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Football

Action photograph of a quarterback in a dark uniform and helmet throwing a football during a game, with opposing players and teammates nearby in rainy conditions.
Summer 2026

Finding His Mind Strength

He was a fifth-string walk-on with a big dream.

The Washington State University freshman wanted someday to be the starting quarterback for the Cougs. But during the 2013 season on the football team—his first—he was redshirted. He was, he says, “invisible.”

A year later, Luke Falk (’17 Soc. Sci.) was the Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week for the first of six times. He went on to start in 40 games, setting a WSU record with 27 wins. In 2017, his final season with Coug football, Falk won the Burlsworth Trophy, awarded to the nation’s top former walk-on.

These achievements were possible, he says, because … » More …

WSU Cougar Marching Band members marching on the football field
Spring 2024

Catch the Cougar Marching Band spirit

A football gameday in the life of the  Washington State University band

Produced by WSU Video Services

 

More about the Cougar Marching Band

The band plays on (Spring 2024)

Voices of Cougar Marching Band students: The band life in their own words

Cougar Marching Band memories from band alumni

Meet Jon Sweet: The new director of Cougar Marching Band hopes to grow the program and enhance the student experience

Cougar Marching Band

Give to Cougar Marching Band Uniform Campaign for 2023-2024

Dean Janikowski wearing cowboy hat at high school football game with his mom Heather.
Fall 2023

More than a kick

Dean Janikowski is the kicker for Washington State University’s football team, a 2022 graduate and currently an MBA student at WSU. He also has a great time on Instagram and other social media with photos and videos playing football for the Cougs, riding dirt bikes, and kicking spicy Chicken McNuggets.

In this episode, Dean talks with Washington State Magazine writer Becky Kramer about raising money for the Heather Janikowski Foundation, a charity named for his mom, who died of cancer.

Dean also talks about how he started his sports career in soccer, NIL (name, image, and likeness), and his … » More …