EUGENE, Ore. — For those Pullman High fans who traveled to Autzen Stadium, the guy wearing No. 89 in green and yellow looked familiar.
Because he was.
It was Aaron Pflugrad and if that name sounds familiar, it should.
First of all his dad Robin was a Cougar assistant for four years, and, as recruiting coordinator, had a hand in recruiting many of the players who were wearing crimson and gray Saturday.
But Aaron will also be remembered around Pullman High for his game-winning catch-and-run with 2 minutes, 20 seconds left in the Greyhounds’ 28-24 2005 State 2A championship win over Archbishop Murphy.
The next season Robin moved to Oregon as the wide receivers coach and Aaron transferred to Eugene’s Sheldon High, the alma mater of WSU’s Alex Brink. Though the Cougars tried to lure him back to Pullman, the 5-foot-10, 172-pound wideout was committed to playing for his dad.
Injuries to Brian Paysinger (four weeks ago) and to Cameron Colvin (in the first quarter Saturday) thinned the Ducks receiving corps and gave Pflugrad, a true freshman, a shot.
He took it.
Four catches for 47 yards. A 22-yard scoring pass from Dennis Dixon to build the lead to 47-0. Three punt returns for 7 yards. And a 22-yard kickoff return.
“It was almost perfect,” Pflugrad said of his touchdown catch, his first in college. “I saw the ball in the air and knew I beat my guy, so I just focused on making the catch.”
“He’s a great route runner,” Dixon said of the diminutive Pflugrad. “You have to see him through the crowd, but he’s pretty shifty.”
Greyhound fans can attest to that. With Pullman trailing 24-21 as time ran out in the state title game, Pflugrad caught a short pass from quarterback J.T. Levenseller and ran through almost the entire Murphy defense to find the end zone and earn a state championship.
Yes, the quarterback’s name should sound familiar. Levenseller’s dad is WSU’s offensive coordinator. And J.T. is grayshirting in Pullman this fall.
Another freshman standout: Pflugrad wasn’t the only freshman receiver to shine Saturday. In fact, he didn’t even have the best statistics. That honor would go to WSU’s Jeshua Anderson, a true freshman from Taft High in Southern California.
Anderson stepped into the starting spot vacated by Brandon Gibson, the Cougars’ leading receiver who was unable to go with a heel injury suffered last week against Arizona State.
“Jeshua is the fastest guy on the field every Saturday,” senior receiver Michael Bumpus said. “When we call a deep play, we know Jeshua is probably the first person Brink’s going to look at, rightfully, because he’s going to run by anybody.”
That’s what Anderson did late in the third quarter, getting behind the Oregon defense and gathering in a 43-yard bomb from Brink. It was the Cougars’ longest pass play of the year.
Anderson finished with a game-high 127 yards on four catches, though none were for scores.
“He’s learning every game,” said Bumpus, who had WSU’s lone touchdown catch. “He’s getting better and better and it’s scary what he’s going to be able to do when he gets older.”
Scoring at will: Oregon’s first-half offensive deluge sent the Washington State sports information people scrambling for their record books.
The 40 points were the most the Cougars had yielded before halftime since October 10, 1987 when Stanford hung 41 on the board in Pullman.
The last time WSU went into the half scoreless was against Cal last season, in a 21-3 defeat. The biggest halftime deficit they’ve had recently came against USC in a 42-12 loss in 2004. In that one, WSU trailed 35-0 at intermission.
The Cougars also gave up 43 points in the second half to BYU in 1990, when they lost 50-36.
Bumpus’ score also extended the Cougars’ scoring streak to 268 consecutive games, the fifth-longest of all time.
Injuries hit hard: The outcome may not have been in doubt after the first quarter, but both teams continued to pile up injuries throughout the game.
The Cougars lost offensive tackle Micah Hannam midway through the opening quarter. It looks like the redshirt freshman has a broken right leg, though X-rays were pending.
WSU also lost safety Alfonso Jackson for the second half after he suffered a head injury. The secondary took another hit when cornerback Devin Giles left with a shoulder injury.
The Ducks didn’t get off easy either. Starting receiver Colvin, who earned the starting spot when Paysinger was injured, left the game midway through the first quarter with a broken right ankle. The senior will miss the rest of the season.
Also, running back Jeremiah Johnson, who opened the game with a 42-yard scoring dash, left in the second quarter with a knee injury after being tackled by Chima Nwachukwu. The junior is also out for the season.
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