PULLMAN — In case you missed it, ESPN’s College Football Playoff predictor favors Washington State to win every game left on its schedule except one: Boise State next Saturday (7 p.m., Fox). If Washington State wins, ESPN has the Cougs in prime position to make the 12-team playoff. If Wazzu loses, the Cougs would still have a 60 percent chance. Any way you slice it, next Saturday will be a colossal tilt for both schools with CFP aspirations.
That of course assumes Boise State takes care of heavy underdog Portland State tonight. Another caveat: ESPN’s playoff predictor hasn’t been updated yet to reflect WSU’s win Friday over San Jose State (or the rest of this weekend’s games).
If the Cougs do lose to Boise State, the key then would be the Broncos dropping another game: an 11-1 Boise State with a win over WSU would almost certainly get the nod. The Cougars with a loss would be out of breathing room as well. No slip-ups in Fresno or Corvallis, and no more clunkers down the road…