Still looking for first FBS win of season, WSU hits the road to take on San Diego State | First look

Oct. 26—PULLMAN — Here is a first look at Washington State's road game against San Diego State on Saturday afternoon.What is it?Looking to end a five-game slide and secure its first FBS win of the season, WSU heads to the Golden State to take on San Diego State, which has lost two of its last three games. The Cougars are coming off a 31-10 loss to Boise State, which marked quarterback Owen Eshelman's second start.It's the first Pac-12 matchup between the Cougars and Aztecs, who have met each of the last two seasons, both wins for WSU. The Cougs, whose bye week comes next week, are also playing their third road game in the last four weeks.Where is it?Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego, California.When is it?Kickoff is set for 4 p.m.Where can I watch it?CBS Sports Network will broadcast the game.Who is favored?WSU opened as a 2.5-point underdog.How did the Cougars fare last week?In a 31-10 loss to Boise State, WSU played the first-place Broncos to a 10-10 tie through three quarters, but that's when things went south for the hosts. Boise State followed with a 21-0 fourth quarter, turning a costly Eshelman interception into a touchdown, then adding two more on each of its next two drives.In Eshelman's second start, it was another slow offensive outing for the Cougars, who tied the game shortly before halftime on a long touchdown drive and again on a field goal from kicker Jack Stevens, who has now connected on eight in a row. But that's all the scoring WSU did, punting on four of its first five drives of the game.The Cougars weren't at full strength on offense. Wide receiver Darrius Clemons missed the game after going down the previous week with an ankle injury, a tough blow to a WSU receiver corps that has been thin since star wideout Tony Freeman tore his ACL in Week 1. But the Cougs didn't exactly expand their rotation at that spot, instead opting to play receivers Branden Ganashamoorthy and Tank Hawkins heavy snaps and leaving Jordan Dees and Caleb Northcroft — both of whom WSU coach Kirby Moore said would get increased snaps — on the bench entirely.Plus, the Cougars didn't get much of anything from their rushing game, which produced only 53 yards on 33 carries. Running backs Kirby Vorhees and Leo Pulalasi accounted for only 20 yards on 10 carries, while fellow back Maxwell Woods played only 11 snaps and did not get any carries. In seven games against FBS competition, WSU running backs are averaging 15 carries for 48 yards.That helped spotlight the problems facing WSU's offensive line, which allowed 16 pressures and two sacks on Eshelman, who took four total. On several occasions, the Cougs were beaten on stunts. On others, they weren't able to generate any push on running plays, a key reason why their running backs haven't gotten anything consistent going. A group of five returners — left tackle Ashton Tripp, left guard Jonny Lester, center Noah Dunham, right guard Nick Bakken and right tackle Jaylin Caldwell — have shared a good dosage of the blame for a paltry offense."Offensively, we weren't good enough, especially up front," Moore said, "protecting the quarterback, running the football, and it led to 17 third downs. We want to limit the number of third downs. We gotta be more efficient on first and second down and create more explosive plays."On defense, the Cougs allowed several more big plays, including two long touchdown rushes from Boise State star running back Dylan Riley, who piled up 128 yards and two touchdowns, both in the fourth quarter. WSU, which whiffed on 16 tackles, has had some issues preventing explosive plays all season.Perhaps just as important: Washington State couldn't generate any real pass rush. The Cougars finished with only eight pressures on QB Maddux Madsen, according to Pro Football Focus, which gave him ample time in the pocket to complete passes. Madsen completed several key third-down conversions, including a 17-yard scramble in the third quarter, which later led to a touchdown.Scouting San Diego State ...In head coach Sean Lewis' third season, the Aztecs are 3-5 overall and 2-2 in Pac-12 play, coming off a 56-49 road loss to Colorado State. In that one, backup QB Stone Saunders made his starting debut and threw two touchdowns against two interceptions, totaling 369 yards through the air.But the Aztecs' defense couldn't make it count, as has been the case all season. After eight games, SDSU ranks No. 135 of 138 FBS teams in total defense (462 yards per game), No. 133 in scoring defense (36 points per game), No. 109 in rush defense (178 ypg) and No. 134 in pass defense (284 ypg). That group is also allowing opponents to convert third downs at a 47% clip, which is No. 129 nationally.It hasn't been pretty for SDSU's defense, which had to replace several key pieces on last year's unit, including cornerback Chris Johnson, a first-round NFL draft pick in the spring, as well as edge rusher Trey White and three others who transferred to Power Four schools.The Aztecs are dealing with an injury to quarterback Jayden Denegal, the team's starter for the first seven games. The Aztecs opened the season with a home romp over FCS Portland State, only to drop three straight games, including road matchups with UCLA and Toledo and a home contest against James Madison. Since then, SDSU has dispatched Texas State at home, lost to Oregon State on the road, bounced back with a home win over Fresno State then fell in a road tilt with CSU.In the Aztecs' win over the Bulldogs, Saunders came on for the injured Denegal, leading fourth-quarter two scoring drives to secure the win. Listed at 6-foot-1 and 222 pounds, Saunders profiles as a pure pocket-passer, and he does it well. In his first start last weekend, Saunders completed 23 of 33 passes for 369 yards, two touchdowns and two picks. He isn't much of a mobile threat, posting only four carries for minus-9 yards, an indication of the two total sacks he's taken."They're doing a nice job of playing complementary football," Moore said. "They got in a shootout last week. They're 3-1 at home. For us, it's gonna be a challenge, third out of four games being on the road."What happened last time?WSU and San Diego State's last meeting came last fall in Pullman, where former Cougar quarterback Jaxon Potter led his team to a 36-13 win, scoring 22 unanswered points to pull away. Potter would go on to make one more start, in a loss to North Texas, before being benched for veteran Zevi Eckhaus for the rest of the season.