Washington State 2012 Recruiting

Washington State Cougars 2012 ... Head Coach: Mike Leach

Washington State Cougars

2011 Record: 4-8

Sep. 3 Idaho State W 64-21
Sep. 10 UNLV  W 59-7
Sep. 17 at San Diego St L 42-24
Sep. 24 OPEN DATE
Oct. 1 at Colorado W 31-27
Oct. 8 at UCLA L 28-25
Oct. 15 Stanford L 44-14
Oct. 22 Oregon State L 44-21
Oct. 29 at Oregon L 43-28
Nov. 5 at California L 30-7
Nov. 12 Arizona State W 37-27
Nov. 19 Utah L 30-27 OT
Nov. 26 at Washington L 38-21

2010 CFN Prediction: 3-9
2010 Record: 2-10

Sept. 4 at Oklahoma St L 65-17
Sept. 11 Montana St W 23-22
Sept. 18 at SMU L 35-21
Sept. 25 USC L 50-16
Oct. 2 at UCLA L 42-28
Oct. 9 Oregon L 43-23
Oct. 16 Arizona L 24-7
Oct. 23 at Stanford L 38-28
Oct. 30 at Arizona St L 42-0
Nov. 6 California L 20-13
Nov. 13 at Oregon St W 31-14
Nov. 20 OPEN DATE
Nov. 27 OPEN DATE
Dec. 4 Washington L 35-28
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The Entire 2012 Recruiting Class

Top 5 Washington State Recruits To Care About
Player writeups by Scout.com

1. WR Gabriel Marks
5-11, 175, Scout.com 39th ranked, four-star receiever. Capable of playing either defensive back or wide receiver at the next level, but receiver is his almost certainly his destination in college. Named his league's defensive player of the year as a senior in 2011.

2. LB Jeremiah Allison
6-1, 210, Scout.com 40th ranked, three-star outside linebacker. Allison is quick off the edge and is one of the top pass rushers in the West. More of a tweener who will be most effective playing outside linebacker in college, likely as a hybrid. Similar to Josh Shirley and Akeem Ayers, both prep defensive ends who moved to outside linebacker later in career. Allison is improving in coverage, despite being more a natural down lineman.

3. QB Austin Apodaca
6-3, 185, Scout.com 58th ranked, three-star quarterback. Named all-classifications all-Colorado by PrepColorado.com as a senior in 2011. Capped a stellar high school career by passing for nearly 4,000 yards in 2011 to go with 44 touchdowns against only 10 interceptions. Named Northern Conference offensive player of the year. He led Silver Creek to a 12-2 record and its first-ever trip to the state title game.

4. S David Bucannon
6-2, 180, Scout.com 56th ranked, three-star safety. As a senior in 2011 he led Vanden High in tackles with 127 and earned first-team all-Solano County Athletic Conference and first-team All-State by FOX SportsNet (as voted on by Scout.com analysts) honors. Played in the Holiday Classic, the Bay Area's all-star football game. A force on both sides of the ball, he also caught 26 passes in 2011. As a junior in 2010 he had 17 receptions for 227 yards and three touchdowns, but made his mark defensively, where he was all-league, all-city and all-region as a defensive back, recording a league-high 108 tackles.

5. WR Robert Lewis
5-10, 160, Scout.com 63rd ranked, three-star receiver. As a senior in 2011 he was named division, league and regional player of the year after racking up 3,095 all-purpose yards and 36 TDs. He gained 2,023 yards on the ground, another 338 on 20 pass receptions, 461 on kickoff returns and 273 on punt returns. He averaged 9.97 yards per carry as a running back, but projects as a college receiver. Also played defensive back, collecting 59 tackles and five interceptions. Led South East to the City Section Division II championship and 13-1 record. South East is only in its seventh year of existence.

The 2012 Class Was Heavy On... Take a wild stab at what new head coach Mike Leach is looking to bring in. It actually isn’t quite what you’d think, even though a few nice receivers are signing up. Leach is starting up front by signing up offensive linemen to build around for the next few years. There aren’t a lot of top prospects coming in – there hasn’t been enough time for Leach to work – but it’s a huge class with lots of options to play around with. Soon, though, he’ll be going after the passers he needs to run his attack.

Team Concerns For 2012: Is there a quarterback who can wing it around the yard 50 times a game? The receivers are in place with Marquess Wilson leading a strong group, and the running backs are just good enough to potentially add a little balance, but the offseason will be all about the quarterbacks. The defense gets nine starters back and could be terrific up front with last year’s JUCO transfers about to play bigger roles.

Looking Ahead To The 2012 Season: Get your popcorn ready. Washington State might have had some fun and productive offenses in the past, but Mike Leach is about to take things to a whole other level. The nation’s ninth-ranked passing game was already good, and now the spotlight will be on QB Jeff Tuel to see if he can stay healthy. If not, it’ll be up to Connor Halliday to throw to rising star Marquess Wilson. The line gets three starters back, and while running the ball won’t be the main mode of transportation, Rickey Galvin and Carl Winston are promising. The defense gets nine starters back after not doing nearly enough to rush the passer and not coming up with enough key stops. End Travis Long will be the key up front, while SS Deone Bucannon should be among the Pac-12’s leading tacklers.

The 2011 Class Was Heavy On … JUCO defensive ends. The best players in the class are at linebacker with Max Hersey and Darryl Paulo two future starters for the inside, and Chester Sua and Logan Mays two potential killers on the outside once they add ten-plus pounds. But head coach Paul Wulff needs to show improvement and he needs to show it now. Hellooooo, JUCO transfers. Wazzu welcomes in four JUCO defensive ends, and while none of them are going to be on any All-America short lists, they’re all quick, they’re all ready, and they’ll all be a part of the rotation immediately.

2010 CFN Recruiting Ranking: 57. That Class Was Heavy On ... Wide receivers. Paul Wulff needed playmakers and he needed them last year. There might not be any sure-thing starters for 2010, but Bobby Ratliff, Marquess Wilson and Robert Jiles, and Blair Bomber are upgrades at receiver. Tight end Aaron Dunn needs to be a part of the offense now, and running backs Rickey Galvin and Devontae Butler-Booker are quick backs who should provide a boost for the running game. JUCO transfers David Gonzales and Wade Jacobson will push for starting time at tackle this offseason, while C.J. Mizell is a ready-made linebacker to plug in on the outside. 

2009 CFN Recruiting Ranking: 44. That Class Was Heavy On ... defensive backs. The only reason why last year’s pass defense wasn’t worse off was because the run D was so easy to navigate. The Cougars realize there’s still plenty of work to be done in the secondary. They beat out the likes of Arizona State and Boise State for talented CB Nolan Washington, and bagged five safeties with the potential to start at some point in their careers. Heck, Wazzu even got themselves a Locker, beating out Washington for Jake Locker’s cousin, Casey.

Nov. 26 at Washington 38 … Washington State 21
CFN Analysis: COMING

(AP) SEATTLE -- Keith Price threw three touchdown passes to become Washington's all-time single-season leader in that category, the final one a 22-yard toss to Chris Polk, and Washington held off rival Washington State 38-21 on Saturday night to win the 104th Apple Cup.

Price threw his 29th touchdown pass of the season midway through the third quarter, finding Polk to give the Huskies a 28-14 lead. Washington State pulled within 28-21, but Erik Folk's 46-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter pushed the lead to 10 and Polk capped the Huskies third straight Apple Cup title on Polk's 1-yard TD run with 5:23 left.

Price, who sat out last week's loss at Oregon State due to injury, finished 21 of 29 for 291 yards.

The Huskies (7-5, 5-4 Pac-12) snapped a three-game losing streak and sent the Cougars (4-8, 2-7) into an offseason filled with questions.

Nov. 19 Utah 30 … at Washington State 27 OT
CFN Analysis: Wazzu might have lost six of their last seven games, and a bowl game is out of the picture, but it’s all relative. Compared to the past few seasons, the Cougars are playing far better overall. There’s something to build on for next year. ... Connor Halliday, though, played like rookie, throwing four picks to go along with his 290 passing yards and two scores. He came up with several big plays, but it was his interception in overtime that was the difference. … The defensive line didn’t have too many chances to come up with key sacks, but it generated a few big plays behind the line with nine tackles for loss. It wasn’t enough to hold off John White and the Utah running game. 

Nov. 12 at Washington State 37 … Arizona State 27
CFN Analysis: Welcome to the Pac-12, Connor Halliday. The true freshman was brilliant, blowing up the Arizona State secondary for 494 yards and four scores as he kept driving the ball down the field and he kept on pushing under pressure. It also helped to have Marquess Wilson, he torched ASU for eight catches for 223 yards and three scores. … Even with 13 tackles from Deone Bucannon, the defense didn’t exactly stop the Sun Devils, but they held them scoreless in the fourth while Halliday took over to pull off the shocker. Halliday played like a veteran in the clutch. … Can the Cougars beat Utah and Washington to go bowling? If the offense plays this efficiently and effectively, yeah.  

Nov. 5 at California 30 … Washington State 7
CFN Analysis: Washington State hasn’t exactly been good over its five-game losing streak, but at least the offense was working. Against Cal, everything broke down as Marshall Lobbestael couldn’t find any sort of a groove, completing just 15-of-37 passes for 155 yards. The Cougars got down early, and the passing game couldn’t pick up the slack with Lobbestael under too much pressure to get comfortable. The team’s best performance came from punter Dan Wagner, who averaged 44.4 yards per kick and put two inside the 20. There’s still time to come up with something positive with two home games against Arizona State and Utah up next before the neutral site game against Utah. The offense has to pick it back up again to have any chance in the three, and it all starts with a line that has to give Lobbestael more time.

Oct. 29 at Oregon 43 … Washington State 28
CFN Analysis: The offense moved the ball on an Oregon defense that’s been strong against the better quarterbacks. Marshall Lobbestael kept things moving, completing 28-of-48 passes for 337 yards and a touchdown with two picks, and the running game wasn’t all that bad, running for 125 yards and a score. The Cougars held on to the ball for over 40 minutes, and did a good job of keeping the Oregon ground game under wraps, but the offensive pop wasn’t there in the third quarter to keep up the pace. Damante Horton’s 76-yard pick six was the highlight, but the defensive front did a decent job of holding its own. However, this makes it three straight games of 40 points or more, giving up 44 against Stanford, 44 against Oregon State, and 43 against Oregon. There’s still time to go bowling, but it’s going to take a win over Cal to stop the four-game slide. 

Oct. 22 Oregon State 44 … at Washington State 21
CFN Analysis:  The secondary has had problems, and it wasn’t close to slowing down the suddenly hot Oregon State attack. To have any chance, the defensive front has to be more active than it was against the Beavers, and the offense needs more consistency. Jeff Tuel was on fire, completing 11-of-13 passes for 127 yards, before getting knocked out. Marshall Lobbestael was fine, but he didn’t do enough to keep up the pace with the steady Beaver attack. The three turnovers were a problem and the running game wasn’t anything special, and to have any hope of stopping the three-game losing slide, everything will have to be perfect. Even then, the Cougars won’t get by Oregon as the season starts to stop away. 

Oct. 15 Stanford 44 … at Washington State 14
CFN Analysis: Washington State did what it could early on, but the offense couldn’t get the passing game going and seemed to lose its rhythm with Jeff Tuel in for Marshall Lobbestael. Tuel, back from a broken collarbone, completed 17-of-30 passes for 145 yards, while Lobbestael hit on 7-of-9 throws for 64 yards and ran for a score. The coaching staff might have an issue; the offense was working fine over the last few weeks under Lobbestael, and Tuel has to prove he can be back to form. With Oregon State up next, getting the ball moving won’t be a problem with either quarterback. 257 yards of total offense was almost 240 under the average, but after losing three of the last four games, just finding a way to get a win again to get back in the bowl hunt is a must. Again, that’s what the Beavers are for. 

Oct. 8 at UCLA 28 … Washington State 25
CFN Analysis: The Cougars were playing well and had control of the clock and the game, and then the defense couldn’t come up with a late stop and couldn’t go on the one big final drive needed. The offense wasn’t spectacular, but it kept things moving holding on to the ball for close to 37 minutes and keeping the UCLA offense off the field. The defensive front had problems against the Bruin ground game and outside of a pick, it didn’t have any answers for Kevin Prince. With Stanford up next, the Cougars have to find a way to get more deep plays while also controlling the clock again to keep Andrew Luck off the field. That’s not going to happen, but the team is playing well enough to be competitive. Unlike the last several years, there isn’t one area that’s a glaring disaster.

Oct. 1 Washington State 31 … at Colorado 27
CFN Analysis: It took years of pain and suffering, but Washington State is really and truly playing like a team good enough to go bowling. The passing game is terrific, the pass rush and the defensive front are playing great, and there’s finally a little bit of confidence in key situations to come up with big wins. Marquess Wilson’s 63-yard game-winning touchdown catch might be a program starter for Paul Wulff, and if the Cougars can beat UCLA on the road next week, then it’ll be truly time to get excited. There were too many penalties against the Buffs and the run defense was spotty, but Marshall Lobbestael came through in the clutch and Wazzu is off to a hot start. The program deserves time to enjoy it. 

Sept. 17 at San Diego State 42 ... Washington State 24
CFN Analysis: These aren’t the Cougars of old. They offense moved the ball against San Diego State, with Marshall Lobbestael throwing for 368 yards and three scores, and with Marquess Wilson dominating with six catches for 236 yards and two touchdowns, but the turnovers were too costly. The four giveaways allowed were a killer, and when the game got out of hand in the fourth quarter, there wasn’t anything the Cougars could do to stop the momentum. The key will be to stop the slide in a hurry. Going to Colorado and then UCLA won’t be easy, but coming away with at least a split will be a must with Stanford coming up in mid-October. If the turnovers stop, the Cougars should have a shot against both the Buffs and the Bruins. 

Sept. 10 at Washington State 59 … UNLV 7
CFN Analysis: Washington State is No. 1 in the nation in total offense?! Yeah, the season started against Idaho State and UNLV, but who cares? After so many years of struggling, to hang up 122 points in two weeks and to roll for 59 in the blowout against the Rebels is fantastic. Marshall Lobbestael roared for 361 yards and five scores, and he spread the ball around well with 11 different receivers catching the ball. The defensive front was great at getting into the backfield and stuffed the UNLV running game before it could get started. Now comes a bigger test against a San Diego State team with far, far more talent than anything the Cougars have seen so far.  

Sept. 3 at Washington State 64 … Idaho State 21
CFN Analysis: After the way the last few years have gone, a 64-21 win over anyone will be welcome. Wazzu jumped all over Idaho State and never let up with Marshall Lobbestael completing 14-of-19 passes for 230 yards and two touchdowns and the ground game spreading it around for 289 yards and four scores. It was a blowout from the start and ISU had to throw to try to make it interesting, but still, the Cougar secondary was a bit loose allowing 430 yards and a huge 10-catch, 218-yard, one score day from Rodrick Rumble. With UNLV up next, the Cougar firepower should continue, but the linebackers will have to be ready for the short-to-midrange passing game and the Pistol attack. 

The 2011 Class Is Heavy On … JUCO defensive ends. The best players in the class are at linebacker with Max Hersey and Darryl Paulo two future starters for the inside, and Chester Sua and Logan Mays two potential killers on the outside once they add ten-plus pounds. But head coach Paul Wulff needs to show improvement and he needs to show it now. Hellooooo, JUCO transfers. Wazzu welcomes in four JUCO defensive ends, and while none of them are going to be on any All-America short lists, they’re all quick, they’re all ready, and they’ll all be a part of the rotation immediately.

Five Washington State Recruits You Should Care About
Player writeups by Scout.com

1. LB Chester Sua
6-2, 217, Scout.com’s 15th ranked outside linebacker. This native Samoan was a two-way star in high school, playing RB and LB, but projects as a college LB and could see immediate playing time. Senior year rushed for 1,625 yards, and 20 touchdowns on 250 carries while catching eight passes for 117 yards and three scores. On defense, he grabbed four interceptions, one returned for a touchdown. Team went 12-2 on year and reached D2 state championship. Named first-team All-State at running back and first-team all-conference at linebacker.

2. LB Logan Mayes
6-3, 215, Scout.com’s 28th ranked outside linebacker. He's got good size and a good frame to add some more weight and be a real presence off the edge, but should be able to keep his athleticism and coverage ability to drop and cover against running backs and tight ends. In his film, he's already getting bigger, but still maintaining the ability to use his speed. He's quick off the edge, great in backside pursuit.

3. LB Max Hersey
-2, 233, Scout.com’s 39th ranked middle linebacker. Part of the SPSL Champions as a 2008 sophomore at Tacoma (Wash.) Curtis. TE MVP of the 2009 WSU Summer camp.

4. QB Cody Clements
6-2, 205, Scout.com’s 65th ranked quarterback. As a 2009 junior at La Habra (Calif.), led his team to the CIF-SS title, their third straight year. Threw for 2,150 yards on 120-of-191 passing, with 29 touchdowns to only five picks and ran in five touchdowns.

5. DT David Davis
6-1, 280, Scout.com’s 61st ranked defensive tackle. Active defender who’s quick on his feet and can lay the hat. Also plays guard and could be an inside guy in college.

2011 Entire Recruiting Class
Demetrius Cherry 6-6 270 DE Frostproof, Fla.
Cody Clements 6-0 196 QB Whittier, Calif.
David Davis 6-2 270 DL Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif.
Rahmel Dockery 5-10 170 WR Tacoma, Wash.
Henry Eaddy 5-8 165 WR Orlando, Fla.
Rico Forbes 6-4 280 OL Houston, Texas
Max Gama 6-0 185 S La Mirada, Calif.
Matt Goetz 6-4 270 OL Cibolo, Texas
Max Hersey 6-2 233 TE Tacoma, Wash.
Ian Knight 6-2 244 DE Wichita, Kan.
Brock Lutes 6-3 218 DE Newberg, Ore.
Marcus Mason 5-9 175 RB Etiwanda, Calif.
Logan Mayes 6-3 230 LB Eugene, Ore.
Taylor Meighen 6-3 280 OL Beaumont, Texas
Alexander Mitchell 6-3 295 OL Portland, Ore.
Darryl Monroe 6-1 215 MLB Orlando, Fla.
Isiah Myers 6-0 170 WR Gotha, Fla.
Darryl Paulo 6-3 250 LB Sacramento, Calif.
T.J. Poloai 6-2 265 DT Sacramento, Calif.
Tana Pritchard 6-3 205 OLB Lakewood, Wash.
Chester Su'a 6-2 215 LB Pearl City, Hawai'i
Wendell Taiese 6-6 350 OL Oakland, Calif.
Spencer Waseem 5-10 170 DB Apopka, Fla.
Dominque Williams 6-3 193 WR Pomona, Calif.
Lenard Williams 6-2 245 DE Chesterfield, S.C.