Washington State Among Biggest Fallers in Football Power Index Entering 2025

Oct 19, 2024; Pullman, Washington, USA; Washington State Cougars wide receiver Tony Freeman (0) lines up for a play against the Hawaii Warriors in the second half at Gesa Field at Martin Stadium. Mandatory Credit: James Snook-Imagn Images | James Snook-Imagn Images

The coming college football season should be a fascinating one for the Washington State Cougars.

While new head coach Jimmy Rogers does have a few key returning players from the 2024 Cougs squad that went 8-5, he'll have the opportunity to reshape the program in his own image with a huge crop of players and coaches that followed him from South Dakota State.

After a productive spring, starting quarterback Zevi Eckhaus and the rest of the veterans have Cougar fans excited for a new campaign. However, not everyone is convinced on a national scale.

This week, ESPN released their Football Power Index rankings and projections for the upcoming 2025 season. Out of 136 FBS programs, the Cougars come in at No. 98. WSU finished the 2024 season at No. 65. Only two other FBS teams saw a rankings drop that substantial (Army and Marshall) compared the rankings released at the end of last season.

It's a fairly understandable drop, and not just because of the change at head coach. WSU also lost starting quarterback John Mateer, who quickly became the No. 1 overall player in the transfer portal before deciding to follow offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle to the University of Oklahoma. That's not to mention the the roughly 60 other players that chose to pursue opportunities at other schools and top receiver Kyle Williams being drafted by the New England Patriots.

WSU will open their 2025 season on August 30 at home against the Idaho Vandals. That will be their first opportunity to prove they're worthy of a ranking better that No. 98.

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