According to Rivals analyst Adam Gorney, Upland (Calif.) WR Grant Porter picked up a Washington State offer today. The 6-foot-2, 184-pound receiver is rated three-stars by Rivals and also holds offers from Colorado State, Utah and Kansas.

As you likely recall, Washington State and linebackers coach Ken Wilson had a lot of success at Upland last cycle by signing four-star QB Tyler Hilinski and three-star DB Kameron Powell. Last time I talked to Porter, he was very interested in WSU.

1. Teams are going to want to see him physically perform. If he can't, take him as a free agent.
2. Along with #1, his durability should be a concern.
3. Does his "game" translate to the NFL? I think his poor decision making in the past, might hurt him.

That said, I see him signing on with a team and getting a few years, much like Tuel did.

Over the last month or so, I've been tracking preferred walk-ons who are expected to arrive at Washington State this fall, so here's that list. Keep in mind, this is an unofficial list, however these are the guys that have let me know they intend to be invited walk-ons in Pullman.

Folsom (Calif.) Vista del Lago QB Matt Jimison, 6-1, 192

Jimison is probably the highest-rated prospect arriving in Pullman as a preferred walk-on. The NorCal product held an offer from UAB prior to the program going under, and was once committed to Sacramento State. As a junior, Jimison passed for 3,238 yards with 37 touchdowns and only four interceptions. As a senior he tossed for 2,850 yards and 29 touchdowns with just six interceptions.

He has good, but not great size, and has good form as a passer. His arm strength is adequate for the Air Raid offense and he's very accurate. He's your prototypical pro-style passer and could use some work on his mobility. He was once rated a three-star prospect by Rivals.com.

Highlights: http://www.hudl.com/athlete/1382173/matt-jimison



Bellingham (Wash.) Squalicum QB Christian Jorgensen, 6-3, 190

The Squalicum standout originally committed to EWU, who offered him a scholarship, but he ended up switching up and committing to Washington State as a preferred walk-on. Jorgensen threw for 2,851 yards and 33 touchdowns as a senior, a season in which he led the Strom to their first ever state playoff. His senior year was the only season he started, but he was named first-team 2A/3A All-Northwest Conference last year. He was also named to the 2A AP All-State 2nd Team.

Highlights: http://www.hudl.com/athlete/1373920/christian-jorgensen
Lake Forest (Calif.) El Toro WR/PR Kaleb Fossum, 5-11, 185

Fossum is a quick receiver, who figures to start out as a slot receiver at Washington State, though he's a plus punt returner, as well. As a senior, Fossum averaged 19.3 yards per punt return and 12th in the nation in total return yards with 1,032. His 2,082 all-purpose yards were No. 1 in Orange County for non-quarterbacks and he was named the South League MVP after racking up 67 catches for 902 yards and 18 total touchdowns. He was a 1st Team All-CIF Southern Section selection, as well.

Highlights: http://www.hudl.com/athlete/794887/kaleb-fossum

Tacoma (Wash.) Wilson QB/ATH Julius Brown-Yates, 6-0, 200

Brown-Yates committed to Washington State as a preferred walk-on, who could play quarterback or receiver. He was a dual-threat quarterback at Wilson, running for 1,111 yards as a senior, including six rushing touchdowns. As a passer, Brown-Yates 1,461 yards on 135 attempts, which resulted in 10 touchdowns and four interceptions. He had one interception on defense.

Highlights: http://www.hudl.com/athlete/929901/julius-yates-brown

Boise (ID) Timerline K/P Zach Charme, 6-2, 185

Charme committed to Washington State as a preferred walk-on following an unofficial visit a couple weeks ago. He's a strong legged kicker, who probably projects as a punter at the next level, however he can do it all. He still has to work on his technique a bit, but he'll certainly add the competition this fall with Wes Concepcion, Erik Powell and others. He was 30-for-35 on his PATs and 7-for-14 on field goals with a long of 43 yards. He's hit from 65-yards, though. 38-of-51 touchbacks went for touchbacks and he averaged 65-yards per kickoff attempt. Charme averaged 39.5 yards per punt (15 punts) as a senior.

Highlights: http://www.hudl.com/athlete/2118937/highlights

Poulsbo (Wash.) North Kitsap S Andrew Hecker, 6-1, 180

Hecker played wide receiver, free safety and kicker for North Kitsap, but he'll come to Washington State as a safety. He was named to the Washington Class 2A AP 1st Team as a kicker and to the 2nd Team as a defensive back. Hecker's entire 2014 season stats were not immediately available, but he's another solid walk-on.

Highlights: http://www.hudl.com/athlete/755760/andrew-hecker

Lacey (Wash.) North Thurston LS Mike Cole, 6-4, 271

Cole played center for North Thurston for the first three years of his high school career before being moved to offensive tackle as a senior. He'll come to Washington State as a long snapper, however. With Alex Den Bleyker graduating, Cole will join redshirt sophomore Jarred Sonneborn and redshirt freshman Joe Lang in the competition at long snapper.

Highlights: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IOZ2eX09Afo


Los Angeles (Calif.) Augustus Hawkins DE Ramsey Nnamani, 6-2, 210

I haven't talked to Nnamani in a couple months, but at last check he was committed to Washington State as a preferred walk-on, so I'll keep him on the list until further notice. He's extremely undersized at defensive end, but could fill out into a BUCK type. He only played in two games as a senior, but picked up an offer from Langston. As a junior at a previous school, he racked up 110 tackles and 20 sacks.

Highlights: http://www.hudl.com/athlete/4355923/ramsey-nnamani

Lakewood (Wash.) Lakes ATH Kemonee Jenkins, 5-11, 170

Jenkins was a 2nd Team All-SPSL 3A selection as a senior as a defensive back, though not much more information is out there on the preferred walk-on, who projects on the defensive side at WSU. He also played receiver for Lakes. You can check out his sophomore and junior season stats at this link.

Highlights: http://www.hudl.com/athlete/1508553/kemonee-jenkins

Bellingham (Wash.) Sehome OL Drew Norvell, 6-5, 285

Drew Norvell is the son of former Washington State offensive lineman Bob Norvell and he confirmed to me last week that he'll arrive in Pullman this fall as a preferred walk-on. He has good size and could play either inside or outside for the Cougars, but he figures to play on the inside. Norvell was named first-team 2A/3A All-NWC League as a senior. He says he also had preferred walk-on offers from Washington and California, in addition to serious from some Big Sky schools.

Highlights: http://www.hudl.com/athlete/1880152/drew-norvell-65-285lbs

This post was edited on 2/23 11:55 PM by Britton Ransford

Ernie kent landed his point guard of the future. Acquaah is a take charge type of leader who committed to Ernie Kent early. he has long arms is a scorer and a leader on the court. The leadership is important to a basketball team and is missing on his current team. I ' ll predict that he will help attract some quality players to the cougs. He is listed in the top 100 players and will develop more as he is only a junior. A great start to Kent's 2016 class.

Interesting take… Pretty clear and concise. AND upbeat without sounding fluffy and rainbow'y. I completely agree with this assessment. CML is doing all he can, he's taking/taken action to fix issues.

The one issue that is easily overlooked, and done so in this article, is the ever-lovin' injuries bug. With CML and his rules about not talking injuries, I look at last year and see a few injuries that affected us but wasn't talked about much and really wasn't on anyones radar because it wasn't "talked" about. Minimum, I see Marks and Cracraft, I see Dotson just off the top of my head. If we can keep injuries down, like '13, that will be a huge step.

Winning at WSU

Corona (Calif.) Centennial offensive lineman Daniel Juarez announced on Twitter this evening that he picked up an offer from Washington State. The 6-foot-5, 270-pound offensive tackle is rated the No. 72 overall prospect in California and also holds offers from Texas Tech and UNLV.

Aberdeen (Wash.) linebacker Joel Dublanko will take an unofficial visit to Washington State for the Cougars' junior day event on March 28, he tells Rivals.com. The 6-foot-3, 228-pound inside linebacker, rated No. 7 in the country at his position, has already visited Washington State several times, and has developed a very solid relationship with inside linebackers coach Ken Wilson.

In addition to Washington State, Dublanko will attend Oregon State's junior day. He visited Arizona State last weekend for their junior day event and also attended the Rivals Camp Series in Las Vegas on Sunday. He's expected to be a mid-year enrollee, so his recruitment could move fast over the next few months.

Dublanko is rated the No. 222 overall prospect in this class and the No. 3 prospect in the state of Washington. He also holds offers from Mississippi State, Montana, Tennessee, Akron and Vanderbilt.

Portland (Ore.) Central Catholic safety Brady Breeze picked up an offer from Washington State today, according to Jordan Johnson of Northwest Elite Index. The 6-foot-1, 200-pound defensive back, who is currently committed to Oregon, is rated four-stars by Rivals and the No. 10 safety in the 2016 class.

In addition to Washington State and Oregon, Breeze has an offer from Oregon State. He committed to the Ducks last July.

Mililani (HI) running back Vavae Maelpeai tells me he recently picked up an offer from Washington State. The 6-foot, 190-pound running back is rated three-stars by Rivals and also holds offers from California, Colorado, Hawaii and Washington.

Murray (UT) defensive end Max Tupai also recently picked up an offer from Washington State. The 6-foot-3, 265-pound defensive end is unrated by Rivals but also holds offers from Oklahoma State, Oregon State, Utah, Utah State and Washington.

Westlake Village (Calif.) Oaks Christian WR Michael Pittman picked up an offer from Washington State today, the UCLA commit announced on Twitter. The 6-foot-4, 205-pounder is rated four-stars by Rivals and the No. 12 wide receiver prospect in the 2016 class.

The Rivals250 receiver, rated the No. 125 overall prospect in this cycle, also holds offers from Arizona State, California, Nebraska, Notre Dame, USC and Washington. He committed to the Bruins last October and has been flirting with others schools as of late.

For a few reasons:
1. Looking at Seattle, teams are going to want more help on the d-line by having a solid rotation.
2. Cooper is pretty good at getting penetration. He hasn't had much help around him (LBs), so it's hard to see on film what he might do. He's had good games (Oregon) against good talent.
3. Good, strong physical frame and does not have much body fat for his size.
4. Supply/demand. As Parcells once said, not a whole lof of 300 lb, strong, guys that can move and run. If you find them, get them.

I personally think he goes in the 3rd round.

In light of our Athletics fundraising discussion on another thread, I thought I'd offer my experience as a former alumni fundraiser for WSU:

Years ago, when I was at WSU, I worked weekends for "Call-a-Coug". This is the obnoxious general fundraising arm of WSU that is now run by a third party called RuffaloCODY ("RC"). RC has a call center on every participating campus staffed by students using auto-dialers and reading scripts. The auto-dialer detects when a call or a number is terminated and automatically begins dialing the next one. Each night each caller is assigned a "college" to call--Liberal Arts, Ag, Branch Campuses, History, etc.

I forget the terminology--something about LYBUNTs and SYBUNTs--but the most "talented" callers (based on record) get the higher-value calls and the more junior (or less talented) callers get the lower, or "never donated" / "last year but not this year" alums.

All callers are instructed to ask you for money 4x; the amount changes depending on your record as a donor. If I recall, we would start by asking "never donated" callers for around $100 give or take. If you said no, we'd do Ask #2 for $75. If you said no again, we'd do Ask #3 for $50. If you said no again and STILL hadn't hung up, we'd ask for $25. The amounts are obviously higher if you're a previous donor. A call center supervisor periodically listens in on your calls, and if you get caught repeatedly not making all 4 asks, you get fired.

You were supposed to make all 4 asks in almost all cases, except in case of loved ones' death etc. I had to harass alums who were unemployed, alums who were underwater on their mortgage, alums who were wracked with hospital bills from an illness or with a newborn baby... I even had to harass a guy in the Midwest for money as they were picking up their lives after a horrible natural disaster. Needless to say, we probably alienated many of these people--I know I got yelled at and hung up on a lot.

But you still have to ask 4x, because the models show that universities maximize revenue that way. Not to pat myself on the back, but I would frequently get chided for spending too much time with callers--if I recall, the ideal call time was 5-10 minutes and you would get flagged if your calls were going over 15+ minutes. Because I gave alums the personal touch that the rest of this soulless operation lacked, I converted a lot of "never before" donors. They rarely gave a ton of money, but people appreciated a real personal touch with a current student more than some rushed dipsh1t reading a script (I never read the scripts).

My thoughts on this: WSU would probably make less money running its own call center, but would have burned fewer bridges, and would have better relationships, with alums. The fact that RC is their "big bet" in terms of fundraising is a scary prospect. Even if you have to have RC, you have to have a separate program for the big moneymaker (football). But if you read through my account in the ANWCF - PDX thread, WSU runs one hell of a hamfisted operation across the board, with RC as the main apparatus and a really crappy side effort for athletics--I'm a CAF donor and have heard from Athletics exactly once while I've never donated to my other uni (UGA) and hear from them all the time with well-timed, interesting and diverse materials. UGA also uses RC but I've never heard from them, and their other Athletic efforts more than make up for it.

The worst people to call were branch campus people (Tri-Cities, Vancouver) because there was zero school spirit, and I had to explain to them what was going on at their campuses (which I had never visited).

I also worked there around the time all fundraising companies had discovered "Planned Giving" programs; i.e., "can we have some of your money when you die?" That was a brutal program to tell people about, and must have sounded insanely offensive to people in their 70s and 80s--in the "twilight of their life," like Sinatra said.

By the way, there is a way to get off these calls if you like. Unfortunately I don't remember the "magic words" (there literally are magic words you can say to get off the list), but it's something to the effect of "don't ever call this number again." Surprised? You'll be even more surprised to learn that, even if you say the magic combination of words, you only go off the list for 4 years. After that, they have other models showing that more money can be squeezed out of you.

At the Rivals Quarterback Challenge in Los Angeles over the weekend, Beaverton (Ore.) QB Sam Noyer says Washington State is one of the schools coming after him the hardest, according to a video interview with Rivals analyst Jason Howell.

The 6-foot-4, 200-pound pro-style quarterback is still looking for his first offer, but says he's hearing from Arizona State, Washington, Utah, Oregon State, Boise State and several others. He does not have plans to visit Washington State just yet.

The Cougars' junior day will be March 28, which will allow prospects to attend the first weekend of spring practices.

Video: https://rivals.yahoo.com/video/press-and-news-football/washingtonstate/QB-Challenge-Sam-Noyer-1132978

Jumped out to a 17-4 lead over UW. It's been huskies 34-16 since (mutts lead at half 38-33).

Junior point guard Milan Acquaah from Los Angeles (Calif.) Cathedral Prep has committed to Wazzu per his high school coach William Middlebrooks.

Tony Bennett's Virginia plays Florida State, then Ernie Kent's Cougars play the UW tomorrow on ESPNU. To quote Dabney Coleman in "You've got mail" when discovering his newest squeeze was once his son"s nanny: "how ironical".

Portland (Ore.) Central Cathedral ATH Lamar Winston announced on Twitter tonight that he picked up an offer from Washington State. The 6-foot-3, 205-pounder is rated four-stars by Rivals and the No. 11 athlete in the 2016 class. In addition to WSU, the Rivals250 prospect holds offers from Arizona State, Boise State, Oregon, Oregon State and Washington.

Oakland (Calif.) Bishop O'Dowd OLB Camilo Eifler announced on Twitter that he picked up an offer from Washington State today. The 6-foot-2, 210-pound linebacker is rated four-stars by Rivals and the No. 19 outside linebacker in the 2016 class.

The Rivals250 prospect, rated the No. 190 overall prospect in the 2016 class, also holds offers from California, Colorado, Duke, Michigan, Northwestern, Oregon State, UCLA and Washington.

Any word on who our quarterback targets are for the next class? The last two cycles have locked up a good one fairly early and I was hoping that trend could continue (and be a useful pitch for that passel of receivers we need to collect).

is on the cover of Sports Illustrated this week. Haven't had a chance to read the article yet, but just wanted to say "Way to go Klay."


Go Cougs!!!

Lancaster (Calif.) Paraclete RB Melquise Stovall announced on Instagram today that he picked up an offer from Washington State. The 5-foot-9, 180-pound running back is rated four-stars by Rivals and the No. 12 running back in the 2016 class.

The Rivals250 back, who's rated the No. 220 overall prospect in the country, also holds offers from Boise State, California, Colorado, San Diego State, Miami and Washington. The Huskies and Hurricanes are the early favorites.

It looks like Washington State signee Derrien King has suffered a broken leg. Hoping to have more soon.

Harbor City (Calif.) Narbonne OL Alex Akingbulu picked up an offer from Washington State tonight, his coach tells WW. The 6-foot-6, 265-pound offensive line prospect is rated four-stars by Rivals and the No. 17 offensive tackle in the 2016 class. The Rivals250 prospect also holds offers from Boston College, California, Colorado State, Michigan, UCLA and Utah.

Gardena (Calif.) Serra safety C.J. Pollard announced on Twitter that he's picked up an offer from Washington State. The 6-foot, 167-pounder is rated four-stars by Rivals and the No. 19 safety prospect in the country. Pollard also holds offers from Arizona State, Boston College, California, Colorado, Illinois, Michigan, Oregon State, San Jose State, USC, Utah and Wisconsin.

Cougs scored 3 in the first and had to hold on in the ninth to beat Oklahoma 4-3. Ok State tomorrow in the four game series with Big 12 teams.