Washington State football coach Paul Wulff says turnovers and missed tackles have been "a continual theme for us."
Not surprisingly, so has losing.
Four turnovers and countless missed tackles figured prominently in Washington State's 59-28 loss to Arizona on Saturday at Martin Stadium.
The Cougars rank last in the nation with 33 turnovers, which helps explain why they rank next to last in scoring (13.9 points per game) and total offense (247 yards). Missed tackles figure prominently in WSU's last-place ranking in points allowed (50.2) and rushing defense (279.1).
Told that the Cougars have coughed up 22 more turnovers than they have forced -- the worst mark in the nation -- Wulff simply muttered, "Wow."
Wulff noted that teams with turnover problems often lack experience on offense. The Cougars had seven first-year starters on offense Saturday, and three are playing in college for the first time.
"The biggest thing we need to do is continue to develop experience and understand the value of ball security,"
Wulff said at his Sunday night teleconference. "We've got to be smart taking care of the football."
"If you've followed our team this year, we've really had some turnovers that scratch your head, so to speak: 'Uh, why?'"
"Coaches, like every fan out there, say the same thing: 'Why?' Why do we turn the football over sometimes the way we do it? But a lot of times, that's inexperience."
The Cougars, 1-9 overall with six straight losses, are last in the Pac-10 at 0-7. A loss Saturday at Arizona State (3-6, 2-4) would tie school records for overall and conference losses.
CollegeFootballNews.com ranks Arizona State 59th and WSU 113th among the 119 teams in the College Bowl Subdivision (formerly NCAA Division I-A). Like the Cougars, the Sun Devils -- a Top 25 team early in the season before they lost six consecutive games -- have been hit hard by injuries.
The Cougars might gain some confidence in knowing they're 33rd in the nation in pass defense (187.4 yards per game) and Arizona State is 109th in rushing (96.6).
However, Arizona State senior quarterback Rudy Carpenter has passed for 837 yards and seven touchdowns in three games against Washington State, and running back Keegan Herring broke loose for 144 of ASU's season-high 187 rushing yards Saturday in a 39-19 victory at Washington.
Saturday's game matches Wulff against Arizona State coach Dennis Erickson, who coached Wulff when Wulff was a player at Washington State in 1987-88. Wulff made his head coaching debut in 2000 against Erickson's Oregon State Beavers, and Wulff's Eastern Washington Eagles -- a I-AA team -- lost only 21-19 to an Oregon State squad that finished 11-1 and ranked fourth in the nation.
