Ellington

The term is tucked away in every Washington fan's back pocket, brought out every year just to taunt the Huskies' cross-state rivals.

"Cougin' it" -- the law that Washington State athletes will inexorably snatch defeat from the jaws of victory -- has been defined and debated. Washington fans may claim it to be a universal truth backed by empirical evidence. Cougars discard the term as a simple ploy.

But if there was ever a year the Cougars were defined by the edict of Cougin' it, this would be it.

Washington State's conference schedule reads like a football team's worst horror story:

Oct. 1, at Oregon State: Cougars blow a fourth-quarter lead to lose 44-33.

Oct. 8, against Stanford: Quarterback Alex Brink throws an interception with under a minute to play and the Cougars lose 24-21.

Oct. 15, against No. 12 UCLA: The Bruins nullify Washington State's 21-point lead, scoring in the final minute of the fourth quarter to tie the game before beating WSU 44-41 in overtime.

Oct. 23, at No. 25 California: WSU gives up two touchdowns in the final seven minutes, squandering a 10-point fourth quarter lead to lose 42-38.

Oct. 29, at No. 1 USC: A 55-13 loss -- the only game all season that the Cougars didn't have a chance.

Nov. 5, against Arizona State: In the fourth quarter the Cougars failed on a fourth down attempt from the ASU five-yard line, and later Loren Langley missed a 52-yard field goal with 3:13 left and the Cougars lost by three, 27-24.

Nov. 12, against No. 12 Oregon: Taking a 21-10 lead early in the second half, the Cougars managed to lose their seventh straight, 34-31, when Oregon kicker Paul Martinez put one through the uprights with one second left on the clock.

"It is always the same outcome, but it seems like we find a lot of ways to get there," Brink said. "It is tough to put into words how frustrating it is. I can't sit here and honestly tell you we are a 0-7 football team."

The Cougars have squandered the remarkable season of running back Jerome Harrison, who ranks first in the nation with 1,693 yards rushing. Down the toilet has gone the career-year of receiver Jason Hill and his 116.4 yards per game, third best in the country.

In fact, overall, the Cougars are the eighth most efficient offense in the country, chugging for 487.5 yards per game -- better than No. 6 Notre Dame and almost 100 yards better than No. 4 Miami and No. 5 LSU.

"This is a team that's really, really good," said UW running back James Sims.

By most standards though, the Cougars, along with the Huskies, are really, really bad.

With a combined conference record of 1-13, this week's Apple Cup is shaping up to be the worst since 1969, when both teams came in 0-6 in the conference. Washington won that tussle 30-21.

The year prior, Washington entered the Apple Cup with just one conference win (against UCLA), and the Cougars were winless in the conference. The Cougars won that battle 24-0 in Spokane.

Incidentally, Washington beat two non-conference teams that year, one against Idaho -- a team it beat this year -- and the other against Wisconsin.

Much like those seasons, the 2005 Apple Cup has been aptly deemed the "Crapple Cup." Whichever team loses will be relegated to 10th place in the conference. (Washington still has a chance to move into eighth if Stanford loses).

Notes:

After a brief explanation of the origin of the term "Cougin' it," Willingham didn't have much to say about the term.

"They did not write that willingly, but it has been attributed to them to some degree," said Willingham in one of his natural no-comment remarks.

It would be a tough law to fit into Willingham's world view; the coach said he did not believe in the law of averages or anything similar.

"There's only one law: The law of 'play better,'" he said.