WSU Football Notebook | Brink expects "dam to break"

Quarterback Alex Brink said Tuesday "the dam is going to break" as far as Washington State's offensive problems.

The Cougars have scored only one touchdown in their past two games and are 0 for 7 from trips inside the 20-yard line.

Brink said he and teammates haven't had their confidence shaken.

"Not at all," Brink said. "We're moving the football. We know we can move it. We know we can score. We have the weapons. ... We've got the guys, and the plays are there."

The Cougars (4-3 overall, 2-2 Pac-10) face 16th-ranked Oregon (5-1, 3-1) on Saturday in Pullman in a non-televised game.

Brink is a Eugene native who starred at Sheldon High School and wasn't recruited by the Ducks.

He will be suiting up against Oregon for the third time and indicated the novelty of playing his hometown team has diminished.

"Considering the point we're at in our season, it's another Pac-10 game," he said.

Notes

• Backup quarterback Gary Rogers is not expected to be available Saturday.

Coach Bill Doba said Tuesday he hopes Rogers will be available when the Cougars play at UCLA on Oct. 28.

Rogers suffered a Grade III sprain of his left (non-throwing) shoulder in the 21-3 loss to California on Saturday.

With Rogers out, the backup quarterback becomes Cole Morgan, a redshirt freshman from Ballard. Morgan's only appearance this year was against Idaho.

• Oregon coach Mike Bellotti joked this week that the trip to Pullman will be the "millionth" of his career.

"It seems like we're up there a lot," Bellotti told the Eugene Register-Guard. He joked that maybe Oregon should look into buying a place in the Palouse rather than renting motel rooms every year.

The game will mark the sixth time in seven seasons the Ducks have played in Pullman. Oregon has won five of those games.

Bellotti called compact Martin Stadium "probably as tough a venue as we'll face all year."

• Oregon has won the past two games in Pullman, winning 41-38 in 2004 and 34-31 last season. In those games, the Ducks have 1,090 yards of total offense and the 75 points.

Doba said Tuesday, "I hope it's a defensive battle."

• Defensive end Mkristo Bruce, who leads the nation with 10 sacks, is the only Pac-10 semifinalist for the 37th annual Rotary Lombardi Award.

• WSU defensive end Mike Graise (hamstring), the team's No. 3 player at the position, is considered doubtful for Saturday.

• Fewer than 1,000 tickets remain for Saturday's 2 p.m. kickoff. The game will not be televised.

• The play of the day at Tuesday's practice was a one-handed leaping catch in the back of the end zone by sophomore wide receiver Brandon Gibson. Gibson led the Cougars with eight catches for 130 yards against Cal.

• Cougars players were given Sunday off, which gave them back-to-back days off because the team always gets Mondays off.

"We told them to get lost," said Doba, who said the players needed a break because WSU doesn't have a bye week this year.

Craig Smith: 206-464-8279 or csmith@seattletimes.com