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Cougar football went viral yesterday with a video posted by new running backs coach Mark Atuaia on twitter. For those who don't use the twitter platform, myself included, here's a link to check out what all the fuss is about:
https://247sports.com/college/washington-state/Article/Mark-Atuaia-New-WSU-football-coach-family-let-fly-the-mother-of-all-recruiting-videos-179798500/ -
Though Max Borghi opted out of playing with his teammates in the Sun Bowl, he will play will a select group of strangers on January 29 in the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl. It's widely reported that Borghi is also among the 300 or so players invited to participate in the NFL combine in March. His appearance in the NFLPA Bowl game will give Max an opportunity to show his skill in practice, drills, and the game itself. Borghi is training for his shot at the NFL down in Arizona.
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Colton Clark took time to examine what to look for from the Wazzu defense this coming season. Following his lead, let's be surprised by the fact that there may be fewer questions about the defense than the offense. That's pretty unusual for Cougar football.
The defensive line last season was a mixed bag of results. Their edge rushers Ron Stone, Jr. and Brennan Jackson provided constant pressure on opposing quarterbacks. They will be back. More times than not, Wazzu opponents achieved season-high yardage rushing the rock. It didn't help the development on the defensive tackles when their position coach was fired mid-season because he wouldn't take the jab. When Coach Jake Dickert hired veteran Wyoming assistant Pete Kaligis, it was a signal that improving the interior of the DL was a priority.
Jahad Woods and Justus Rogers have finally exhausted their eligibility after decades on the Palouse. One might suggest that replacing that much experience will drop the level of play at linebacker a notch or two. Forget that. Junior Travion Brown played well all season in a backup role. He also turned in a uber-athletic play in the Sun Bowl by leaping up to snag the lone Wazzu interception. Grad transfer Daiyan Henley formerly of Nevada brings a wealth of experience at the position to Pullman. In case you forget already, Henley chose WSU over USC and UW. There's another indicator of potential talent. Oh, and Henley logged over 100-tackles last season. Freshman Francisco Mauigoa was touted for his abilities throughout last season during practice and his limited game reps. Wazzu also has another transfer, Ben Wilson from TCU, who spent last year working with the scout team and turned in impressive work.
The Wazzu secondary was somewhat hit and miss last season primarily due to depth. George Hicks III and grad transfer Tyrone Hill Jr. were serviceable at safety last season. However, both guys have exhausted their eligibility. Daniel Isom saw plenty of playing time over his Cougar career. He's gone as well. Portal transfer Sam Lockett III should be part of the safety solution. Lockett was outstanding for Utah State and a key component in defeating WSU in Pullman in the first game last season. If nothing else, he brings a winning streak on Gesa Field to WSU. Armani Marsh will return for another season by taking advantage of the NCAA Covid eligibility rules. Marsh was steady and at times spectacular at the nickel position. Look for more of that in 2022. Safeties and nickels coach Mark Banker is staying on Dickert's staff. That continuity should help in the development on players already on the Wazzu roster.
At this point, it's silly to project the play of special teams. Dickert hasn't hired a coach to replace Kyle Krantz. During the season Wazzu special teams performed pretty well behind the kicking of Dean Janikowski and punting of Nick Harberer. Both will be back for the 2022 season. -
Here's a fun story on new assistant coach Pete Kaligis, revealing his northwest roots:
https://www.si.com/college/washington/legends/former-husky-og-pete-kaligis-joins-wsu-as-d-line-coach
Go Cougs!!!
- It seems fitting to put together a list of coaches who branch off of the Mike Leach coaching tree. Perspective on his football genius can easily be determined by a cursory glance:
Dave Aranda/Baylor head coach – Graduate assistant coach under Leach from 2000-02 at Texas Tech
Neal Brown/West Virginia head coach – Played under Leach in 1998 when Leach was offensive coordinator at Kentucky
Sonny Cumbie/Louisiana Tech head coach – Played under Leach at Texas Tech from 2000-03 and later served as a graduate assistant coach under Leach
Sonny Dykes/TCU head coach – Coached wide receivers and later was the co-offensive coordinator at Texas Tech under Leach from 2000-06
Josh Heupel/Tennessee head coach – Played under Leach at Oklahoma in 1999 when Leach was the offensive coordinator for the Sooners
Dana Holgorsen/Houston head coach – Coached alongside Leach as assistants at Valdosta State from 1993-95, then served as a wide receivers coach and offensive coordinator under Leach from ...
- The news of former WSU Coach Mike Leach passing at the young age of 61 is very, very sad. I had the pleasure of writing about the Cougs when Leach was at the helm. To say that he was a unique person doesn't begin to describe the multi-faceted dimension of the man.
In terms of coaching football, Leach led his teams in a way that had most other coaches scratching their heads. His offensive creativity gave a multitude of defensive coordinators ulcers. To say that his techniques for molding student-athletes into football players were unusual would be accurate. Making guys run sprints in a sand pit named "Leach Beach" is a prime example. Crazy as that sounds, his players had fewer ankle injuries over the course of the season than any team in football. Only Mike Leach could get players to hit the beach. And if you look at the coaching tree that branches out from Leach, you'd find a myriad of men who owe him for their start in the profession.
When you examine the way Leach represented the schools ...
- Close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades, so Wazzu's loss yesterday to UNLV by a score of 74-70 was just that, a loss. However, there were plenty of reasons to applaud both the performance and the progress the Cougs are making over the past few games. Let's get the bad observation out of the way. WSU turned the ball over a ridiculous 22 times. No one is going to beat many teams with such wreckless play, especially against a team that posted a 9-0 record going into the contest. Some of those errors might be attributed to Coach Kyle Smith going with a different lineup almost every game because of player injuries. Facts are facts and when there isn't a steady lineup, players struggle to play team ball. On the bright side, Wazzu shot a respectable 54.2% from the field, coupled with a very nice 56.5% from behind the arc. On defense, WSU held UNLV to just 30.4% from behind the arc and 50.9% overall. The Cougs outrebounded the Rebels by a margin of 33-20. Despite being down by ...
