Another cross-country trip and chance to upset a ranked team on the road ends in the same old story for the Washington State Cougars. After leading the AP Poll’s No. 21 James Madison Dukes 17-10 at halftime, the Cougars were outscored 14-3 in the second half for a 24-20 final.
Yet again, WSU (5-6) looked up to the task in the first 30 minutes of play, outgaining JMU (10-1) by 146 yards and holding them to just 3.6 yards per play. Despite a pick-six early in the second quarter, the Cougars were able
to rattle off back-to-back touchdown drives to take a lead into halftime. The halftime break flipped the game completely upside down, as the Dukes were the ones in control in the game’s final 30 minutes. They outgained the Cougars by 164 yards and held them to 2.9 yards per play. JMU scored their two touchdowns in the second half on explosive plays, something WSU’s defense had been able to limit all season.
The Dukes trailed 17-10 late in the third quarter with the ball after forcing a WSU punt. On the first play of the drive, Alonza Barnett caught the Cougars napping on a play-action play and found Braeden Wisloski open behind the Cougar secondary. Barnett placed the deep ball right into the waiting arms of Wisloski for his only catch of the day, a 68-yard game-tying touchdown.
WSU answered back with a long 13-play drive that ate up more than seven and a half minutes of game time. The long drive stalled out in the red zone, however, which forced them to settle for a 36-yard field goal to take a 20-17 lead.
On 2nd and 10 from their own 42, JMU’s Wayne Knight took a handoff up the middle, and it only took one cut past a WSU lineman on the ground to find a wide-open lane. Caleb Francl was just one step too slow to get in front of Knight, who flew right past the second and third level defenders for a 58-yard touchdown.
With the game now hanging in the balance of their offense, WSU was able to convert a 4th and 2 from their own 33 but was turned away on a 4th and 5 as DJ Barksdale broke up the pass intended for Jeremiah Noga. JMU used the legs of Knight and Burnett to pick up a pair of first downs to ice the final 2:58 remaining.
It’s another instance of the WSU offense getting complacent in the second half. In their six road games this season, they’ve held the lead at the break in four of them and have only won once. The only game on the road this season where they threw for over 75 yards in the second half was their loss to Ole Miss.
While it is encouraging to see WSU play such competitive games against some of the best teams in the nation while having to travel across the country, the failure to steal just one of these coin-flip games has been maddening. Again, these are talented teams WSU is playing against. Ole Miss could very likely make the College Football Playoff, Virginia is vying for a spot in the ACC title game, and James Madison is having one of their best seasons in their young FBS history. Playing on the road is tough, especially when you are racking up the frequent flyer miles like WSU has been doing.
The second-half woes still shouldn’t shadow that they again played an incredibly competitive game in a season that set them up for failure. Three East Coast road trips, all against ranked opponents, in one season is unprecedented for this program, and yet they’ve lost by a combined total of nine points.
On the flip side, it is game 11, and WSU still can’t figure out how to manage their offense in the second half of games. The second-half struggles deserve a deeper look at a later date. The Cougars still did plenty of good things in this game, albeit mostly in the first 30 minutes.
Maxwell Woods took 10 carries for 43 yards, including a 21-yard scamper. Zevi Eckhaus had another brilliant throw to tie the game up in the second quarter. On 2nd and 8 from the JMU 48, Eckhaus stepped up in the pocket and delivered a strike to an open Tony Freeman, who snuck behind the Duke secondary for a 48-yard touchdown. Later in the half, with 52 seconds remaining and the ball inside the JMU five-yard line, Eckahus escaped a pair of JMU defenders in the backfield, found an open lane, and muscled his way past two more defenders for a rushing touchdown to take the lead.
Defensively, the Cougars held one of the nation’s top rushing offenses to just 52 yards in the first half. Coming into the game, the Dukes had averaged 241.6 yards per game on the ground. JMU also entered averaging 37.1 points per game, and the Cougar defense held them to 17 offensive points. Ultimately, it was two explosive plays that won JMU the game. Uncharacteristic for a defense that had been so good at limiting explosives.
The Cougars will get one last shot at becoming bowl eligible as they welcome in the Oregon State Beavers for round two, this time in Pullman for the regular season finale next Saturday.
