SEATTLE (AP) — Four plays into his second game as Washington's head coach Jimmy Lake put to rest any worry about not being aggressive enough.
Running a successful fake punt at their own 31-yard line was a bold early decision and what became the start of a huge night for the Huskies.
“We said way back in December 2019 that we were going to be aggressive and we we’re going to attack in all three phases,” Lake said.
Washington did attack on Saturday night, with Dylan Morris throwing for 230 yards and two touchdowns, and three different running backs finding the end zone in the Huskies' 44-27 win over Arizona.
Washington (2-0) was thoroughly dominant, jumping to a 24-0 halftime lead and led 37-0 before Arizona finally found the end zone early in the fourth quarter. For a while, it appeared the Huskies could be in line to post their first Pac-12 shutout since a 30-0 win over Washington State in the 2009 Apple Cup, but the Wildcats feasted on Washington’s backup defense in the fourth quarter.
While the Huskies defense stifled the Wildcats for three quarters, it was Morris and the Washington offense that showed efficiency and explosiveness that was absent in last week’s opening win over Oregon State.
It started on the opening drive — after the fake punt — when Morris hit Puka Nacua on a 65-yard catch-and-run touchdown. He added a 20-yard TD pass to Cade Otton midway through the third quarter to give the Huskies a 37-0 lead. And in between, the Huskies got TD runs from Kamari Pleasant, Sean McGrew and Richard Newton.
Newton added a second TD early in the fourth quarter on a 54-yard run.
“When you’re able to pepper a defense with fresh guys over and over and over, behind a massive offensive line, that’s a good recipe to get some rush yards and wear...
The Latest on the effects of the coronavirus outbreak on sports around the world:
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Washington State athletic director Pat Chun says the school has nine football players in COVID-19 protocols and four players had to be put into the protocol Friday morning leading to the cancellation of the Cougars' game at Stanford.
Chun said as of last weekend, the Cougars had zero players in their COVID protocols and the first positive test came early in the week. The four positives Friday morning kept the Cougars from reaching the Pac-12 mandate of 53 scholarship players available.
Chun said it was too early to know whether next Friday’s Apple Cup against rival Washington will be played as scheduled. He said figuring out the situation around the Apple Cup would begin Sunday.
“We’re going to get through tomorrow as planned and come Sunday we’ll start making our daily assessments about where our roster is at and where we’re at with everything related to trying to field a team on Friday,” Chun said.
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Colorado State’s men’s basketball program is pausing team activities through Dec. 2 because of two positive COVID-19 tests.
These are the first two positive tests since the players reported back in June.
The school said it will work with the Mountain West Conference to discuss how the hiatus affects the start of the Rams’ season.
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The Las Vegas Raiders have activated defensive back Lamarus Joyner from the COVID-19 list.
Coach Jon Gruden says he has no update yet on which of the other 10 players on the team on the COVID-19 list will be activated in time to play Sunday.
Joyner was placed on the COVID-19 list Tuesday as a “high risk” close contact after teammate Clelin Ferrell tested positive for the coronavirus. Seven other defensive players were added to the...
PULLMAN, Wash. (AP) — Washington State starting quarterback Jayden de Laura has tested positive for COVID-19 and won’t play in Saturday's game at Stanford, according to a published report Friday.
The Spokesman-Review said de Laura might also miss the Nov. 27 game against Washington if he is placed in a 14-day quarantine.
Sports information director Bill Stevens declined to comment on the report Friday.
Redshirt sophomore Cammon Cooper and redshirt freshman Gunner Cruz are listed as backups to de Laura on the team’s depth chart. Neither has ever taken a snap in a game for the Cougars (1-1).
De Laura, a freshman from Honolulu, has played well in his first two games as the team’s starting quarterback, throwing for four touchdowns and one interception and rushing for another touchdown. He is the first true freshman to start a season opener in program history.
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PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — CJ Elleby is a bit too young to remember much about the SuperSonics while growing up in Seattle, but he recalls the Trail Blazers, and in particular, guard Brandon Roy.
Roy was a Seattle-area product himself, and returned there to coach when his NBA career was cut short by injuries. Roy is currently coach at Garfield High School.
“Growing up, hearing stories about him and seeing his legacy that he left behind and that he’s continuing to live. It was just inspiring. And so I’ve always been watching the Trail Blazers," Elleby said.
In fact, Elleby said he was heading off to watch Roy's highlights. But first he had to take care of business with his first news conference as a pro.
Elleby was the 46th pick in the NBA draft Wednesday night by the Blazers. He became the first Washington State player drafted since Klay Thompson in 2011.
“Coming into the draft, I really didn’t know where I would be selected, if I would be selected. The projections that were put upon me were late second round to undrafted. A lot of the people who were making mock drafts left me off of them,” he said Thursday.
The Blazers noticed. Elleby averaged 18.4 points and 7.8 rebounds as a sophomore for the Cougars last season. He led the Pac-12 with 1.8 steals per game.
A 6-foot-6 lefty known as a disruptive defender, Elleby matched his career high with 30 points in his final game with Washington State, an 82-68 victory over Colorado in the opening round of the Pac-12 tournament. He added 10 assists.
His 30 points were the most for a Cougar in the conference tournament since Thompson had 43 points in a game in 2011.
“I just kind always believed in myself and I have a great community of people around me who believe in me. So really, that was the process. I felt that...
Portland has a new CJ.
The Trail Blazers selected forward CJ Elleby out of Washington State with the 46th pick in the NBA draft Wednesday night.
Elleby, the first Cougar drafted since Klay Thompson in 2011, averaged 18.4 points and 7.8 rebounds as a sophomore last season.
A 6-foot-6 lefty known as a disruptive defender, Elleby matched his career high with 30 points in his final game with Washington State, an 82-68 victory over Colorado in the opening round of the Pac-12 tournament. He added 10 assists.
His 30 points were the most for a Cougar in the conference tournament since Thompson had 43 points in a game in 2011.
In his two seasons with the Cougars, Elleby averaged 16.6 points and 7.5 rebounds a game. He becomes Portland's second CJ, joining guard CJ McCollum.
Earlier in the draft, the Blazers selected Isaiah Stewart out of Washington with the 16th pick, but the 6-foot-9, 250-pound forward won't be heading to Portland.
The Trail Blazers reportedly traded the pick to Houston along with forward Trevor Ariza on Monday for veteran Robert Covington, according to a report by ESPN. The deal could not be formally announced by the Blazers until after the draft.
A person with knowledge of the deal told The Associated Press that the Rockets then agreed to trade Ariza and the 16th pick to the Detroit Pistons for a future first-round pick. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the trade had not been announced. Detroit already had the seventh pick in this year’s draft.
Covington, who averaged 12.4 points and 6.6 rebounds, will be a key addition for Portland, which finished the coronavirus-shortened regular season 35-39.
Among the teams invited to play in the bubble in Florida, the Trail Blazers made it to the NBA playoffs for the seventh straight season but...