Jul. 15—Don’t touch that dial!
We’re about seven-and-a-half weeks out from the dawn of the 2026 Washington State football season, and a lot is “new” about the Cougs.
Wazzu has a new coach (its third in as many years) with Kirby Moore, a new conference following the expansion of the Pac-12, and a brand new video board, stadium lights and sound system for Gesa Field.
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With so much new, there’s plenty to watch. Between old rivalries and fresh foes, here is a chronological rundown of the five most fascinating games on the Cougars‘ schedule.
Washington State at Washington
The Apple Cup has never been this early.
Wazzu will play its former Pac-12 rival Washington in the 118th Apple Cup at 1 p.m. Sept. 6 at Husky Stadium in Seattle.
This unique arrangement makes WSU/UW the opener to an NBC-broadcasted doubleheader with Wisconsin/Notre Dame to follow.
It’s the last Sunday without NFL games, so the Cougars should attract a decent audience for their season opener which will immediately test a reformed Cougar football team against a Big Ten school with greater resources and continuity.
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Husky quarterback Demond Williams faced intense public backlash when he entered the transfer portal in January having already signed a revenue sharing agreement to play for UW this season. He was reportedly offered millions of dollars to transfer to another program, but 48 hours after entering the portal, he was back in the purple and gold.
The Apple Cup is his first chance to fully leave that tumultuous situation behind him, and he will get to do so against WSU defensive coordinator Trent Bray’s remade Cougar defense, which features a slew of new faces.
UC Davis transfer quarterback Caden Pinnick will get his first taste of the FBS ranks with WSU in a rivalry game that has dramatically changed. UW leads the all-time series 74-33-6 and beat WSU 59-24 last year in Pullman.
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Can the Cougars stun the Dawgs in Week 1? Well, you know what they say about any given Sunday …
WSU at Kansas State
WSU’s second road trip in as many weeks features another big-time matchup. The Cougars will suit up for a 9 a.m. Pacific (11 a.m. local) matchup with the Big 12’s Kansas State Wildcats in Manhattan, Kan.
Leading the Wildcats out of the tunnel in his first year at the helm will be K-State alum-turned-coach Collin Klein.
It will be a tall task for WSU to leave Kansas State with a victory, but a morning spot on TNT Sports/HBO Max means that they could attract another decent audience of eager college football fans, some just rolling out of bed.
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Arizona at WSU
After spending the first two weeks of the season on the road, WSU has three straight home games during perhaps the nicest time of year on the Palouse (knocking on wood as I type this).
The second matchup in that homestand brings a familiar foe back to the Palouse. Former Pac-12 school Arizona, now in the Big 12, is making its first return to Pullman since knocking the socks off the Cougars 44-6 in a disastrous Oct. 14, 2023, affair, in which now-senior quarterback Noah Fifita completed 34-of-43 passes for 342 yards.
Arizona leads the all-time series 28-19. The next edition will be at 4:30 p.m. Sept. 26 at Gesa Field in front of a national CBS audience.
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Led by third-year coach Brent Brennan, Arizona is fresh off a 9-4 season. If the Cougars are serious conference championship contenders, they can prove it in their fourth and final “dress rehearsal” before Pac-12 play begins.
WSU at Oregon State
Three years ago, Butch T. Cougar and Benny Beaver burst out of the Gesa Field tunnel on opposite sides of the Cougar mascot’s four-wheel ride. They waved each other’s banners and hyped up the Pullman crowd, inspiring a sense of unity that has seen the two institutions through this storm of conference realignment.
That sense of camaraderie will continue to be fostered by these land-grant institutions in other venues, but between the lines, these teams aren’t “buddies,” to borrow a phrase from former Cougar coach Jake Dickert.
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WSU and OSU have fostered quite the fiery rivalry. It’s (mostly) exactly what you want from one of the Pac-12’s tent-poll matchups, and at 3 p.m. Oct. 17 in Corvallis, Ore., (USA Network) the two schools will get another chance to land a punch or two.
The matchup pits the Pac-12’s two first-year head coaches against one another with Moore facing OSU coach Jamarcus Shephard.
As will be mentioned ad nauseam, the game also offers former OSU coach Bray a shot at his alma mater and ex-employer after the school fired him last year. It’s a complicated relationship that Bray has with OSU now, but that week could simplify things with one goal: win the football game.
Boise State at WSU
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The “Snake River Rivalry” is surely circled on both schools’ calendars and, no matter what Moore, a Boise State alum, or his fellow former Bronco staff members may say, it will mean a little bit more.
Offensive coordinator Matt Miller played at BSU alongside Moore, and coached with the Broncos for the last several years, serving as co-OC last year. General manager Brad Larrondo attended and worked for BSU in various capacities. Cornerbacks coach Brandyn Thompson is a former Bronco, too.
Moore’s staff is fittingly full of BSU ties, but the Cougars won’t return to the Treasure Valley this season to play on a blue field, where in December they won the Potato Bowl over Utah State.
Instead, WSU will get to flash its own home-field advantage in front of a homecoming crowd at 3 p.m. Oct. 24 on USA Network.
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Boise State, led by third-year coach Spencer Danielson, won the Mountain West Conference championship last season and is the favorite to win the new Pac-12, according to multiple preseason projections.
If the Cougars can shock the pundits and make a run at the conference title, BSU is perhaps their most vital matchup.
The Cougars lead the all-time series 5-2, with their most recent win and BSU’s last trip to Pullman being the iconic 47-44 triple overtime game on Sept. 9, 2017. The late QB Tyler Hilinski subbed in for Luke Falk and dazzled with 240 yards passing and three touchdowns to seal the victory. Hilinski tragically took his own life in January 2018. His parents created Hilinski’s Hope Foundation, dedicated to student-athlete mental health, in his memory.
The Broncos return starting quarterback Maddux Madsen, who beat the Cougars 45-24 on Sept. 28, 2024. Madsen had the benefit of having Heisman finalist Ashton Jeanty, who ran all over WSU for 259 yardss and four touchdowns. The Broncos could pick a different starting QB, but those answers will come soon enough.
One thing is for sure: WSU vs. BSU will not be a game to miss.
Taylor can be reached at 208-848-2260, staylor@lmtribune.com, or on X or Instagram @Sam_C_Taylor.
