By Andrew Bailie Posted on

UW vs. WSU preview: Three things to watch for in the Apple Cup

UW will take on WSU in the Apple Cup on Saturday. Jedd Fisch gave his final presser before the game on Thursday. Fisch said his team is ready to travel to Pullman to take on the Cougars. The Huskies will be looking to avenge their 24-19 loss from last season. WSU is coming off a tough 59-10 loss at North Texas. UW’s last game was a 70-10 win over UC Davis in week two, and they were idle in week three. With an old Pac-12 rivalry renewing Saturday, here are three things to watch in the 117th Apple Cup.

UW wants to force more turnovers against WSU

The Huskies have forced their opponents to turn the ball over just twice this season. Safety Makell Esteen had the game-changing interception against Colorado State in week one. The week after, CB Tacario Davis intercepted UC Davis QB Caden Pinnick. After WSU’s five-turnover game against North Texas, the Apple Cup will be a prime opportunity for UW to create more takeaways. Here is what Jedd Fisch said on Thursday about his team’s desire to create more turnovers:

“Our goal is to try to see if we can force some fumbles, see if we can attack the ball, see if we can catch the ball in air that’s thrown to us, and that happens. I think you can, you know, get some momentum in the takeaway game.”

Fisch has stressed that the Huskies worked hard in practice on the fundamentals of attacking the ball. UW wants to improve its ability to strip the football away and create fumbles. The Huskies still do not have a forced fumble on the season. Hopefully, after two weeks of practicing stripping the football, they can come up with their first forced fumble on Saturday.

The Huskies are preparing for three QBs on Saturday

Jedd Fisch said he and his staff are unsure who the Cougars will start at quarterback on Saturday. WSU head coach Jimmy Rodgers has picked a starting QB for the Apple Cup, but has not said who. Here is what Fisch said about the Cougars’ hesitation to name a starting QB for the game:

“I don’t think it’s what anybody would choose. I don’t think they are choosing it. I think that they’re just currently in that situation, that they’re trying to figure out in year one who their quarterback is going to be. And I think they’ve made a decision in the preseason and they probably felt pretty good about it going into the year. They had those two games where they came out on top… And just the third game didn’t go the way they planned, and with that, they started trying the other guys, I think.”

There is a bit of gamesmanship on the Cougars’ part to not name the starting QB before Saturday. WSU is trying to gain an edge by not announcing which QB will start the Apple Cup. Jedd Fisch does not mind because his team has a game plan for each QB, and the situation is not enviable. Jaxxon Potter (who made each start this season) had three INTs against North Texas. This has caused the Cougars to re-evaluate their options at the position. Here are the stat lines for each of WSU’s QBs this season: Jaxxon Potter 67/95, 604 yards, four TDs, three INTs, five carries for eight yards. Zevi Eckhaus 7/10, 72 yards, no TDs or INTs, three carries for three yards. Julian Dugger 0/3, no passing yards, no TDs or INTs, 13 carries for -5 yards.

UW looking to avenge last year’s Apple Cup loss

The Huskies were disappointed after falling to the Cougars 24-19 in 2024. They fell short after being stopped at the goal line with 1:07 left in the game. To win, the Huskies will need to be more disciplined than they were in last year’s loss. Though UW outgained WSU 452-381, UW committed 16 penalties for 135 yards, a deciding factor in their loss. The Huskies are focused on staying disciplined to beat the Cougars on Saturday. Here is what Jedd Fisch said about using last year’s Apple Cup loss as motivation to win this year:

“Demond and I were talking about it this afternoon, or just at 12 o’clock. We were talking about what that felt like in the locker room when the game ended. So I think these kids are able to speak on it now differently. That we’ve gone through it as a collective unit, that we didn’t feel we needed to bring in others. We understand how important it is, and we understand also the level of play that we’re going to have to play at to get the win.”

Fisch said his team did not bring in former Husky alumni to motivate the team because last year’s loss was enough. The players understand what the feeling was after last year’s loss, particularly QB Demond Williams. The Huskies know they need to play tough, disciplined, and hard to win the Apple Cup. UW is prepared and ready for the challenge ahead on Saturday.

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