Washington State Football: Cougars come from behind to nip Stanford

3. Washington State is a legitimate playoff threat 

Look, I know that sounds crazy, but the Cougars are the PAC-12’s last hope at a playoff team this season, and Mike Leach’s squad could potentially be dreaming higher now than the Rose Bowl, which already would have been a massive accomplishment for this program.

Washington’s loss to California puts Washington State in control of the PAC-12 North, and at 7-1, as crazy as it sounds, they are very much alive in the College Football Playoff hunt.

The Cougars finish the season at home against Cal, at Colorado, home against Arizona, and home against Washington. An 11-1 finish is very possible, and it would likely set up a date with Utah in the PAC-12 title game, a team they have already beaten this season.

The negativity surrounding the PAC-12 will not help Washington State’s playoff case as their schedule will be picked apart by the pundits. It also doesn’t help that the Cougars faced Wyoming, San Jose State, and Eastern Washington in out of conference play. Sagarin currently has the Cougars having faced the 71st toughest schedule in the country. But winning out would mean the Cougars would have beaten Utah (twice), Oregon, Stanford, and Washington – an impressive slate of victories. It probably would have helped Washington State if the rival Huskies hadn’t dropped their third game of the season already, a baffling road loss to California adding to what has been a frustrating season in Seattle.

It’s obviously early to be making such proclamations, and numerous teams will need to fall in front of the Cougars, but with how strange 2018 has been so far, would it be all that surprising?

We will get a better idea of what needs to happen for the Cougars to leap into the playoff chase on Tuesday, but for now the Cougars have forced themselves into the conversation with their strong play.