Mike Vorel, The Seattle Times
SEATTLE -- On Nov. 4, 2023, the Washington State football team was shut out in the second half of a 10-7 home loss to 3-6 Stanford, the fifth consecutive defeat for coach Jake Dickert and the Cougs. It was an ugly, waterlogged loss for a plummeting program.
Two days later, Dickert sounded an alarm that has not stopped ringing since.
"The facts are, at Washington State we're way behind, not even competitive in some aspects of the NIL," said Dickert, highlighting a larger issue than any individual loss. "In recruiting, these kids tell you what they're getting. Oregon State probably has us by 10x [in NIL resources]. Arizona has us by 20x. USC, Washington, Oregon ... who even knows? It's a whole other planet. That's part of what we need, and it's very, very important. In three weeks it's going to be open target season on our players."
The seasons change. The names change.
The same question remains.
When the wolves circle, will Washington State keep its standout quarterback?
A year ago, said standout quarterback was junior Cameron Ward -- who had completed 66.6% of his passes and thrown for 3,735 yards with 33 total touchdowns (25 passing, eight running) and seven interceptions in his second season with the Cougs. Once "open target season" began, Ward was unsurprisingly poached by Miami, where he's emerged as a Heisman Trophy contender while willing the Hurricanes to a 9-1 record and a No. 8 College Football Playoff ranking.
In 10 games, Ward has torched the ACC for 66.8% completions, 3,494 passing yards, 32 passing touchdowns, three rushing touchdowns, one receiving touchdown and six measly picks.
John Mateer, meanwhile, is experiencing similar success.
After redshirting in 2022, then serving as Ward's backup last fall, the third-year sophomore's breakout has been well worth the wait. Mateer has brilliantly commanded the bounce-back 8-2 Cougs -- throwing for 2,707 yards with 26 passing touchdowns and six interceptions, while leading WSU in rushing yards (695) and rushing touchdowns (12) as well.
"Throwing, passing, running, he's just a warrior out there, and I love it," Dickert said after Mateer threw for 245 yards with two rushing touchdowns, a passing score and an interception in an Apple Cup win over Washington. "Right after he threw the interception I just looked him in the eye, and he's like, 'I got you, coach.' That's John Mateer. That's the special nature of who he is. When that's the leader of your football team, you got something really special."
How much is WSU willing/able to spend to sustain something special? When it comes to money, how convincing can the Cougs really be?
That's a question that will likely cause WSU fans annual anxiety. It's also a question the Cougar Collective is attempting to address.
In a Seattle Times story last week, WSU's unaffiliated name, image and likeness arm outlined its ongoing fundraising efforts intended to keep Cougs such as Mateer from fleeing for promised paydays. They include partnerships with Pike Brewing and Indaba Coffee, with an undisclosed portion of proceeds from beer and coffee sales going to the Cougar Collective. They also include the "1890 Club," in which roughly 2,200 members donate $18.90 per month to collectively keep the wolves at bay.
While co-chair Luke Wetzstein declined to disclose how much the Cougar Collective has raised in 2024, he indicated "it should be in the $2 [million] to $3 million range" annually to remain competitive across all sports. "Ideally it would probably be $3 [million] to $4 million."
In a perfect world -- a whole other planet, per Dickert -- it would be much more than that.
Consider the competition. Ohio State athletic director Ross Bjork told ESPN in August that the Buckeyes have an NIL budget of $20 million this season for the football team alone. Per On3.com, Ward has an NIL evaluation of $2.1 million -- including endorsement deals with Giorgio Armani, Adidas, Bose, EA Sports, C4 Energy and Panini America.
Mateer, meanwhile, boasts partnerships with the likes of Northern Quest Casino and Resort and Miss Huddy's Barbecue cart in Pullman.
Last week, former WSU defensive back and Cougar Collective co-founder Paul Sorensen said on his "Old Crimson" podcast that Mateer has already received a $1 million offer from an outside program, though the NCAA transfer portal doesn't open until Dec. 9.
Obviously, WSU lacks the media-rights money and billionaire donor base to outspend everyone. But to sustain success in college football's new normal -- which will soon include revenue sharing -- the Cougs must find creative ways to retain their top talent.
That includes coaches such as Dickert and offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle.
As for players, the priority must be Mateer.
"Where would Boise be without (Heisman contender running back Ashton) Jeanty?" Dickert told Los Angeles Times reporter Scott Hanson. "They came together and gave that guy a huge, huge payday. So we've got to find ways to utilize our tools, our resources, our alumni base."
When it comes to offensive impact, Mateer and Jeanty share the same stratosphere. In last weekend's 38-35 upset loss at New Mexico, Mateer threw for 375 yards and four touchdowns, and added 65 rushing yards and yet another score.
After missing the week of practice because of a foot injury, Mateer carried the collapsing Cougs.
And yet, more than a year later, the same alarm rings. The same overarching issue threatens to pull the Cougs apart.
WSU closes its regular season with matchups against Oregon State and Wyoming before pursuing the program's first bowl win since 2018.
But big picture, the Cougars' success in "open target season" -- and their ability to retain Mateer -- might matter even more.
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