 204.6 yards on the ground per game. But, Washington State is averaging a measly 83.5 yards on the ground. So, not exactly something the Cougs are in a position to exploit.
Both teams have a lot to play for this weekend, as Washington State and Stanford are fighting for bowl eligibility. For WSU, this week is all about battling to get back on track with four winnable games left in the season with Stanford (3-5), Arizona State (3-5), Arizona (3-5) and Washington (6-2) left on the schedule.
"We have four amazing opportunities against four teams that want the same thing we do. Stanford is fighting their tail off to extend their season. There's two dogs and one piece of meat out there on Saturday, we need to go take it," said Washington State head coach Jake Dickert.
"I like to say we've got five weeks left not four," said Junior Wide Receiver Lincoln Victor. "I'm looking forward to those next five opportunities. I really think we can win every single one of those games and we'll be where we want to be."
Washington State at Stanford is set to kickoff at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday. That game can be watched on the Pac-12 Network.
Idaho
The Idaho Vandals dropped from 14th to 15th in the latest FCS Stats Perform rankings after their first loss in Big Sky Conference play in a nail-biter at No. 2 Sacramento State 31-28.
Saturday, the Vandals will be renewing their rivalry with Eastern Washington at home in the Kibbie Dome.
For the Vandals, the key in this matchup will be slowing down the Eagles passing attack. As always, coach Best and crew like to throw the ball around. EWU quarterback Gunnar Talkington attempted 60 passes in last week's loss to Portland Sate. He completed 36-of-60 passes for 394 yards, three touchdowns and one interception.
While the two teams' seasons are going in different directions with Idaho sitting at 5-3 and Eastern Washington at 2-6, the Vandals aren't taking EWU lightly.
"They're an explosive offense and they can score, you know, they're down 21-0 to Sac State and they rip off 21 straight to tie it. So, they can score points fast, they can score them in bunches. So, you can't relax," said Idaho head coach Jason Eck. "They've had a very tough schedule, so their record is not, you know, probably up to their typical par, but they still have a lot of talented players and a good team and I expect coach Best, he's a very good coach. We'll get their best effort on Saturday."
Idaho hosting Eastern Washington kicks-off at Noon on Saturday. The game can be watched on ESPN+.
Eastern Washington
On Eastern Washington's side of the rivalry, the Eags suffered a 38-35 loss to Portland State this past Saturday.
While EWU did lose the game, the Eagles played arguably their best half of football with a 28-point comeback in the second half.
The team is hoping that momentum can carry over and lead to a fast start on Saturday. Something they think is key to coming away with a win in a game where for the first time in a while they are underdogs against No. 15 Idaho.
"Definitely start fast and let's play that hard the whole time. For the whole 60 minutes," said redshirt junior offensive lineman Seth Carnahan.
"That was a pretty special 30 minutes of football, but the first 30 minutes was not very special, so trying to carry that momentum over," said Eastern Washington head coach Aaron Best. "I don't think momentum can necessarily take you into seven days later, but I think those feelings can and that confidence can."
Eastern Washington at Idaho kicks-off at noon on Saturday. It can be watched on ESPN+.
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