# 2024 Washington State Cougars football team

The 2024 Washington State Cougars football team represented Washington State University in the Pac-12 Conference during the 2024 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Cougars were led by Jake Dickert in his fourth year as head coach. They played home games at Martin Stadium located in Pullman, Washington.

## Offseason

Prior to the 2023 Pac-12 Conference football season, 10 of the teams in the Pac-12 Conference announced that they intended to join other conferences, leaving Oregon State and Washington State as the only remaining conference members. Following several months of legal maneuvering over conference assets and liabilities, all schools reached a settlement in which Oregon State and Washington State retained control over the conference. The schools arranged a scheduling partnership with the Mountain West Conference to complete their football schedules.

### Players drafted into the NFL

| Round | Pick | NFL team | Player | Position |
| 4 | 133 | Kansas City Chiefs | Jaden Hicks | S |
| 5 | 154 | Los Angeles Rams | Brennan Jackson | DE |
| 5 | 157 | Carolina Panthers | Chau Smith-Wade | CB |

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| August 31 | 12:00 p.m. | Portland State* | | Martin StadiumPullman, WA | The CW | W 70–30 | 20,089 |
| September 7 | 7:00 p.m. | Texas Tech* | | Martin StadiumPullman, WA | FOX | W 37–16 | 27,372 |
| September 14 | 12:30 p.m. | vs. Washington* | | Lumen FieldSeattle, WA (Apple Cup) | Peacock | W 24–19 | 57,567 |
| September 20 | 7:00 p.m. | San Jose State* | | Martin StadiumPullman, WA | The CW | W 54–52 $^{2OT}$ | 24,808 |
| September 28 | 7:00 p.m. | at No. 25 Boise State* | | Albertsons StadiumBoise, ID | FS1 | L 24–45 | 37,711 |
| October 12 | 4:00 p.m. | at Fresno State* | | Valley Children's StadiumFresno, CA | FS1 | W 25–17 | 41,031 |
| October 19 | 12:30 p.m. | Hawaii* | | Martin StadiumPullman, WA | The CW | W 42–10 | 25,112 |
| October 26 | 7:30 p.m. | at San Diego State* | | Snapdragon StadiumSan Diego, CA | CBSSN | W 29–26 | 26,937 |
| November 9 | 7:30 p.m. | Utah State* | No. 21 | Martin StadiumPullman, WA | The CW | W 49–28 | 20,011 |
| November 16 | 6:30 p.m. | at New Mexico* | No. 18 | University StadiumAlbuquerque, NM | FS1 | L 35–38 | 14,067 |
| November 23 | 4:00 p.m. | at Oregon State | | Reser StadiumCorvallis, OR | The CW | L 38–41 | 38,008 |
| November 30 | 3:30 p.m. | Wyoming* | | Martin StadiumPullman, WA | The CW | L 14–15 | 17,088 |
| December 27 | 5:00 p.m. | vs. No. 21 Syracuse* | | Snapdragon StadiumSan Diego, CA (Holiday Bowl) | FOX | L 35–52 | 23,920 |
| *Non-conference gameRankings from AP Poll (and CFP Rankings, after November 5) - Released prior to gameAll times are in Pacific time ||||||||

## Game summaries
### vs. Portland State (FCS)

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Vikings (FCS) | 7 | 10 | 6 | 7 | 30 |
| Cougars | 22 | 27 | 14 | 7 | 70 |
at Martin Stadium • Pullman, WA
* Date: Saturday August 31, 2024
* Game time: 12:00 PM PST
* Game weather: Sunny
* Game attendance: 20,089
* TV announcers (The CW): Ted Robinson, Ryan Leaf, and Nigel Burton
| Statistics | PSU | WSU |
| First downs | 21 | 21 |
| Total yards | 449 | 637 |
| Rushing yards | 215 | 224 |
| Passing yards | 234 | 413 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 20–35–1 | 17–24–0 |
| Time of possession | 40:26 | 19:34 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Portland State | Passing | Dante Chachere | 14/25, 175 yards, TD, INT |
| Portland State | Rushing | Delon Thompson | 15 carries, 96 yards |
| Portland State | Receiving | Tanner Beaman | 3 receptions, 42 yards |
| Washington State | Passing | John Mateer | 11/17, 352 yards, 5 TD |
| Washington State | Rushing | Wayshawn Parker | 8 carries, 96 yards, TD |
| Washington State | Receiving | Kyle Williams | 4 receptions, 141 yards, 2 TD |

### vs Texas Tech

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Red Raiders | 3 | 7 | 0 | 6 | 16 |
| Cougars | 7 | 20 | 7 | 3 | 37 |
at Martin Stadium • Pullman, WA
* Date: September 7, 2024
* Game time: 7:00 PM PST
* Game weather: Sunny
* Game attendance: 27,372
* Referee: Chris Wiggins
* TV announcers (Fox): Tim Brando, Devin Gardner, and Josh Sims
| Statistics | TTU | WSU |
| First downs | 24 | 18 |
| Total yards | 491 | 416 |
| Rushing yards | 148 | 301 |
| Passing yards | 343 | 115 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 35–60–2 | 9–19–1 |
| Time of possession | 29:55 | 30:05 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Texas Tech | Passing | Behren Morton | 34/58, 323 yards, TD, 2 INT |
| Texas Tech | Rushing | Cameran Brown | 5 carries, 70 yards |
| Texas Tech | Receiving | Josh Kelly | 9 receptions, 95 yards |
| Washington State | Passing | John Mateer | 9/19, 115 yards, TD, INT |
| Washington State | Rushing | John Mateer | 21 carries, 197 yards, TD |
| Washington State | Receiving | Josh Meredith | 2 receptions, 54 yards |

### vs Washington (Apple Cup)

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Cougars | 10 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 24 |
| Huskies | 7 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 19 |
at Lumen Field • Seattle, WA
* Date: September 14, 2024
* Game time: 12:30 PM PST
* Game weather: Cloudy, 62 °F (17 °C)
* Game attendance: 57,567
* Referee: Stephen Baron
* TV announcers (Peacock): Paul Burmeister, Colt McCoy, and Zora Stephenson
| Statistics | WSU | WASH |
| First downs | 25 | 21 |
| Total yards | 381 | 452 |
| Rushing yards | 136 | 126 |
| Passing yards | 245 | 326 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 17–34–1 | 26–35–0 |
| Time of possession | 27:55 | 32:05 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Washington State | Passing | John Mateer | 17/34, 245 yards, TD, INT |
| Washington State | Rushing | John Mateer | 16 carries, 62 yards, 2 TD |
| Washington State | Receiving | Josh Meredith | 7 receptions, 11 yards, TD |
| Washington | Passing | Will Rogers | 23/31, 314 yards, TD |
| Washington | Rushing | Jonah Coleman | 14 carries, 75 yards |
| Washington | Receiving | Giles Jackson | 8 receptions, 162 yards, TD |

### vs San Jose State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | 2OT | Total |
| Spartans | 10 | 7 | 21 | 8 | 0 | 6 | 52 |
| Cougars | 7 | 17 | 0 | 22 | 0 | 8 | 54 |
at Martin Stadium • Pullman, WA
* Date: September 20, 2024
* Game time: 7:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny
* Game attendance: 24,808
* Referee: John Love
* TV announcers (The CW): J. B. Long, Michael Bumpus, and Camryn Irwin
| Statistics | SJSU | WSU |
| First downs | 23 | 31 |
| Total yards | 491 | 627 |
| Rushing yards | 116 | 237 |
| Passing yards | 375 | 390 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 35–54–2 | 26–46–2 |
| Time of possession | 28:07 | 31:53 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| San Jose State | Passing | Emmett Brown | 35/54, 375 yards, 4 TD, 2 INT |
| San Jose State | Rushing | Floyd Chalk IV | 11 carries, 94 yards, 2 TD |
| San Jose State | Receiving | Nick Nash | 16 receptions, 152 yards, 2 TD |
| Washington State | Passing | John Mateer | 26/46, 390 yards, 4 TD, 2 INT |
| Washington State | Rushing | John Mateer | 18 carries, 111 yards, TD |
| Washington State | Receiving | Kyle Williams | 8 receptions, 138 yards, TD |

### at No. 25 Boise State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Cougars | 7 | 3 | 0 | 14 | 24 |
| No. 25 Broncos | 7 | 10 | 7 | 21 | 45 |
at Albertsons Stadium • Boise, ID
* Date: September 28, 2024
* Game time: 7:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Clear • Temperature: 84 °F (29 °C) • Wind: W 4 miles per hour (6.4 km/h)
* Game attendance: 37,711
* Referee: Christian Watson
* TV announcers (FS1): Dan Hellie and Petros Papadakis
| Statistics | WSU | BSU |
| First downs | 21 | 21 |
| Total yards | 416 | 460 |
| Rushing yards | 89 | 276 |
| Passing yards | 327 | 184 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 26–37–1 | 12–21–1 |
| Time of possession | 33:28 | 26:32 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Washington State | Passing | John Mateer | 26/37, 327 yards, 2 TD, INT |
| Washington State | Rushing | Wayshawn Parker | 11 carries, 35 yards |
| Washington State | Receiving | Kyle Williams | 9 receptions, 142 yards, TD |
| Boise State | Passing | Maddux Madsen | 12/21, 184 yards, 2 TD, INT |
| Boise State | Rushing | Ashton Jeanty | 26 carries, 259 yards, 4 TD |
| Boise State | Receiving | Matt Lauter | 4 receptions, 96 yards, 2 TD |

### at Fresno State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Cougars | 13 | 0 | 3 | 9 | 25 |
| Bulldogs | 7 | 0 | 7 | 3 | 17 |
at Valley Children's Stadium • Fresno, CA
* Date: October 12, 2024
* Game time: 4:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny
* Game attendance: 41,031
* Referee: Christian Watson
* TV announcers (FS1): Trent Rush and Petros Papadakis
| Statistics | WSU | FRES |
| First downs | 23 | 22 |
| Total yards | 295 | 338 |
| Rushing yards | 123 | 118 |
| Passing yards | 172 | 220 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 17–35–1 | 24–36–2 |
| Time of possession | 30:40 | 29:20 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Washington State | Passing | John Mateer | 17/35, 172 yards, INT |
| Washington State | Rushing | Wayshawn Parker | 12 carries, 63 yards |
| Washington State | Receiving | Kyle Williams | 3 receptions, 39 yards |
| Fresno State | Passing | Mikey Keene | 24/36, 220 yards, TD, 2 INT |
| Fresno State | Rushing | Elijah Gilliam | 20 carries, 120 yards, TD |
| Fresno State | Receiving | Mac Dalena | 4 receptions, 61 yards |

### vs. Hawaii

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Rainbow Warriors | 3 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 10 |
| Cougars | 7 | 14 | 7 | 14 | 42 |
at Martin Stadium • Pullman, WA
* Date: Saturday October 19, 2024
* Game time: 12:30 p.m.
* Game weather: 0 °F (−18 °C)
* TV announcers (The CW): Ted Robinson (play-by-play), Michael Bumpus (analyst), and Nigel Burton (sideline)
| Statistics | HAW | WSU |
| First downs | 17 | 23 |
| Total yards | 300 | 444 |
| Rushing yards | 104 | 123 |
| Passing yards | 196 | 321 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 20–30–1 | 25–29–0 |
| Time of possession | 27:30 | 32:30 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Hawaii | Passing | Brayden Schager | 20/30, 196 yards, TD, INT |
| Hawaii | Rushing | Cam Barfield | 6 carries, 47 yards |
| Hawaii | Receiving | Nick Cenacle | 4 receptions, 48 yards |
| Washington State | Passing | John Mateer | 23/27, 295 yards, 3 TD |
| Washington State | Rushing | Djouvensky Schlenbaker | 8 carries, 48 yards |
| Washington State | Receiving | Kris Hutson | 7 receptions, 90 yards, TD |

### at San Diego State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Cougars | 7 | 7 | 0 | 15 | 29 |
| Aztecs | 6 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 26 |
at Snapdragon Stadium • San Diego, CA
* Date: October 26, 2024
* Game time: 7:30 p.m.
* Game weather: Clear • Temperature: 67 °F (19 °C) • Wind: N 2 miles per hour (3.2 km/h)
* Game attendance: 26,937
* Referee: John Love
* TV announcers (CBSSN): Carter Blackburn (play-by-play) and Taylor McHargue (analyst)
| Statistics | WSU | SDSU |
| First downs | 22 | 21 |
| Total yards | 371 | 414 |
| Rushing yards | 114 | 130 |
| Passing yards | 257 | 284 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 19–27–0 | 28–41–1 |
| Time of possession | 26:14 | 29:33 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Washington State | Passing | John Mateer | 19/27, 257 yards, 2 TD |
| Washington State | Rushing | John Mateer | 21 carries, 42 yards, 2 TD |
| Washington State | Receiving | Kyle Williams | 5 receptions, 74 yards |
| San Diego State | Passing | Danny O'Neil | 22/34, 195 yards, INT |
| San Diego State | Rushing | Marquez Cooper | 18 carries, 78 yards, 2 TD |
| San Diego State | Receiving | Ja'Shaun Poke | 10 receptions, 80 yards |

### vs Utah State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Aggies | 7 | 0 | 7 | 14 | 28 |
| No. 21 Cougars | 7 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 49 |
at Martin Stadium • Pullman, WA
* Date: November 9, 2024
* Game time: 7:30 p.m.
* Game weather: Clear, 45 °F (7 °C)
* Game attendance: 20,011
* Referee: John Love
* TV announcers (The CW): Ted Robinson (play-by-play), Ryan Leaf (analyst) and Nigel Burton (sideline)
| Statistics | USU | WSU |
| First downs | 21 | 28 |
| Total yards | 395 | 482 |
| Rushing yards | 187 | 303 |
| Passing yards | 208 | 179 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 28–45–1 | 18–24–0 |
| Time of possession | 27:15 | 32:45 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Utah State | Passing | Spencer Petras | 28/45, 208 yards, 2 TD, INT |
| Utah State | Rushing | Herschel Turner | 16 carries, 85 yards |
| Utah State | Receiving | Grant Page | 7 receptions, 54 yards |
| Washington State | Passing | John Mateer | 18/24, 179 yards, 4 TD |
| Washington State | Rushing | Wayshawn Parker | 11 carries, 149 yards, 2 TD |
| Washington State | Receiving | Kyle Williams | 5 receptions, 55 yards, 3 TD |

### at New Mexico

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 18 Cougars | 14 | 14 | 0 | 7 | 35 |
| Lobos | 7 | 7 | 14 | 10 | 38 |
at University Stadium, Albuquerque, New Mexico
* Date: Saturday November 16, 2024
* Game time: 6:30 p.m.
* Game weather: Clear • Temperature: 47 °F (8 °C) • Wind: NE 6 miles per hour (9.7 km/h)
* Game attendance: 14,067
* Referee: Nolan Dumas
* TV announcers (FS1): Dan Hellie and Petros Papadakis
| Statistics | WSU | UNM |
| First downs | 27 | 27 |
| Total yards | 547 | 534 |
| Rushing yards | 172 | 360 |
| Passing yards | 375 | 174 |
| Turnovers | 0 | 0 |
| Time of possession | 28:48 | 31:12 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Washington State | Passing | John Mateer | 25/36, 375 yards, 4 TD |
| Washington State | Rushing | John Mateer | 9 carries, 65 yards, TD |
| Washington State | Receiving | Kyle Williams | 9 receptions, 181 yards, 3 TD |
| New Mexico | Passing | Devon Dampier | 11/25, 174 yards, TD |
| New Mexico | Rushing | Devon Dampier | 28 carries, 193 yards, 3 TD |
| New Mexico | Receiving | Luke Wysong | 5 receptions, 71 yards |

### at Oregon State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Cougars | 7 | 10 | 7 | 14 | 38 |
| Beavers | 7 | 14 | 10 | 10 | 41 |
at Reser Stadium • Corvallis, OR
* Date: November 23, 2024
* Game time: 4:00 p.m.
* Game weather: 51 °F (11 °C)
* Game attendance: 38,008
* TV announcers (The CW): Ted Robinson (play-by-play), Ryan Leaf (analyst) and Nigel Burton (sideline)
| Statistics | WSU | OSU |
| First downs | 20 | 27 |
| Total yards | 384 | 484 |
| Rushing yards | 134 | 170 |
| Passing yards | 250 | 314 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 17–23–0 | 23–36–2 |
| Time of possession | 21:37 | 38:23 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Washington State | Passing | John Mateer | 17/23, 250 yards, 2 TD |
| Washington State | Rushing | John Mateer | 14 carries, 75 yards, 2 TD |
| Washington State | Receiving | Kyle Williams | 5 receptions, 95 yards, TD |
| Oregon State | Passing | Ben Gulbranson | 22/34, 294 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT |
| Oregon State | Rushing | Anthony Hankerson | 23 carries, 83 yards |
| Oregon State | Receiving | Trent Walker | 12 receptions, 136 yards |

### vs Wyoming

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Cowboys | 3 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 15 |
| Cougars | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 14 |
at Martin Stadium • Pullman, WA
* Date: November 30, 2024
* Game time: 3:30 p.m.
* Game weather: Clear, 40 °F (4 °C)
* Game attendance: 17,088
* Referee: John Love
* TV announcers (The CW): Ted Robinson (play-by-play), Ryan Leaf (analyst) and Nigel Burton (sideline)
| Statistics | WYO | WSU |
| First downs | 22 | 15 |
| Total yards | 340 | 285 |
| Rushing yards | 134 | 103 |
| Passing yards | 206 | 182 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 21–34–1 | 16–22–1 |
| Time of possession | 34:14 | 25:46 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Wyoming | Passing | Evan Svoboda | 21/34, 206 yards, TD, INT |
| Wyoming | Rushing | Harrison Waylee | 12 carries, 69 yards |
| Wyoming | Receiving | John Michael Gyllenborg | 4 receptions, 61 yards, TD |
| Washington State | Passing | John Mateer | 16/22, 182 yards, TD, INT |
| Washington State | Rushing | John Mateer | 18 carries, 56 yards, TD |
| Washington State | Receiving | Kris Hutson | 5 receptions, 62 yards |

### vs No. 21 Syracuse (Holiday Bowl)

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 21 Orange | 14 | 21 | 7 | 10 | 52 |
| Cougars | 21 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 35 |
at Snapdragon Stadium • San Diego, California
* Date: Friday, December 27, 2024
* Game time: 5:00 p.m. PST
* Game weather: Cloudy • Temperature: 59 °F (15 °C) • Wind: 3 mph (4.8 km/h) southwest
* Game attendance: 23,920
* Referee: Jerry McGinn
* TV announcers (Fox): Gus Johnson (play-by-play), Joel Klatt (analyst), and Jenny Taft (sideline)
| Statistics | SYR | WSU |
| First downs | 28 | 24 |
| Total yards | 606 | 472 |
| Rushing yards | 153 | 109 |
| Passing yards | 453 | 363 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 24–34–0 | 31–43–2 |
| Time of possession | 25:24 | 34:36 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Syracuse | Passing | Kyle McCord | 24/34, 453 yards, 5 TD |
| Syracuse | Rushing | LeQuint Allen | 17 carries, 120 yards, 2 TD |
| Syracuse | Receiving | Darrell Gill Jr. | 4 receptions, 145 yards |
| Washington State | Passing | Zevi Eckhaus | 31/43, 363 yards, 3 TD, 2 INT |
| Washington State | Rushing | Leo Pulalasi | 14 carries, 61 yards |
| Washington State | Receiving | Kyle Williams | 10 receptions, 172 yards, TD |

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking — = Not ranked RV = Received votes :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | Final |
| AP | — | — | — | RV | RV | — | RV | RV | RV | 22 | 20 | 19 | 25 | RV | — | — | — |
| Coaches | — | — | — | RV | RV | — | — | RV | RV | 22 | 20 | 18 | RV | RV | — | — | — |
| CFP | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | 21 | 18 | — | — | — | — | Not released |