Washington State University

Athletics

Varsity Athletics

Washington State University is a member of the Pac-10 athletic conference. Varsity athletics include men's baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, and track & field; and women's basketball, cross country, golf, rowing, soccer, swimming, tennis, and track & field. In the past WSU had varsity programs of boxing, wrestling, and gymnastics. In 1937, Roy Petragallo and Ed McKinnon won the NCAA boxing championship. Washington State's first national championship.

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Sport Clubs

University Recreation also supports 26 sport clubs, including bowling, men's crew, cricket, cycling, equestrian show team, fencing, horse polo, men's & women's ice hockey, judo, men's lacrosse, logger sports, rodeo, men's rugby, sailing, ski team, men's soccer, women's fast-pitch softball, tae kwon do, triathlon, ultimate frisbee, men's & women's volleyball, and water polo.

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Most Popular Sports

The most attended sporting events are football games. Over the past four years, the Cougar football teams have been distinguished by three ten win seasons, three top ten poll rankings, and bowl game appearances (a Sun Bowl win in 2001, a Rose Bowl loss the following season, and a Holiday Bowl win in 2003). They also won the Pac-10 co-championship in 2002. Much to the dismay of Washington State fans, those three seasons were marred by three losses to their archrival, the University of Washington. In 2004, the Cougars stumbled to a disappointing 5-6 record, but did manage to defeat a 1-10 Washington squad to end the season.

Related Topics:
Sun Bowl - Rose Bowl - Holiday Bowl - University of Washington

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Men's basketball is the second most popular sport. However, the 1990s saw a major decline in support as the team floundered. There are signs of a resurgence under the coaching of Dick Bennett. The 2004-2005 season saw a huge increase in fan support as the team finished within a couple wins of a .500 record (along with a stunning upset win at eventual Elite Eight team Arizona).

Related Topics:
Dick Bennett - Elite Eight - Arizona

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Women's volleyball has a cult following. Residents of Stimson Hall, an all-male residence hall, attend every game in crimson shirts that spell "Superfans" on the front and "In Your Head" on the back, as the "Super Fans." The Super Fans have the front rows of the stands and are notoriously roudy, jeering at opponents, especially the good players. It is rumored the WSU head coach sends advanced notice to the Super Fans as to who the key players are in the upcoming matches.

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Rivalries

Washington State's fiercest rival is the University of Washington (and vice versa). The highlight event of the year between the two schools is the Apple Cup, the annual football contest held the third Saturday of November.

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The bitterness of the rivalry stems not only from being the other big public school in Washington state, but also brawl in the 1920s. UW stole WSU's stuffed-animal version of the cougar several times between 1917 & 1927. One year, UW strutted the prized possession around Husky Stadium, right in front of the Cougar Section at the Apple Cup. The WSU students couldn't stand this mockery and the brawl ensued, destroying the cat in the process. The WSU Intercollegiate Knights were then formed to care for the stuffed-cat more carefully.

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WSU also has rivalries with the other Pac-10 Northwest schools, the University of Oregon and Oregon State University. The rivalry with Oregon is relatively minor, but WSU shares a near friendship with OSU, both respecting each other for their underdog status and as fellow land-grant universities.

Related Topics:
University of Oregon - Oregon State University

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The rivalry with the University of Idaho Vandals, a land-grant school only 7 miles away, is about bragging rights, and less about competition as WSU wins nearly every one of the contests. For the Battle of the Palouse, the annual football game held at Martin Stadium in Pullman, the student bodies get into the action. Starting in the 1910s, the student body of the losing school would walk the seven miles between the towns. This now is done in a shared spirit between the WSU Student Alumni Connection & UI Student Alumni Relations Board, as they relay the game football from Moscow to Pullman before the start of the game. The student body presidents usually make a bet that the president at the losing school must shave his/her head. The editors of the student newspapers also get in on the action, making unique bets, such as marriage (WSU can afford to make more outlandish bets, UI less so).

Related Topics:
University of Idaho - Martin Stadium

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Recently, there is a small rivalry with Gonzaga University Bulldogs in basketball, and although WSU has made it interesting, Gonzaga typically wins these games.

Related Topics:
Gonzaga University - Basketball

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