The Washington State Cougars are getting a huge offensive boost next season with the return of their quarterback, and Bob Diaco’s time at UConn has come to an end
We know that the Washington State Cougars under Mike Leach are always fun to watch, but with the news about starting quarterback Luke Falk on Monday, we’re going to be even more giddy next year to watch the Coogs get to work.
This is where we start the College Football Blitz for Monday, Dec. 26.
Luke Falk and Mike Leach together for one more year is everything
As college football players from around the country continue to declare for the upcoming 2017 NFL Draft, we had not yet gotten a definitive answer as to whether or not Washington State junior quarterback Luke Falk would do the same. On Monday, however, we were delivered that definitive answer … well, sort of.
One day before Falk, Leach and the rest of the Cougars take on Minnesota in the Holiday Bowl, the Washington State head coach told reporters that the junior gunslinger will be coming back for his senior season in 2017. This is a move that will have some calling for Washington State to capture the Pac-12 North title that narrowly eluded them this past season.
Throughout his career in Pullman, Falk has proven to be one of the more efficient passers that has ever passed through the Mike Leach Air Raid system. This past season he threw for 4,204 yards and 37 touchdowns, while in 2015 he was even better, tossing for 4,561 yards and 38 touchdowns.
Now the main issue here is that it was Leach making the announcement, and not Falk himself. Should you read too much into that? Maybe, maybe not, but it’ll be a little more definitive when we hear it from the young man himself.
Final Thought: Assuming that Falk is coming back, it’ll totally be worth it all if for at least one game next season Leach sees if he can have his senior quarterback break Connor Halliday’s record for most passing attempts in a contest. In an Oct. 19, 2013 loss to Oregon, Halliday attempted 89 –EIGHTY-NINE– passes for Leach and the Cougars. It’s a tall order, but it’d be fun as hell to watch them try.
Bob Diaco won’t be coaching for the Civil ConFLiCT trophy anymore
When Bob Diaco was hired three years ago by the UConn Huskies after spending four years as an assistant on the Notre Dame staff, there were many who praised it as a home run hire to an extent, yours truly included at the time. But, things didn’t exactly work out as many had predicted.
Monday afternoon, UConn announced that Diaco was out after three seasons with the program, and you can certainly see why. He was 11-26 in three seasons, and went 3-9 this past season after going 6-7 in 2015. Things were possibly looking up after that 2015 season, getting to six wins, but diving back down all the way to three wins was more than enough for the program to make the change.
Now, just when we thought the FBS coaching carousel may have come to a stop, there is a new job on the market. Quite frankly, this Huskies job is the perfect opportunity for an up-and-coming assistant to begin to make their mark; maybe someone like a Todd Orlando or Tim Drevno would fit quite well in Storrs.
But, aside from an up-and-coming assistant, perhaps this could be the perfect fit for current Ohio State defensive assistant and former Rutgers head coach Greg Schiano to get his second chance as a head man.
Either way, the Diaco era has come to a close with the program, and we probably have seen the last of any talk of the “Civil ConFLiCT.”
Final Thought: I dunno, maybe if Diaco worried more about his football program and less about a made-up rivalry with UCF then he might still have his job today. Probably not, but it’s fun to think about it in those terms.
Next: Best college quarterback born in every state
Bowl game stat of the day
10 years – Hawaii Bowl
A few years ago, there was word making the rounds that the Hawaii football program may be no more sooner rather than later, making all of us in the college football industry sad. Because, you know, all of us college football writers are degenerates who love staying up until about 3:30 a.m. ET watching the Warriors no matter how good or bad they may be.
On Christmas Eve, though, the Rainbow Warriors let everyone know they’re alive and well, and they did so with an emphatic 52-35 win in the Hawaii Bowl over Middle Tennessee State. The win for this program marked their first win in a bowl game in — you guessed it, ten years.
The last time Hawaii captured a bowl win was back on Christmas Eve of 2006 when they took care of Arizona State in this very same postseason contest.
There is a lot to be happy about in regards to the first season under head coach Nick Rolovich, especially when you consider the fact this team started the season with losses in three of their first four games only to rally to become eligible for the bowl. It seems this program can only go up from here, and it’ll be exciting to watch them grow in the coming seasons under Rolovich.