While the season is still a couple of weeks out the Cougs continue to piece together the best fall camp I have seen since I was in college at WSU in 2002. Before we get too far into the action I feel it is important to point out a couple of welcome surprises on Sunday morning. The first was a Joe Kaleta sighting. The walk on from New York is still with the team and polite as usual. He actually has added some size to his frame too. Making him a super beast. The second welcome surprise was Alex Mitchell and Rahmel Dockery watching from the sideline.
Another area I would like to point out is how this team has morphed itself into a squad you can feel good to root for again. All of these kids have a bunch of character and fit into the Cougar mantra. They displayed this well during the Lentil Festival parade down the main street of Pullman. Ledgerwood spent a fair amount of time catering to the crowd and Rankin could be spotted as usual taking time to smile at the kids. They marched in their Crimson jersey's and with the improvement of team size it looked like most of them were wearing their pads as well.
With those notes out of the way lets dive into the football a bit. To begin with there are a few Cougs who were sidelined with minor injuries. Jake Rodgers was riding the bike but doing so with his mullet flowing in the wind. It looks like it is a small hamstring. In fact of the five guys on the sideline with injuries no one seems to be on the exercise bike for the long haul. The main scrimmage time the defense was switching between prevent and their base defense. Mizell, Sekope, and Hoffman-Ellis are the real deal LB corps. Ledgerwood, Markle, and Monroe are more than adequate running with second unit. Chester Sua may also be in the mix as well. He is pure raw talent at linebacker.
Our D-Line, which was a preseason concern, has magically transformed into an area that the Cougs are showing some quality depth. With the emergence of the Stormo and Coerper the Cougs have alot of depth and talent at the ends. Travis Long continues to own his spot but Ian Knight, Lenard Williams, Stormo, Coerper, and Pu Robinson (if he returns) provide quality depth off the edge. At the Tackles spot we have a solid five man rotation with Laurenzi and Pole starting and they can be swapped with Rankin, Sampson, Clayton. The freshman TJ Polalai, David Davis, and Daryl Paulo are showing alot of talent but could definitely benefit from a red shirt year. The wild card at DT will be Alex Mitchell once he is cleared.
The defense had their way with the offense for the majority of practice unless they were matched up against Jeff Tuel. Tuel is having a camp that makes you think he belongs on a different level with those around him. If he stays healthy he is going to have a monster year. They staring offense has a grasp on Sturdy's playbook and it should result in alot of scoring.
The main question I get asked is about the running game. Here is the easy answer. Mitz is showing he can handle his assignments just fine. I see him getting 20-25 carries a game with Galvin getting 15-20. They are both very explosive and talented but Mitz is built like a Pac 12 RB where Galvin could use another year of development before he is an every down back. Marcus Mason is making alot of noise but he is a distant third behind Mitz and Galvin. Another back that is showing some promise is Carl Winston. It wouldn't surprise me if he siezed and opportunity and broke out with a big game or two this year.
Another question I get asked is about Stormo at DE and if he really should be running with the 1's. The answer to that question is a bit complicated. Stormo has really began to look comfortable at DE. Travis Long is being used more as a rush end and Stormo is very good at securing his end in those situations. Stormo is also proving to be extremely good when dropping into coverage, probably due to his understanding of the TE position. He also moves very well laterally which allows him to stretch plays out to the sideline. On Sunday, he basically chased Galvin into the sideline and if you have seen Galvin's speed you understand how impressive that was. It is obvious that Long has his end locked down but Coerper, Stormo, Knight, and Williams are all very good back ups. By the end of the year it will be interesting to see who rises to the top at the end opposite long.
The final question I will address is one that was asked about Cody Clements. No he is not ready to back up Tuel yet. The back up to Tuel will most likely be Lobster because of what he does off the field. Halliday is also grasping the offense well and could unseat Lobster but only time will tell. The book on Cody Clements is he is young. Jeff Tuel was slightly sharper with his throws than Clements was when he was frosh. However, Clements does have a strong arm, quick legs, and he plays with a ton of confidence. It should be an interesting battle in two years to see who replaces Tuel between Halliday and Clements.
That is it for the recap, keep sending questions, and we will look at what they are saying around the northwest tomorrow.
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