A new book on Washington State football history has hit the shelves

Sep. 19—PULLMAN — Washington State football fans might need to head to their nearest bookstore.

A new book on WSU football and history, "The Rise of Washington State University Football: The Erickson & Price Years," was released Sept. 4.

The author, Ben Donahue, hails from Spokane and spent a year interviewing former coaches Dennis Erickson and Mike Price to document the Cougars' rise over the years.

The book also includes interviews from former WSU quarterback Timm Rosenbach and late coach Mike Leach.

Each chapter covers aspects of WSU history, plus the personal stories of each coach. There are chapters devoted to the 1988, 1992, 1997 and 2002 seasons. Those outline how the coaches recruited, motivated and tutored players such as Rosenbach, Drew Bledsoe, Ryan Leaf and Gardner Minshew.

Erickson took over WSU's program in 1987, leading it to a 3-7-1 record in his first season, only to post a 9-3 the following year with a win in the Aloha Bowl — the Cougars' first bowl win since 1916.

The head coaching job then went to Price, who coached the Cougars for 14 seasons. He compiled an 83-78 record, with three 10-win seasons and five bowl berths.