GAME BREAKDOWN
KEY MATCHUP: Washington State’s top-rated passing attack led by quarterback Gardner Minshew II goes into Boulder, Colo., to face a Colorado team that is struggling against the pass. The Buffaloes rate No. 8 in the Pac-12 in pass defense allowing 237 passing yards a game after allowing Arizona’s Khalil Tate to throw for a career-high 350 yards last week. Look for Minshew to exploit Colorado’s weakness with the Cougars’ Air Raid offense.
DRAFT SLANT
–QB Gardner Minshew II, a graduate transfer from East Carolina, has emerged from nowhere to be a Heisman Trophy candidate and an NFL draft pick, according to NFLDraftScout.com’s Rob Rang. When asked by the Spokane (Wash.) Spokesman-Review recently about Minshew’s draft status, Rang said, “I think he’s probably fifth to seventh round right now, but I think a month ago he wasn’t even that and a month from now he could be more in that third to fourth round range. Minshew, 6-foot-2 and 220 pounds, leads the nation with 390.8 passing yards per game while completing 70.8 percent of his passes (329-of-465) with 27 touchdowns and seven interceptions.
ROSTER REPORT:
–LB Dominick Silvels was ejected for targeting in the first half against California last week. He will sit out a half against Colorado this week.
–LB Derek Moore is out indefinitely with an undisclosed injury. He is questionable to return against Colorado this week.
–CB Sean Harper Jr., who started the first six games of the season, was held out of the game the last three weeks because of an undisclosed lower body injury. How long Harper will be out is uncertain.