PULLMAN, Wash. ?€“ Dennis Erickson isn?€™t one to mince words. Saturday afternoon, after Washington State?€™s 56-10 shellacking of Erickson?€™s University of Idaho Vandals, was no different.

?€œIt was pretty simple,?€ť he said. ?€œWe got our rear ends kicked. No ifs and ands, pots or pans about it. We got our rear ends kicked on offense and defense and special teams. We got out-coached. Physically, they beat us up. They did everything and we couldn?€™t answer.?€ť

That inability to respond to the Cougars offensively or defensively led to a game that started to spin out of control by the second quarter. Key in that surge was an Idaho drive that pushed to the Washington State one before stalling with a tackle-for-loss at the Cougars?€™ four with WSU leading 21-3. The Cougars responded by romping 96 yards in five plays to pull out to a 28-3 lead with 4:01 left in the first half.

Things wouldn?€™t improve for the Vandals. WSU added another TD ?€“ this one from backup quarterback Gary Rogers to Chris Jordan for a 35-3 Cougar lead with 17 seconds left in the half.

It wasn?€™t until the fourth quarter that the Vandals were able to add to Tino Amancio?€™s second-quarter field goal. Sophomore Jayson Bird pushed through from two yards out to score with 12:28 left in the game. But by then the Cougars already had scored a couple more times and Bird?€™s TD only cut the lead to 49-10.

?€œI?€™m embarrassed,?€ť Erickson said. ?€œOur players should be embarrassed. But I?€™m the one in charge. I?€™m embarrassed about that performance. I?€™ve been in a lot of games and that?€™s about as bad as I?€™ve been in.?€ť

And, he stressed, in every phase of the game. The Cougars dominated on the ground 344-96 and through the air 293-220. WSU quarterback Alex Brink?€™s receivers were sure-handed ?€“ and even when they were covered he scrambled free for a total 46 yards ?€“ by catching 12 of his 15 passes. UI quarterback Steve Wichman had the opposite happening with his offense. He completed 11 of 31 passes ?€“ with one interception ?€“ for 170 yards.

A bright spot was junior Marlon Haynes in his debut game with four receptions for 64 yards; a reception total matched by senior Wendell Octave, who totaled 43 yards on his catches.

Another solid effort came from junior linebacker David Vobora, who had 14 total tackles ?€“ seven solo and seven assists ?€“ despite missing chunks of the second half after cramping up.

While there is no escaping watching the game film, Erickson has a clear idea of what he wants to see.

?€œHopefully, you can learn something from this,?€ť he said. ?€œWhat I really want to check is who played hard in the fourth quarter of this game. That?€™s real important to me. Who played hard and who didn?€™t play hard. That gives you an idea of where we?€™re at.?€ť