History dictates that Washington State's Sun Bowl kissed season must be followed by a Dust Bowl campaign.

The Cougars feasted last season, defying predictions of a last place Pac-10 finish with a 10-2 record and coach Mike Price's third bowl title in 13 years. Yet after each of Price's four previous winning seasons, a losing fall followed. In the lingo of the program's disciples and detractors, the failures to fulfill hopes are examples of "Coug-ing It."

But the 2002 forecast sees continued success for Price's pack, the first Cougars' team in 41 years predicted by conference poll to win the Pac-10 title. Quarterback Jason Gesser heads 15 returning starters on a team that faces a schedule blessed by three byes and features home games against USC, two-time defending Pac-10 champion Oregon and archrival Washington.

	QB Jason Gesser faces a tough test from the No. 1-ranked USC defense.

Expectations are high in Pullman and beyond.

Picking the Cougars to record back-to-back winning seasons for the first time since the 1988-89 teams is "kind of a no-brainer," said Jack Thompson, the former WSU quarterbacking great and 1979 NFL first-round draft pick who sometimes mentors Heisman Trophy-candidate Gesser.

"All of the pieces appear to be in place, it's not smoke and mirrors. It's because of what they have in the cupboards."

Paul Sorensen, an All-American free safety on the 1981 Holiday Bowl Cougar team that broke a 50-year postseason-drought for the program, maintains this is a make-or-break season.

"You have to be able to add credibility to this program by playing through a year when people think you're good," Sorensen said. "All of the sudden, you've got that huge target on your chest and you're no different from a Florida State, or a Nebraska, an Oklahoma, a Washington or an Oregon.

"(Fans and recruits) expect you to be good. If you let them down and finish eighth, you'll never get that back. So I think this is a watershed year for Washington State."

The fact that the Cougars are competitive in a power-packed conference is a tribute to Price, the genial dean of Pac-10 coaches. Since 1989, he's fashioned a 73-75 record mainly by wooing overlooked prospects and a few blue-chip recruits annually to the wheat fields of Eastern Washington. Eye-popping offenses or bone-rattling defenses usually result, but rarely in the same season. True balance is hard to come by, and thus success seems cyclical in the Palouse.

The Ryan Leaf-led 1997 squad that took the Cougars to the Rose Bowl for the first time since 1931 was an example of a young squad maturing after enduring losing seasons. Price wants the same results without the painful process.

"I don't think we will have arrived until we have back-to-back bowl trips," said Price, the only coach in the school's history to lead the team to four bowl appearances.

"That's a false statement," Thompson said. "He's saying that for his professional pride, and for all the right reasons. But you'd be hard-pressed to find a coach who can do more for Washington State than what Mike has."

Price, who has coached five NFL first-round draft picks, admits success has been hard to sustain. Still, he bristles at some outsiders' expectations.

"People ask, 'Well, what happened after the Rose Bowl?'" Price said. "Well, we recruited. We won 10 games last year because of the class we had after the Rose Bowl game."

Some standouts of that recruiting class have graduated. The Cougars lost free safety Lamont Thompson, a second-round NFL draft pick this past spring, and strong safety Billy Newman in the deep secondary. They expect junior safety Eric Coleman and cornerback Marcus Trufant to anchor an otherwise green unit. Linebacker, where no starters return, is another concern.

But Gesser leads a loaded offense. Emerging star Mike Bush (46 receptions, 10 TDs) and Florida State transfer Devard Darling pace the receiving corps; Price raves about his junior college running back recruiting haul. Price also sees the dividends of improved high school recruiting in his line depth on both sides.

"We've four tackles who can play, three defensive ends. We've got an offensive lineman who's a two-year starter who's busting his ass to start again,'' Price said. "That's just the way it is. We have challenges coming from everywhere."

Keeping Gesser -- the gung-ho Hawaiian who regularly trades his body for first down yardage -- healthy is key. Gesser's spirit, as well as his arm, drives the Cougars.

"I love Jason. I tell him I don't mind him being reckless, just don't be stupid," said Thompson, who played for four coaches in four years in Pullman. "I tell him, 'You'll go down as the toughest competitor in WSU history, but you'll only play four games your senior year. What good is that?'"

With the opening of a $14 million indoor practice facility, the Cougars' recruiting hunts have improved.

Recruits are "buying into the (notion) that they can win in Pullman," Sorensen said. "You can't say that Pullman is a piece of crap place to go to school when USC guys are dodging frickin' bullets at practice."

Washington State opens the season Aug. 31 against Nevada in the brand new Seahawks Stadium in downtown Seattle. If this game were to be played on campus in Martin Stadium, the Pac-10 favorite might be lucky to draw 20,000 fans. Instead school officials hope for a sellout of the 67,000-seat venue, thus making recruiting and inroads in rival Washington's backyard.

Fulfilling this season's promise would redefine "Coug-ing It".

"I like Price's definition: 'To 'Coug It' means you make it happen, instead of meaning you've blown it,' " said Rich Bowie, a member of WSU's board of trustees.

"To be honest with you, I haven't heard (the term) for a long time. I don't see any reason that you're going to hear that term this year."

Sheldon Spencer is an editor at ESPN.com.