Gear Up For Game Day: Washington State

LARAMIE -- As always, I love to utilize this space each week during the season to not only give you the important info -- game time, TV channel, betting lines, etc. -- but also drop a bit of randomness on your plate.

So here goes.

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“It’s about heart. If you do it the right way, you can overcome a lot of stuff.”

Pete Kaligis said this to me back in October of 2019. And, boy, did he mean every word of it, too.

The longest-tenured coach in Wyoming football history didn't just talk to hear himself. He is a man of conviction.

He speaks, you listen.

Chase Appleby did just that. He went from an undersized afterthought in street clothes to making one of the biggest plays in program history when he strip-sacked Boise State quarterback Brett Rypien late in the fourth quarter of that 2016 meeting in Laramie.

The safety dance commenced, the student section flooded onto the field.

"He took me under his wing and molded me into what happened my senior year," Appleby said. "It was like, holy s---, we finally made it. We went through tons of ups and downs, but he hugged me like he was my dad … He loved on me more than a coach ever has. He always told me how much he appreciated me. I never felt that from another coach.”

Kaligis will be on the opposing sideline today in Pullman.

After spending 13 seasons in Laramie under head coaches Joe Glenn, Dave Christiansen and Craig Bohl, the Washington native was called home before the 2022 campaign. He joined some familiar faces in Pullman, including head coach Jake Dickert, who served as the Cowboys defensive coordinator in 2019 and a safeties coach the previous two years.

Washington State's Director of Operations Brent Vernon and Justin Mesa, along with former strength coach Ben Iannacchione, also once called the High Altitude Performance Center their office.

AJ Cooper, a former UW defensive ends coach, was also there when Kaligis arrived. He's now on the staff at Arizona State.

When I saw this game on the initial schedule, I immediately thought of Kaligis. He's so authentic, he became unforgettable. I remember him telling me the story behind why he wore a camouflaged hat. It wasn't some crazy, drawn-out tale. He wore it the year Wyoming finally kicked the door down and played in the Mountain West title game.

“The one I am wearing is special to me,” Kaligis said. “It reminds me that we were young, but I thought that was the year those guys did a lot for us. Chase really built the culture. It’s a tribute to the youth and it reminds me that when I put this on, we have to play well."

Kaligis loves the underdog story. Why? That's simple, too -- he was one.

Kaligis was a 225-pound offensive guard at the University of Washington. He helped lead the Huskies to the 1991 National Championship under the guidance of the legendary Don James.

Washington went 12-0 that season. They defeated Michigan 34-14 in the Rose Bowl.

Kaligis said during weigh-ins, he would stuff 10-pound weights in his shorts. Oftentimes, opposing defensive tackles had him by 100 pounds.

Even though he qualified for the 1996 Olympic Trials in shot put, Kaligis says he didn’t belong on the same field as his competitors. The best part for him, he added, was spending quality time with his father, who was also his coach.

Kaligis penned a personal letter to me back in 2019 after I wrote a feature story about him. He's done that with several other journalists, too. It's meaningful. He reached out to the sports information department to ask for my home address. He bought a postcard and a stamp. He wrote me a note. He walked to the mailbox.

He'd probably be embarrassed that I'm sharing that with all of you today.

That tells you all you need to know about the man Pete Kaligis is.

“His intensity is genuine,” Cooper told me, referring to Kaligis. “The kids see that. Whether it’s the meeting room, football field or with his family, he is that way in all facets of his life. He’s a great mentor of young men. We relate with people who are real. That’s who he is. What you see is what you get.”

If I had my guess, raw emotion is on deck for the 53-year-old the second he sees that Steamboat logo rolling out of the visiting locker room this afternoon inside Martin Stadium.

No doubt Kaligis left a piece of his heart on the high plains.

He certainly left an impact here.

“Me and him had a special bond," Appleby would say. "He told me how much he believed in me. He saw how much I cared. I love the guy.”

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