Washington State's Coaching Carousel Never Stops, but the Cougs Keep Winning Anyway

Let's be real: Washington State football has taken an absolute beating over the past couple of years. The coaching carousel, the mass exodus of players that follows every time the carousel spins, the drop to G6 status. If you can dream up a nightmare scenario for a college program, the Cougs have probably lived it. And yet somehow, they keep winning. That's the thing that makes them one hell of an underdog story to follow heading into the fall.

The Schedule Isn't Friendly, But It's Winnable

Before their late bye week, Washington State faces some serious names. Washington, Kansas State, Arizona, Fresno State, Boise State, and San Diego State are all on the menu. Throw in two matchups with Oregon State, and you've got a gauntlet that would make most programs sweat. Sure, the Beavers have taken their lumps in terms of competitiveness, but they've actually caught Wazzu slipping a couple of times recently. So it's not all sunshine.

Here's the thing though: formidable doesn't mean unbeatable. Kansas State? They didn't do any better than Washington State last year and they've got a brand new head coach trying to figure things out. San Diego State beat both Fresno State and Boise State in 2025, sure, but they couldn't match Washington State's size back then and got absolutely dominated by the Cougs.

The Math Actually Works In Their Favor

Say Washington State loses to the Huskies, the Arizona Wildcats, the Broncos, one of the Oregon State matchups, plus one random upset nobody saw coming. That's five losses. Five! And you know what that still gives you? A 7-5 season. A winning record. The same kind of year they've already gotten comfortable with.

If you've been a Cougs fan through all this chaos and heartbreak, you'd take another successful season like that without hesitation. Washington State has proven they can survive coaching changes and player departures and G6 irrelevance. The question isn't whether they'll collapse. The question is whether they'll keep doing what they've been doing: winning when everything around the program is falling apart.

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.