Washington State completed the trifecta by offering Anaheim (Calif.) Servite 2018 athlete Amon-Ra St. Brown on Thursday as Dennis Simmons was at the school on Thursday checking in on Amon-Ra's older brothers, Equanimeous and Osiris. The Cougars have already offered Equanimous, a four-star receiver, a Osiris, a top prospect in the 2017 class.

Utah has also offered the three brothers and Equanimeous recently took a visit out to Utah. Last summer, Equanimeous, who is cousins with Washington State linebacker Greg Hoyd, unofficially visited Washington State with the Cougars' freshman linebacker.

Currently, Equanimeous holds no favorites and is open to all suitors, having already taken visits to Notre Dame and Utah. WSU still has Equanimeous as one of their top prospects and would love to get him on campus for another visit, but there have been no plans as of now to do that. I'll touch base with him later today to see how the visit with Simmons went.

Link: https://washingtonstate.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1706793

Link: https://washingtonstate.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1706793

Link: https://washingtonstate.rivals.com/default.asp

I just spoke to Phoenix (Ariz.) Mountain Pointe offensive tackle Davis Perrott who says he'll take an official visit to Washington State for the Apple Cup. Perrott, who has already visited California and Boise State, says he'll also visit Indiana next month before making a decision between the four programs. "I'm excited to get up there and see with the Cougars are about," Perrott said.


This post was edited on 11/20 12:16 AM by Britton Ransford

I suspected you might lose at UTEP, but surprised to see you lost big at TCU. Are the guys just lost trying to learn Kent's system? It's always tough in the middle of both a personnel and a coaching change, but damn that was TCU, not Texas. I hope you guys get it turned around against Idaho St.

Also, who is your AD? How in the hell did you only schedule 4 home games in the OOC???? I get one of them being at Gonzaga because that's just an in state trip, but 2 games in Texas, games in Alaska, and another game in Santa Clara? Awful scheduling by your AD. He didn't do Kent any favors.

Mohamed Barry, a Kansas State commit, has been offered by Washington State. The 6-foot-1, 210-pound outside linebacker is rated three-stars by Rivals and also holds offers from Marshall, N.C. State, South Florida, Syracuse, UAB, Wake Forest and Wisconsin.

Apparently this is his girlfriend.

http://instagram.com/hannahstocking

Sadly, given what we've witnessed these first two games, it's quite possible this will be the best thing posted on this forum this season.
This post was edited on 11/19 1:45 PM by dgibbons

Steilacoom (Wash.) linebacker Fotu Leiato will take an unofficial visit to Washington State for the Apple Cup, his coaches informed WazzuWatch.com on Wednesday. The 6-foot-0, 195-pound inside linebacker holds offers from Eastern Washington and Wyoming.

Arizona State's star receiver Jaelen Strong is "50-50" to play against Washington State this weekend with a concussion suffered in their loss to Oregon State last week, Todd Graham said on the Pac-12 teleconference today. He's currently going through concussion protocol.

Strong, who yesterday was named a Biletnikoff Award semifinalist along with Washington State's Vince Mayle, is a big the Sun Devils' most explosive player on the offensive side. Through ten games, Strong has 71 catches, 982 yards and nine touchdowns. Strong, prior to the Oregon State game, had a receiving touchdown in five consecutive games and seven of eight games overall.

According to ASUDevils.com, the Arizona State site on the Rivals.com / Yahoo! Sports network, safety Jordan Simone "looks like he will play against Washington State" after aggravating an injury against Oregon State which previously knocked him out of the Notre Dame game.

Both players look to be legitimately questionable heading into an early start on Saturday. We'll have a complete preview with injury updates from ASUDevils.com later this week.

I just spoke with Kapolei (HI) offensive linemen Amu Auwae, who said their official visit, which was expected to take place next weekend for the Apple Cup, has been postponed. They expect to visit in late December now.

North Potomac (Md.) Quince Orchard defensive end Tim Settle.

McLean currently has three official visits set up to Tennessee, Ole Miss and Washington State. He also holds offers from basically everyone else in the country. I'll see what I can gather from McLean.

Mike Leach fielded a few questions during his weekly teleconference on Tuesday. You can find the transcript of the call below as well as Arizona State head coach Todd Graham's call, too.

Mike Leach teleconference transcript

(Do you remember playing a game at 11 a.m. local time?) "The only time was - I think there was another - the only time was the Cotton Bowl. That's when the Cotton Bowl's were, so I did it twice at the Cotton Bowl and I thin there was another, but I can't guarantee that third one.

(Is there any concern about kids being lethargic at that point?) "Yeah, a little bit. But, you know, you start the whole thing at about six o'clock - five thirty, six o'clock - and take off running and go full steam into the game, you know."

(With Daquawn Brown out for the first half, are you shorthanded at corner or is it workable?) "We'll make it work. We've been shorthanded all season, though."

(How do you think Arizona State will respond coming off a loss at Oregon State and how will you counteract that emotion, knowing they need a big win?) "I think they'll play the best they can. I think the we just have to play the best we can. I don't know about any emotional stuff involved, but they're a good team and I think they'll go out there and try to really play well."

(Since Arizona State QB Taylor Kelly has come back from injury, he doesn't seem like the same player. What have you seen from him on film and what do you expect him to do on Saturday?) "I think he's kind of the leader of that team. I think that his leadership skills are what distinguishes him the most and he kind of holds it all together."

(ASU is known for their blitz packages. Is that a challenge for Luke Falk to recognize that stuff?) "The biggest thing is recognize it; recognize and react to it. We've gotten a certain amount of that this year. Of course, Luke's not as experienced and hasn't played in as many games. We're comfortable enough with it but you have to sort it out quick and make a quick decision because they're going to come after you. If you do react to it and you do recognize it, the plays can be longer and you can push it further downfield."

Todd Graham teleconference transcript

(How do you feel about an 11 a.m. kickoff this Saturday?) "Well, I mean, obviously it's a little different for us, but in all actuality, I think we're ready to get back on the field. It's a little unusual for us - I don't think we've had one since I've been here - but I do like playing during the day. I'd much rather it be 1:30 but we're ready to get back on the field and get back out there and play like we're accustomed to playing."

(It looked like Oregon State did a better job of picking up your blitzes. What did it look like on film?) "We just did a poor job. I did a poor job. They were 0-for-11 on third down and when someone is 0-for-11 on third down, you need to stay with the blitz or stay with what we were doing. We had done what we have done all year long and then we up and tried to run a new blitz and we wind up busting and they get a 60-70 yard touchdown. They were 1-of-12 and we lost the game on third down, which is amazing if you think about that. You have to give them credit. Early in the game, we weren't ready to play and they popped two big, long runs. I felt like we got them settled down and started playing like we were normally playing, but we were slow hitting our stuff, when the picked up the stopped our slants several times and stuff like that.

"That was just ... we made some bad calls and, you know, you don't get those back but on the same hand you have to give them a lot of credit. Coach Riley is a great football coach and did a great job, so I thought they did a good job of executing. They made the plays and we had every opportunity in the game; we miss a field goal, we have guys open, dropped passes, we had every opportunity to win the game and we just didn't do it. Obviously, I told me players, we probably came out off one of the best games we called off Notre Dame and then getting up there in the cold, there was a lot of distraction. I did a poor job because our guys underestimated them and as a result, we fell short. But, usually, we thought we thought we had it under control during halftime and then, you know, when we're winning at halftime, we usually win. But, they did a good job coming back and they made the plays and we didn't."

(Do you figure to have WR Jaelen Strong and SS Jordan Simone back this week?) "I think Strong is probably 50-50, he's doing a lot better today and if he can practice tomorrow then he can play but obviously if not, then we're going to be very careful. Then Simone, he practice today, so he's doing a lot better than he was last week and his deal last week was really from the week before with a stinger type situation, so I'm expecting him to be back. This time of year, everybody has these type of problems but hopefully we'll have Jaelen but that's probably 50-50."

(On underestimating Oregon State...) "I mean, I don't think our players do, I just think we had played five of the top opponents in the country. We had played some really, really good people and I probably underestimated ... It was cold, it was really cold, but that's just an excuse. Cold, raining, wet ... we'd been to Washington and played in those conditions and won. Really, all the way up to the end of the game on the final drive, I thought we'd drive down and kick a field goal and win but then we throw an interception for a touchdown, so it just wasn't our night. You have to bring it every week and there's not that much difference in college football from the number one ranked team to the twenty fifth ranked team. There's not a whole lot of difference."

Washington State released the Cougars' depth chart for Saturday's game at Arizona State and the most notable change is that Pat Porter will start at the field cornerback spot opposite Charleston White (at boundary) in place of Daquawn Brown, who will have to sit out the first half because of a targeting penalty against Oregon State.

Additional Notes

-Cole Madison is still listed as the starter at right tackle, however, Mike Leach noted during his Monday press conference that Jacob Seydel would be getting the start as Madison is likely to sit out for the third consecutive game.

-Tyler Baker is listed as the starter at the Y-receiver, though a healthy River Cracraft is expected to return this week and, according to Leach, the pair will split reps. Leach didn't indicate how those snaps would be distributed. Baker has filled in admirably over the last two games, leading the Cougars in receptions in Cracraft's absence.

-Robert Lewis was listed as the backup at Y-receiver behind River Cracraft against Oregon State, with Baker listed third, though with Cracraft unable to go, Baker got the start. This week, Lewis is listed as the backup at H-receiver behind Rickey Galvin, who left the Oregon State game after a huge block that required him getting assistance off the field.

-Calvin Green, previously listed as the backup against Oregon State, is no longer listed on the current depth chart, but according to several reports, he's healthy again and expected to play against Arizona State.

-Drew Loftus is now listed as the backup for Isiah Myers at the Z-receiver after previously listed as the No. 3 at the X-receiver behind Dom Williams and Vince Mayle.

-Marcus Mason is listed as the backup running back behind Jamal Morrow. Theron West has held that designation for the last couple weeks, but he was injured on the opening kickoff against Oregon State and appears to be out, as well. Leach applauded Mason's receiving ability. Gerard Wicks is still out.

-Toni Pole has been limited in practice this week, which has pushed Darryl Paulo inside. Should Pole be unable to go, Destiny Vaeao and Paulo would likely fill that role.

-David Bucannon is listed as the backup at strong safety behind Taylor Taliulu, who has taken over that position from Sulaiman Hameed after a couple injuries setback the promising freshman.

-Marcellus Pippins saw his first action last week when Kevin Griffin went down with an injury and the true freshman is now listed as the backup to Porter at the field cornerback spot. In the second half, I'd expect Brown to fill in for either White or Porter, though it will likely be for Porter.

WSU Depth Chart vs. ASU



This post was edited on 11/18 2:21 PM by Britton Ransford

Feel the excitement

After an impressive performance in the playoffs last week with Mike Leach in attendance, Tacoma (Wash.) Lincoln receiver Jayson Williams II is on the Washington State recruiting radar. While an offer hasn't been talked about, Williams says the coaching staff is certainly interested and are in the process of getting to know the 6-foot-1, 190-pound receiver.

So far, Williams holds offers from Eastern Washington, Montana, Montana State and Portland State. He's teammates with big Washington State target Jusstis Warren, a linebacker at Lincoln. The Cougars are aggressively recruiting Warren, who's also considering California.

I spoke to Mountain View (Calif.) St. Francis defensive tackle Thomas Toki this evening and the Washington State commit says he's in the process of setting up an official visit and it appears he'll be taking that visit for the Apple Cup, though nothing is set in stone yet. He's working on it with the coaches right now and will let me know when that's all set in stone.

Javon McKinley picked up an offer from Washington State tonight. The 6-foot-2, 196-pound receiver is rated four-stars by Rivals and the No. 28 receiving prospect in the 2016 class. Additionally, McKinley is rated the No. 162 overall prospect and No. 25 player in California.

In addition to Washington State, McKinley holds offers Arizona State, Colorado, Northwestern, UCLA, Washington and California, who also offered this evening.

Washington State is destroyed by TCU, 81-54

Washington State (0-2) was dominated by a TCU team that was expected to be one of the worst Power Five programs in the country, but the Cougars, thanks to more sloppy basketball and an inability to rebound or find any rhythm on offense, fell the the Frogs, 81-54.

Ernie Kent post-game quotes...

(On TCU jumping out early and controlling the game and tempo...) "Well, they certainly did. I thought they did it in ways that we could not stop them, which really concerned me because they pounded us inside, again. It continues to be a problem for us; our post defense and rebounding the basketball. So, there were some glaring things that popped up for us to work on during this trip and I talked about this being a process. It's not going to happen overnight and I'm out here quickly to talk to you because there wasn't a lot of conversation in the locker room right now for these young people. We just need to get them back to the hotel, get them fed, look at some tape and then have a opportunity to visit with them."

(On the hesitancy on offense...) "Understand, again, that you have a completely new system, new style of play for all of these guys, not just the young guys, it's the veteran guys, too. So there is some hesitancy, as well, too, but at the same time, you still can compete and you still can get after people. Defensively, defense is defense and that hasn't changed much over the years. That's toughness, that's blocking out, that's understanding how to guard people different ways and we had some breakdowns on that end of the floor that I'm more concerned about than the offensive end of the floor."

(They started to get after the ball on the glass in the second half...) "They did, but you cannot come out and put yourself in that big of a whole to start out the game. A couple things happened. Number one, obviously, you got to fight now to get back in the game, but more importantly, you give a team a lot of confidence, a lot of moxie, and they start to get after you. All of a sudden, they start shooting it better, they start rebounding it better, they get into a nice groove and you get yourself in a hole against a team on its home floor that's hit its rhythm now. That's difficult to compete against."

(On TCU point guard Keyon Anderson...) "He did an outstanding job in the game. I think he's going to be a great film for these young guys to watch and we talk about point guard play and what it's like at this level, because again, you have a bunch of new young players and you have to learn how to handle yourself. Even though you have some veteran guys, I'm talking about the young guys now, they're getting a lesson on what it's like to be on the road."

(DaVonte Lacy's struggles on the offensive end again. Is he struggling with what you want him to do on offense?) "Not only that, the game the other night, I think knocked him and Dex completely off their game with the way they defending both of those guys and they have not recovered. It's almost like you let that game beat you twice, in a sense. We just have to stay with them and continue to teach, and continue to give them confidence, and get them back home. It was a tough way for this team to start with a new staff, on the road, on a sweep where you don't go home, you stay out here. Lesson learned, we got kicked pretty good, lets go back home, lets regroup, lets go back to work, throw this one out and get back to work."

(On getting back home...) "The thing about college basketball is there's a lot of games and I always tell people don't get too up, don't get too down, just make the adjustments and get ready for the next one. The games come at you so fast, you don't have time to stay too down and you certainly don't have time to celebrate too much, you have to get ready again, so that's the good thing. We go right back home, get ready to play again on Friday at home and you need to regroup and get moving again."

Post-game notes (via WSU Athletics)

-Sophomore Josh Hawkinson had career-highs with 13 rebounds and 14 points, notching his first career double-double. He had then career highs of 8 points and 8 rebounds in the season opener at UTEP on Nov. 14.

-With 11 points, senior DaVonte Lacy moved into 28th place on WSU's all-time scoring list, as he now has 1,049 points, passing Ted Wierman (1967-69).

-Freshman Jackie Davis saw his first action as a Cougar. He played 13 minutes and scored 4 points.

-Freshman guard Ny Redding had his first career block.

-Redding (2-for-2), Davis (2-for-5) and fellow freshman Trevor Dunbar (0-for-2) shot their first career free throws.

-Dunbar had a career-high 3 assists.

-Senior Jordan Railey tied his career high with 3 blocked shots.


This post was edited on 11/17 7:37 PM by Britton Ransford

Washington State will be looking for their first victory of the Ernie Kent era tonight as they face TCU at 5 p.m. The game will be televised locally on ROOT Sports NW.

The starters tonight will remain the same: Ike Iroegbu, DaVonte Lacy, Dexter Kernich-Drew, Junior Longrus and Jordan Railey. You can here's a link for in-game statistics.

Link: https://washingtonstate.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1705546

The men have a mountain to climb. The women went out and pretty much dominated a Top 25 team in Dayton. They didn't shoot very well but off to a nice start. It also looks like at least 3 of the freshmen will make an impact in
Pavlopoulou, Hailey, and Brown although it's still early.

Something I hope the student get behind a bit. Galdeira and Presley are definitely give them a chance in every game if they can stay healthy. They have there usual tough OOC schedule with Dayton, Nebraska (Top 20), Maryland (Top 10), Michigan, and Gonzaga.

Evidently will be playing at Reno in the NBA D-League.

In order to ensure that Rivals.com is prepared and more than stable for National Signing Day, our engineering team will put Rivals through a weekly series of stress tests. Every Wednesday evening, we'll push the Rivals system until it breaks, figure out what broke, fix it, and then get ready for the next week.

Every Wednesday, beginning this Wednesday (11/19), Rivals will experience up to five minutes of downtime between 10:30 p.m. and 12:30 a.m. PT.

Five minutes might sound like a long time, but it is the best way to ensure our legacy system will handle the massive amound of traffic Rivals generates on NSD.

Colin Samuel. The 6-foot-2, 180-pound defensive back is rated three-stars by Rivals and also holds offers from Boston College, Colorado State, Fresno State, Illinois, Michigan, Purdue, San Diego State, SMU, Wyoming and others.

Gorney watched Samuel this weekend against Anaheim (Calif.) Servite and had glowing remarks for the rangy cornerback, who was tasked with covering four-star receiver Equanimeous St. Brown all night.

"The three-star lined up against Equanimeous St. Brown all night and did an admirable job," Gorney said in his SoCal Notebook. "Samuel is long and athletic so he can get his hands in there and poke away passes. On a deep ball to St. Brown, Samuel ran stride with him and knocked away the throw. He's physical at the line and then he has the athleticism to run deep with receivers."

Samuel's latest offers came from Michigan and Purdue and there are plans to visit Boston College, as well. We'll reach out to Samuel to get his thoughts on his first Pac-12 offer shortly.