Washington State Football: A Lesson from Tiger Woods

First-year coach Paul Wulff will face tough challenges this coming football season.

According to experts, analysts, and fans, Washington State has the thinnest football roster, in terms of depth, in the Pac-10.  If you're looking for an argument to that assertion here, forget about it.

Is there any reason to rationally believe that the Cougars will win any games this year?

The answer is an emphatic, "You betcha!"

For that answer to have any grounding in the real world, there has to be a reason.  Maybe even a reason or two?

A couple of stories from the sports world yesterday, June 17, 2008, lead us into reasoning that WSU is going to win football games this year.

If you are a Boston Celtic fan, watching the sixth and last game of the NBA Finals last night was Christmas-come-early.  The Celtics ended any debate over what team was the best in the league this year.  Boston was the best.  Debating that point is nothing short of foolishness and just plain silly.

Were the Los Angeles Lakers the second-best team in the NBA this year?  Though coach Phil Jackson's team made it to the Finals, there's no disputing they were NOT the second best team in the NBA if you base the ranking on talent.

Sure, Kobe Bryant is the best player in the league.  But the overall roster talent of the Lakers just barely places them in the Top FIve.

Coach Jackson managed to instill a level of focus, intensity, and desire in his players to lead them into the Finals.  Arguing that the talent of the Lakers was as good as anyone else still leaves the question unanswered as to how they made it to the Finals.

The Lakers players knew they could win.  They wanted to win.  It looked as though they were going to win a championship until they went up against a team that equalled their focus, intensity, and desire while besting them in overall talent.

The Celtics hustled, banged, sacrificed bodies, played through pain, and mauled their way to a championship.  About midway through the second quarter of the sixth game last night, Boston broke the will of the Lakers players, opening the way for their superior talent to completely dominate play.

So you're probably wondering where Tiger Woods comes into this.

Prior to the Celtics victory last night, news broke that Tiger will miss the rest of the PGA Tour this season.

Yes, the guy who just won his 14th major title by besting the field in our country's golf championship, the U.S. Open, over 91 holes of play, did so while contending with a couple of serious injuries.

Tiger will undergo reconstructive surgery to repair his ACL.  On top of that, he has a double stress fracture of his tibia.

Let's take a moment to review the ACL and tibia. 

The ACL is the most important ligament connecting bones in the knee joint.  In golf, efficient and effective transition of body weight during the swing is controlled by the left knee.

Tiger's left knee has been weak since he injured it jogging last July.  Last July, folks!  Arthroscopic surgery couldn't repair it properly, necessitating reconstructive surgery.

The tibia is that shinbone thing in your leg.  It helps support your weight when you walk.  Tiger's double stress fracture in his left leg weakens his ability to support weight at the foundation of his golf swing.

Oh yeah—it will affect the way he walks around 91 holes of golf en route to a tournament victory and major championship.

Tiger's win at the U.S. Open comes after diminishing his athletic talent to something comparable with every other professional golfer.

Three things led to Woods' U.S. Open win.  Focus.  Intensity.  Desire.

The challenge of winning football games this coming season for Coach Wulff and the Cougars can be met if they excel in three areas: focus, intensity, and desire.

Each and every time the Cougs run onto the playing field this coming season, they will have a roster that is less talented than their opponent.  Yikes!  It pains me to concede that point, but that's the way it is.

Coach Wulff and his players will maximize their performance if their strength is grounded in those three coachable areas: focus, intensity, and desire.  If winning a game comes down to outmatching their opposition with athletic talent, the Cougs will fall short.

How did Stanford beat USC last season on the Trojans' home field?

How did WSU beat Texas in the 2003 Holiday Bowl?

You know the answer.

Can Coach Wulff teach that to his players?