Washington State’s enigmatic head coach, Mike Leach, said Wednesday that his starting quarterback, Luke Falk, was “doing great” heading into Thursday’s San Diego County Credit Union Holiday Bowl against Michigan State.
He must have been talking about the sightseeing in San Diego.
Falk appeared in pregame warmups with a black glove and heavy wrap on his left (non-throwing) arm, and didn’t play in the game, which was the last of his career for the Cougars.
Sophomore backup Tyler Hilinski made his first college start in his place.
Through the game’s first three quarters, as WSU fell behind 35-10, Hilinkski got plenty of chances to throw. He was 25 of 32 with one touchdown, but with only 164 yards gained; the Cougars’ “Air Raid” offense was averaging only 6.5 yards per completion.
Falk was photographed with a cast on his forearm as he headed into Tuesday’s practice at Southwestern College. He reportedly suffered a wrist injury early in the season.
Asked about that at the news conference Wednesday, Leach said, “He’s doing great. You can use your imagination all you want about the cast.
“We don’t talk about injuries, anyway, so you’re on your own with that. He’s had his glove on his hand all year long, so, yeah.”
Leach was asked if Falk was good to go for the game.
“He’s doing exactly what we want him to do,” Leach said, “and he looks good to me.”
Falk (357-for-534 passing, 3,593 yards, 30 TDs/13 INTs) averaged nearly 300 yards a game passing this season, although he was replaced a couple times this season by Hilinski (91-for-129, 904 yards, 5 TDs/6 INTs).
Hilinski, from Claremont, led the Cougars to a triple-overtime win over Boise State in September. He also threw four interceptions in a late-October loss at Arizona.
WSU already was without its top two receivers — Tavares Martin Jr. and Isaiah Johnson-Mack. Dezmon Patmon (Patrick Henry) and Tay Martin made their first career starts.
Patmon had two catches for 12 yards through three quarters.
Notable
- There apparently was no cake jinx. Holiday Bowl officials were set to present Michigan State head coach Mark Dantonio with a huge cake — white frosting with big green numbers — to celebrate his 100th win at the school.
- The announced attendance for the game was 47,092, marking the third straight year the crowd has been under 50,000. Before 2015, the Holiday Bowl drew more than 50,000 for 22 straight years.
- With 21 points scored in the second quarter, Michigan State tied a school record for a bowl game. The Spartans scored 21 in the fourth quarter of the 2015 Cotton Bowl and beat Baylor 42-41.
- WSU played the first half without one of its top defenders, All-American lineman Hercules Mata’afa. He was suspended from playing in the first two quarters after being ejected for a targeting hit in the Cougars’ game against Washington.
- The sunny, warm day in San Diego beat anything the teams would have faced in their hometowns. At game time, the temperature in East Lansing, Mich., was 9 degrees, with a wind chill of minus-1. In Pullman, Wash., the temperature was 34, with snow and a wind chill of 27.
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