MOSES LAKE — As the college football playoff rankings start coming out every Tuesday, teams are starting to battle for a spot in the big dance. However, week 11 proved to be a destructive week for both top Washington football programs.    

Teams like Eastern Washington nearly pulled off an upset in the Big Sky, while Central Washington continued to dominate in their conference. See below how your favorite teams fared last weekend and where they’re headed next.    

Washington State (4-5) – Bye week    

The Cougars were on a bye week last weekend after suffering a 10-7 loss on the road to the Oregon State Beavers.    

“Obviously, a disappointing loss, the penalties killed us. Defensively, we played good enough to win the game and just didn’t, so we’re going to have to find a way to address those things and go into this bye week and get healthy,” head coach Jimmy Rogers said.     

The Cougars host Louisiana Tech on Nov. 15 with kickoff set for 7 p.m.  

Eastern Washington (4-6) at University of Montana   

The Eagles took the Grizz to the wire and nearly upset the second-ranked team in the country on the road. They fell just short in a 29-24 game that was a tale of two halves.   

According to a statement by EWU athletics, the resilience from Eastern was apparent as the team fell in a 22-0 hole after the first quarter. From there, EWU had the advantage, outscoring Montana 24-7 over the next three quarters. The Eagles closed the gap to 22-14 by halftime and used 10 second-half points to give themselves a chance to win at the end of the game.   

Eastern pulled within five of Montana late in the fourth quarter, as Schakel went 8-of-10 on passes for 70 yards to set up an Eagle touchdown. Schakel capped the drive off with an 8-yard strike to Cole Pruett to cut the Grizzly lead down to 29-24 and 1:01 remaining. However, a late turnover sealed their fate and ended their comeback attempt.   

“(Jake Schakel) stood in there and made a ton of plays, over and over again. He stood the test of all the pressures and situations,” head coach Aaron Best said. “That was a memorable one, and our guys fought. They gave everything they had, and that's all we asked. We'll bounce back and we'll be better for it knowing we just took the number two team in the country toe-to-toe and five yards away from winning the game.” 

Schakel's 451 passing yards are tied for 19th in Eagles history for a single game and the most since Eric Barriere threw for 451 in 2021 against Idaho State. His 43 completions are tied for fourth all-time in program history with Matt Nichols, who had 43 against Stephen F. Austin in 2009. The 63 attempts from Schakel are tied for seventh in program history.    

The Eagles host their final home game Nov. 15 against Northern Colorado at 1 p.m.  

University of Washington (6-3) at Wisconsin  

In a low-scoring contest filled with defensive stands and special teams plays, No. 23 Washington came up on the short end of a 13-10 final against Wisconsin, UW athletics said in a statement.   

“Felt that we never got in much of a rhythm at all offensively... the field position today had us feeling like we had to 85 or 90 yards almost every drive,” head coach Jedd Fisch said.   

With snow falling as it had for much of the contest, Washington had the ball and a chance to tie or take the lead in the closing minutes of the fourth quarter, but was stopped on fourth down with just over one minute remaining. Wisconsin opened the scoring with a field goal in the second quarter, which Washington answered with ten consecutive points. Denzel Boston caught his eighth touchdown of the season with a one-handed grab to make the score 10-3.  

Grady Gross opened the scoring for the purple and gold with a 42-yard field goal. Gross came on in the fourth quarter with an opportunity to tie the score at 13 but the 50-yard attempt was blocked.   

The teams combined for just 456 yards of offensive and 11 punts. The Huskies turned the ball over twice and did not force a Badgers turnover. Boston finished with 62 yards on eight catches and the touchdown. Demond Williams Jr. led the Huskies with 61 yards rushing.  

The Huskies return home on Nov. 15 to host Purdue at 4 p.m. 

Central Washington (9-1) at Sul Ross State   

The seventh-ranked Wildcats were dominant on the road as they took down the Lobos 73-7 to earn their ninth win of the season.   

“We're very proud of the way the guys played and traveled this week. We're excited to get home and get to work for Western Oregon,” head coach Chris Fisk said.   

The Wildcats put up 35 points in the first half to take a commanding lead at halftime. From there, they did not let up on the gas pedal as they put up 38 more points in the second half. 

Quarterback Kennedy McGill completed 12 of 20 passes for 135 yards and a touchdown through the air. On the ground, he ran five times for 46 yards and two more touchdowns. Justice Taylor led the team in rushing yards with 157 and two touchdowns. Backup quarterback Caleb Christiansen, out of Royal City, completed three of four passes for 55 yards and two touchdowns.   

Mika Roberson and Ryder Bumgarner each accounted for the Wildcats' two interceptions on defense. The defense held the Lobos' rushing attack to a total of 10 yards.   

The Wildcats play the final game of the season Nov. 15 when they travel to play Western Oregon at 1:05 p.m. 

    Elinneus Davis (90) fights through the pass protection to help a teammate make a tackle on defense. The Huskies fell to Wisconsin 13-10 on the road.
  

    Logan Lisherness (29) and Brett McCalla (40) after making a big play on defense. The Wildcats earned their ninth win of the season after defeating Sull Ross State 73-7.
  

    The Washington State defense piles up on an Oregon State ball carrier. The Cougars fell short on the road 10-7 to the Beavers.