Against No. 21 Arizona, Cougars look to break five-game losing streak

SPOKANE — Washington State will be without the services of safety Chima Nwachukwu when the Cougars play at No. 21 Arizona on Saturday. He suffered an ankle injury while running back a blocked kick against Notre Dame last weekend.

Coach Paul Wulff said defensive lineman Jesse Feagin is out with a broken hand, while tight end Tony Thompson is questionable.

But offensive lineman Steven Ayers should play.

Defensive tackle Toby Turpin has also worked his way back into the starting lineup. Turpin blocked the PAT against Notre Dame after blocking a field-goal attempt the previous week against California.

Washington State (1-7, 0-5 Pacific-10) will be looking to break a five-game losing streak when it plays at Arizona (5-2, 3-1).

Not offensive

Washington State's offensive woes continue, but the passing attack has made definite progress since freshman Jeff Tuel was named starting quarterback four games ago.

Tuel and receivers Jared Karstetter, Johnny Forzani and Gino Simone have emerged as the team's main offensive weapons. All are in their first year of college football except for Karstetter, who is a sophomore.

The Cougars are averaging 206 yards per game through the air. By contrast they are one of the worst rushing teams in the nation at 76 yards per game.

Karstetter caught two touchdown passes from Tuel for their only points in a 40-14 loss to Notre Dame last weekend. He now has five TD receptions on the season.

Wulff said a key to progress is keeping Tuel healthy. He took some major shots from the Irish.

"He can't take a lot of this hitting as he took this week," Wulff said. "We've got to do a better job protecting him."

A better running game would do wonders for protecting Tuel, by keeping defenses more honest. Veteran Dwight Tardy showed signs of breaking out of a recent slump by running for 72 yards on eight carries against the Irish.

Notes

• The Cougars' Nov. 14 home game against UCLA will be televised live on Fox College Sports at 2 p.m., the school announced Thursday.

• Players Casey Hamlett, Micah Hannam and Nwachukwu were named to the district all-academic team by the College Sports Information Directors of America.