SPOKANE — Washington State linebacker Andy Mattingly spent part of his childhood in Indiana and still has lots of family there.

So playing No. 25 Notre Dame this Saturday will be special to him.

“This game has been marked on my calendar for a long time,” said Mattingly, a senior who graduated from Mead High in the Spokane area.

Mattingly, who has two brothers and six sisters, said several relatives will travel to San Antonio to watch the game in the Alamodome.

Even though the Cougars are nearly four touchdown underdogs, he said the team is excited to play the Irish.

Mattingly has been a solid performer for the Cougars all four of his seasons. Notre Dame coach Charlie Weis called him “their most experienced linebacker.”

Irish eyes

Former coach Bill Doba, an Indiana native, took the Cougars to Notre Dame in the second game of the 2003 season, losing 29-26 in overtime in the only other meeting between the two programs. That 2003 WSU team finished 10-3 and beat Texas in the Holiday Bowl.

Remember the Alamo

The Alamodome holds fond memories for WSU fans, as the Cougars won the Alamo Bowl 10-3 against Baylor in 1994, in the Palouse Posse era.

First, you score

WSU has been outscored 112-3 in the first quarter this season. Nico Grasu’s 24-yard field goal last weekend against California was the first time the team scored in the first quarter since last Nov. 8 against Arizona.

Stats

Washington State is 4-7 in games played on Halloween, with their last win coming in 1959 … Of 120 major college teams, WSU is 118th in pass defense, but the Irish are 117th against the pass, giving up 282 yards per game … QB Jeff Tuel’s 354 passing yards against Cal last week were second most in team history by a true freshman, after Drew Bledsoe’s 385 yards in 1990 … Cougar defense has a Pac-10 leading 11 fumble recoveries and is Pac-10 co-leader in turnovers forced with 19. WSU forced just 13 turnovers all of last year.