PULLMAN - Washington State's hopes for this football season are based in part on the final three games last year.

The Cougars lost 20-13 to Cal, beat Oregon State 31-14 and lost at Washington 35-28. But it was the best stretch for a team that finished 2-10, and now is 5-32 in three seasons under coach Paul Wulff.

Wulff is on the hot seat this year, but has what appears to be his best WSU team and a favorable early schedule.

Quarterback Jeff Tuel and receivers Jared Karstetter (62 receptions, 658 yards) and Marquess Wilson (55 catches, 1,006 yards) lead an offense that is expected to put many more points on the board than the anemic efforts of the past three seasons.

"You're going to see a pretty explosive offense in the fall," Wulff said during Pac-12 media day.

Last season, Tuel completed 60 percent of his passes and threw for 2,780 yards, 18 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. He is expected to be productive again this year. But he must do more than throw downfield, Wulff said.

"He needs to be able to take a team on his back and carry it," Wulff said. "When games are tight, he needs to be able to make the plays that win the games."

Wulff also expects an improved running game around Rickey Galvin, who broke his arm on the first play from scrimmage last season and missed the entire year.

"He needs to be an explosive player for us," Wulff said. The Cougars also need production from veteran running backs Logwone Mitz and Carl Winston, and may give playing time to freshman Marcus Mason, Wulff said.

Last season's leading rusher James Montgomery graduated.

While the Cougars have lost at least 10 games all three seasons under Wulff, schedule makers did him a favor this year. The Cougars open against Big Sky Conference doormat Idaho State and UNLV at home, then play at San Diego State, Colorado and UCLA. Only San Diego State had a winning record last season.

The Cougars have suffered through poor offensive line play, giving up 147 sacks in three seasons, the worst in the nation. But the line has four senior starters, raising hopes that Tuel will have time to pass.

On defense, Washington State was also among the nation's worst, giving up nearly 36 points per game last season. How much improvement there is on defense will be a major factor in whether the Cougars can win.

"Our defense, I believe, has more physical strength than we've had, and more team speed that we've had," Wulff said

The defense is led by lineman Travis Long, plus linebackers Sekope Kaufusi and Alex Hoffman Ellis.

The kicking game lost the talented Reid Forrest, whose punts often kept opponents pinned deep in their own territory. Dan Wagner, a former walk-on quarterback, is his replacement.

This is Wulff's first season in which he is not relying heavily on freshman starters, and he called that a big positive.

Optimism aside, there is plenty of grumbling about Wulff in Cougar Nation, even though he is a former star offensive lineman for Washington State. The Cougars have been among the worst teams in the nation on both offense and defense the past three seasons. Attendance is down, stadium improvements have been slowed and boosters are impatient with blowout losses.

Wulff is promising that things will improve.

"I think we're in a position now where we're going to get wins," Wulff said.