Future WSU quarterback Ryan Harrington has a different view of the Apple Cup

Anacortes QB will attend the Apple Cup Sunday after opening his senior season with a standout performance Friday

Coming off a season-opening win for Anacortes High School on Friday, WSU quarterback pledge Ryan Harrington will be at the Apple Cup in Seattle on Sunday. | Lauren Smith/VarsityWA

Anacortes High School's all-state quarterback Ryan Harrington knows he has one more Apple Cup experience coming in the grandstands before college.

But the soon-to-be Washington State University signal caller will certainly be envisioning something else Sunday afternoon when the Cougars come into Husky Stadium to play Washington in the annual intra-state rivalry game.

"I am going to be imagining myself on the field playing in that game," Harrington said. "I will definitely be looking at it differently."

Harrington is coming off his high school team's season opener Friday night - a 38-14 victory at Burlington-Edison.

In his 2026 debut, Harrington completed 21 of 35 passes for 362 yards and a touchdown and an interception. The dual-threat standout also rushed 14 times for 101 yards and a couple of touchdowns.

Harrington and his family will drive down from the coastal town in Skagit County for the Apple Cup on Sunday. A few members of the family of his father, Patrick, attended WSU back in the day.

The big-armed teenager, who gave the Cougars an oral commitment last April, said this will be the third Apple Cup he has attended in person.

"I went to the one last year (a 59-24 UW win)," Harrington said, "and I also went to the one a couple years ago (in 2021) with Jayden de Laura when they beat (the Huskies) at UW."

A 6-foot-1, 200-pounder, Harrington - a three-star recruit by both 247Sports.com and on3.com - has had a record-breaking career at Anacortes.

The two-time WIAA Class 2A champion was No. 2 in Washington high school football last season as a junior with 3,893 yards of total offense and 34 touchdowns behind Moses Lake's Brady Jay (4,605 yards), who is now at the University of Montana.

“Ryan does it all,” Anacortes coach Justin Portz said, “at an elite level.”

As a sophomore, Harrrington overcame a midseason injury that kept him out of the rest of the regular season to excel in the Class 2A playoffs, contributing to Anacortes' back-to-back state championships.

In 2023, he was the backup quarterback as a ninth grader to Rex Larson when the Seahawks won their first state title in school history.