We continue our series looking at what several Pac-12 teams must do to catch reigning conference champion Stanford.
Next up: Washington State.
How they make the Pac-12 championship game: They were close last season. Really, really close. The Cougars blew through the Pac-12 South with wins over the Arizona schools, Colorado and an epic win over UCLA at the Rose Bowl. But it was tough sledding in the North with an early loss to Cal, a heartbreaker against Stanford and blowout loss to Washington. Early momentum is going to be key in 2016, because the first half of the season sets up to be a grind.