Ten questions about Cougars football

Questions and answers about the Cougars as they enter the most-anticipated football season in school history:

Q. How did the Cougars come out of nowhere to finish 10-2 last season and set the stage for this season, when they are Pac-10 favorites?

A. The Rose Bowl afterglow helped in recruiting the next three classes after the 1997 season. With no immediate pressure to win, WSU started rebuilding with quality high-school recruits, not patching with junior-college transfers. Because the Cougars lost 29 seniors and junior quarterback Ryan Leaf after the '97 season, the young players got experience and got better. This is most evident on the WSU lines, which have depth, usually a rare commodity on the Palouse. At quarterback, Jason Gesser is a three-year starter and three-year captain, something that wouldn't happen at most Pac-10 schools.

The upturn actually started in 2000, the year the Cougars lost three overtime games. Last season, the Cougars benefited from a schedule that saw them play a slightly tougher opponent every week during the first half of the season as they gained confidence.

Q. Which players can't get hurt if the Cougars are going to win the Pac-10?

A. Can you spell J-a-s-o-n G-e-s-s-e-r? He can be a daredevil, and exasperate coaches with unnecessary risk-taking.

All-conference kicker Drew Dunning better stay healthy, too.

Cornerback Marcus Trufant, perhaps the best pro prospect on the team, can't miss time because the Cougars graduated the league's best safety tandem in Lamont Thompson and Billy Newman and need their best defensive back on the field.

Q. Does Gesser really have a shot at winning the Heisman Trophy?

A. An outside chance. But his stats are going to have to be good, the team is going to have to win and stay ranked and Gesser must play well in nationally-televised showdowns such as the Sept. 14 game at Ohio State.

Q. If Gesser goes down, can the Cougars still win?

A. They still can beat a lot of teams. Matt Kegel, heir apparent for next year, appears much improved after looking mediocre in brief appearances in the final five games last season. Don't forget, though, Kegel quarterbacked the Cougars to victory over USC in 2000 when Gesser was injured.

Q. What are the positions of concern?

A. Even though Coach Mike Price calls his linebackers "solid," other folks aren't sold. Oregon rushed for a school-record 446 yards against the Cougars last season when the position wasn't considered a weakness and included second-round NFL pick Raonall Smith. Two junior-college newcomers, Kevin Sperry and Don Jackson, will share time in the middle. Al Genatone and Ira Davis are the outside starters with Will Derting and Pat Bennett as high-potential backups.

At safety, the Cougars will have two new starters in Erik Coleman and Virgil Williams, who has a history of injuries.

Running back was supposed to be a strength. Price even compared junior-college transfer Jermaine Green to former Cougars great Steve Broussard last spring. But Green has been limited by a knee injury and fellow JC recruit Jonathan Smith has missed time with rib injuries. Senior John Tippins has improved, but is hardly considered among the league's elite.

The tight ends are unproven, but there's young talent there.

Q. What are the strongest positions?

A. Both the offensive and defensive lines have been ranked among the top 10 in the nation. The team is loaded at wide receiver with Mike Bush, Jerome Riley and Florida State transfer Devard Darling. Collin Henderson knows how to get open as a possession receiver and has thrown five career touchdown passes on trick plays.

Q. Why is this schedule considered favorable?

A. The Cougars play the three teams most mentioned as Pac-10 contenders — Washington, Oregon and USC — at home. They have byes before Washington and UCLA. They face highly beatable opponents before showdowns against Ohio State, USC and Oregon.

Q. What kind of "firsts" can the Cougars achieve this season?

A. WSU never has gone to back-to-back bowl games or even had consecutive winning seasons in Price's previous 13 years. Although the Cougars tied for the league championship in the Rose Bowl season of 1997, they haven't won a league championship outright since 1930.

Q. Will the team be able to stay fresh throughout a regular season that starts Saturday and doesn't end until Dec. 7 against UCLA?

A. That's the challenge facing the coaches. Price probably does as good a job as anybody about making practices interesting. Also, the team's new indoor practice "bubble" will get them out of the miserable November-December weather. The fact that all three bye weeks are in the second half of the season should help.

Q. What are things Cougars fans should feel good about?

A. There were no offseason changes on a coaching staff that has worked well together. (Price says pay raises helped keep the staff intact.) Attendance was good at "voluntary" summer workouts. There are some leaders in the fifth-year senior class and they don't need reminding that they never have beaten the Huskies.