PULLMAN -- It was during a visit to a library in Golden, CO., the first time Mike Leach discovered Geronimo, the famous Apache warrior. His mother told him he could pick out whatever book he wanted. She didn't mind if the book was inappropriate for a kid, let alone his five younger siblings.

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PULLMAN -- Coach Mike Leach's most pressing need entering Washington State's first spring practice  Thursday will also be his most difficult to achieve -- creating clarity at quarterback.

Freshman Tyler Bruggman won't arrive in Pullman until June. Meanwhile, the evaluation process is muddled since redshirt junior Connor Halliday and redshirt freshman Austin Apodaca have a pint-sized share of combined experience.

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The words echoed down the Rose Garden's access tunnel, bouncing between concrete walls.

“Where’s Joey? Where’s Joey?”

LeBron James walked past the throng of fans who stood hoping for an autograph. The Miami Heat just blew a 13-point halftime lead in a 92-90 loss to the Portland Trailblazers  Jan. 10. But something else was on James’ mind.

“I have to meet Joey,” he said.

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PULLMAN -- Add a disgruntled booster to Ken Bone's growing docket of dilemmas.

The biggest athletics donor at Washington State University has taken to Twitter to lobby for the firing of the fourth-year men’s basketball coach as his Cougars (11-17, 2-13) ride an eight-game losing streak into their match-up with the Washington Huskies (15-13, 7-8) at 12:30 Sunday at Alaska Airlines Arena.

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Washington State head coach Mike Leach said he wasn't worried Wednesday morning when Phoenix's Tyler Bruggman didn't fax in his letter of intent right away.

Ranked by Scout.com as the nation's 25th-best passer, WSU's most sought-after recruit reportedly was thinking about attending his parents' alma mater, Arizona State, instead.

Little to ASU's knowledge, the author of the Fat Little Girlfriends Cookbook had already bonded with Bruggman's chef. Leach hinted Wednesday it made the difference.

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The Seattle Storm went more than half of the 2012 regular season without all-star forward Lauren Jackson.

She will miss all of 2013.

According to a statement released Wednesday by the Storm, the Australia native will remain at home to rehabilitate her injured hamstring.

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Washington State reserve wide receiver Drew Loftus will have some explaining to do when football coach Mike Leach returns from his latest recruiting trip.

Pullman police arrested the 19-year-old early Friday morning at Dissmore's IGA grocery store when Loftus tried to steal two bottles of tequila by pushing them down his pants, per a report from WSU's student newspaper.

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PULLMAN -- Wins did not come easily for football coach Mike Leach and staff in their first season at Washington State. Score the Pac-12 Conference’s report of a nearly two-month investigation into Marquess Wilson’s abuse allegations as the staff's biggest victory.

The conference released its findings Tuesday of a review conducted by a Kansas City law firm hired for the task. WSU coaches were cleared of the verbal, physical and emotional abuse Wilson claimed in a Nov. 10 letter to media outlets.

“No surprise,” Leach said in a text message to Sportspress Northwest. “The truth speaks for itself.”

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The Washington Huskies (9-5, 1-0) erased their season-long shooting woes early, sprinting out to a 21-4 lead against Washington State (9-5, 0-1 Pac-12) in their conference opener. It was just enough to beat the Cougars 68-63 Saturday night in Pullman.

Scott Suggs made back-to-back contested jumpers, then an uncontested bucket on a WSU turnover in the final two minutes to give the Huskies a 64-61 lead. After Mike Ladd and Andrew Andrews exchanged free throws, Davonté Lacy capped a horrific shooting night (3-11) by drawing back iron on the potential game-tying three.

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Admitting he did step in to stop players from being sprayed with water by staff, Washington State athletic director Bill Moos said head coach Mike Leach and his assistants did not physically or verbally abuse players, rebutting the contention of WSU's star receiver, Marquess Wilson.

Moos said Tuesday that the university's month-long probe into the football program revealed what Moos already knew after Wilson recanted his abuse allegations in a text message to him Nov. 10 after the Cougars lost 44-36 to UCLA.

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PULLMAN -- Washington State shed a third-quarter meltdown, then scored 21 consecutive points -- the last three on a 27-yard game-winning field goal from Andrew Furney in overtime -- to beat the heavily favored University of Washington 31-28 Friday at Martin Stadium.

Huskies kicker Travis Coons missed a 35-yard field goal as regulation expired, squandering a chance to give the UW (7-5, 5-4 Pac-12) its fourth straight Apple Cup win. The stunner snapped an eight-game WSU losing streak and marked the biggest fourth-quarter comeback in the rivalry's history.

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At 31-67-6 all-time against their snooty cross-state rival, the Cougars and their alums base a season's success on their ability to beat the Huskies in the Apple Cup. Most cherish a win against the UW more than a newly purchased rack of Schmidt beer.

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Mike Leach's Air Raid Offense ground to a halt while his defense did little to prevent a thorough thrashing in Washington State's 46-7 loss to Arizona State Saturday at Sun Devils Stadium.

The Cougars (2-9, 0-8 Pac-12) quickly fell behind 11-0, then looked lifeless (empty-corpse-ish?) for the remaining three-and-a-half quarters in the penultimate game of their 2012 season.

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PULLMAN -- A $61 million football only operations facility in Martin Stadium's west end zone was approved as expected by Washington State University's board of regents Friday morning.

Construction crews will break ground on the fourth phase of a near decade-long series of renovations to the smallest stadium in the Pac-12 the Monday following the Apple Cup Friday.

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Mike Leach denied Marquess Wilson's allegations of physical and verbal abuse by the Washington State staff during his weekly press conference Monday, calling the heated halftime altercation between players and coaches during the Cougars' 49-6 loss to Utah on Nov. 3 "typical locker-room stuff."

WSU center Elliott Bosch backed his head coach and provided details of what went down more than a week ago. The incident involved outside linebackers coach Paul Volero, and it involved physical contact.

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Marquess Wilson's parting letter two hours before kickoff overshadowed WSU's strange 44-36 loss to UCLA Saturday night at Martin Stadium.

The negative buzz surrounding the former receiver's allegations of physical and verbal abuse during the Utah game's halftime locker room confrontation, which he cited as a reason he was quitting the program, prompted Washington State AD Bill Moos to issue a defensive statement while his Cougars made one of their own, nearly overcoming a 37-7 halftime deficit against the No. 17 team in the country.

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PULLMAN -- Travis Long didn't say much after Utah throttled his Washington State team 49-6 last Saturday. Didn't have to.

His face revealed everything.

The all-conference linebacker snorted back tears while trying to answer questions for a few minutes, then abruptly stood and walked out of the conference room mid-question, slamming the door shut behind him.

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Mike Leach offered extensive insight Monday on nearly every facet of his Washington State (2-7, 0-6 Pac-12) football team.

The loquacious coach, however, suddenly became tight-lipped when asked about Marquess Wilson. Leach suspended the team's leading wide receiver early in the day for a violation of team rules.

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By Adam Lewis, Murrow News Service

PULLMAN --  Marquess Wilson could soon join the 17 scholarship football players that have left Washington State's program since head coach Mike Leach was hired in January.

The Cougars’ all-time leader in receiving yards has been suspended for a violation of team rules, a spokesman for the WSU football program said Monday morning. The Moscow-Pullman Daily News reported that Wilson walked off the field 20 minutes into a two-hour conditioning workout Sunday night.

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Marquess Wilson has been suspended for a violation of team rules, according to a spokesman from the Washington State football program said Monday morning. The Moscow-Pullman Daily News reported that Wilson walked off the field 20 minutes into a two-hour conditioning workout Sunday night.

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