PULLMAN, Wash. — The legend of former Washington State quarterback Gardner Minshew has many great stories.
That includes one many probably don't already know about how he used to pump the Cougs up before weightlifting workouts.
"He loved his United States history, so he'd come in and give us a history story," Washington State offensive lineman Liam Ryan said. "He'd be yelling and everyone was like, 'Oh yeah!.'"
Ryan said that really got the team fired up as many of the stories were about war. Minshew told different stories about commanders and how they succeeded. Then he would compare football to a battlefield.
"He's yelling and screaming and we're getting hyped up about it before we'd lift," Ryan said. "Then we'd go crush the lift."
Minshew led the team to a historic 2018 season with 11 wins. That was the most ever in a single season by a Washington State football team. He threw for 4.779 yards and 38 touchdowns in his only season with the Cougs.