Cougars show promise in first fall football scrimmage, QB competition continues

Aug. 16—PULLMAN — Maxwell Woods is no stranger to opportunity. The sophomore Washington State running back seized the day in December, racking up 152 all-purpose yards on Boise's blue turf in a Potato Bowl victory over Utah State. Woods again stole the show in April, emerging as one of the finer performers in several spring scrimmages. So his performance Saturday — during WSU's first of two fall camp scrimmages at Gesa Field — was hardly a surprise. With teammate Kirby Vorhees sidelined but expected back next week, Woods stepped right up, carving out runs of 16 and 13 yards, respectively, within the scrimmage's first three plays with the No. 1 offense against the No. 1 defense. Woods finished with an unofficial seven carries for 34 yards. It's likely not a question of if Woods will overtake Vorhees for the RB1 role. At this point, rather, it's more about how much Woods will factor into the offense alongside his teammate of two years. And with the last eight months alone as evidence, Woods may play quite a bit. "Max, first thing I'm going to say is he does more than what's expected," first-year WSU coach Kirby Moore said. "He is one of the first guys in this building. If I'm getting a morning workout in, he's usually in there at 6:30, 6:45. Breakfast doesn't open till 7:00, so he is always in there getting extra work, and I think that's showing up on the field." Advertisement The WSU offense — with rotational reps for the three starting quarterback candidates — split the first half with the defense, then responded, claiming the red zone lockout period off QB Julian Dugger's rushing touchdown. Freshman running back Tre Hill Jr. accounted for an 11-yard touchdown later in the scrimmage with the No. 2 offense. It's that response by the offense, which lost a lockout period and the associated award of Ferdinand's ice cream earlier in the week, that Moore said impressed him the most. "Offense had two good initial drives right there," Moore said. "Defense did a good job holding (them to) field goals. Then defense responded, I thought, for the next couple drives, forcing some three and outs. "Defense won the lockout on Monday. Offense won it today. So you like that back and forth." While the Cougars' energy was solid, Moore said that he wants his team to clean up the penalties. WSU accumulated about 12 penalties on the day. "You've just got to keep teaching technique," defensive coordinator Trent Bray said. "A lot of it (is) they don't trust themselves. They're in good position, they panic and they reach. That's really what a lot of the holding calls were." What to make of the QB competition Saturday was the latest installment in a three-way starting quarterback competition between sophomore Caden Pinnick, last year's Big Sky Freshman of the Year at UC Davis, redshirt freshman Owen Eshelman and Dugger, a former Pitt signal-caller in his second year at Wazzu. Pinnick took the opening reps with the No. 1 offense, leading a 13-play field-goal drive to kick off the scrimmage. He found redshirt freshman tight end Cash Landau in the end zone late in the scrimmage and completed 13-of-19 passes for about 80 yards. Dugger had the most explosive day, leading scoring drives on the majority of his series and finding Pullman High alum Caleb Northcroft for a 51-yard completion with the No. 3 unit. Eshelman didn't manage any particularly flashy plays, but kept the offense moving down the field to set up a Jack Stevens field goal. The sophomore kicker, back from last year's roster, was 4-for-4 on the day. Some reps were conducted directly in front of two staffers wheeling dual dollies stacked with three speakers each and covered in trash bags to protect the equipment from the light rain that serenaded the scrimmage. The speakers blared crowd noise, the "Jaws" theme on third down and other music to simulate a gameday atmosphere. "I thought at times all three made their plays," offensive coordinator Matt Miller said, offering the asterisk that the finer details would be most visible on tape. "I also thought at times all three did not make their plays and left some things out there, whether it was a decision here, decision there, operating in the pre-snap, things like that." While the Cougs may narrow the QB competition from three to two soon, both Moore and Miller said that further evaluation would take place. "It's probably too early to say. I really need to watch the film and see," Moore said. "Sometimes, the quarterback gets too much credit, too much blame. (We'll) See some of the route distribution (and) protection. There were a couple situations where we've got to make sure we stay on schedule." Defensive line dangerous There is a flattering disagreement between WSU's two presumptive starting defensive ends. "It seems like every time I'm rallying to the ball, Matyus (McLain) already has the ball carrier on the ground," Vanderbilt transfer DE Linus Zunk said. McLain, a former Idaho Vandal from Priest River, had a different perspective. "I feel like it's the opposite. I see it from the other point of view that Linus is always there," McLain said. "Like today, he got two sacks, and I was like, 'Oh, I was right there.' But I mean, I'm so happy for him because with both of us rushing off the edge, we've got such a good chance." A good chance to wreak some havoc, which the WSU defensive front did Saturday, continuing what has been a solid fall camp all around. It was McLain, during the scrimmage's first half, who delivered the final hit on Woods for a loss of yardage after the defense swarmed the line of scrimmage. While Zunk was counted for two simulated sacks on the day, the requiem of laying off the quarterback left something to be desired for the 6-foot-6, 264-pound sixth-year player from Berlin, Germany. "That is a big part of the game, getting the quarterback on the ground, and for us not really being able to do that ever until that first game, I want to say it's frustrating, but that's just part of football," Zunk said. "It's something that we're going to have to focus on and try to imitate as good as we can during individual (drills)." Cornerback Elmo Wartson, a 6-3, 180-pound Modesto Junior College transfer, made three head-turning hits, while CB Jahil Tucker took reps with the No. 1 defense in his return from an injury. Another tight end injury Early in the scrimmage, senior tight end Hudson Cedarland, who has a history of injuries, fell and remained on the ground following a play, seemingly grasping his knee. After the trainers ran out to treat him, a staffer drove the cart onto the field to escort the fifth-year Coug, who switched from linebacker to tight end last year, off the field. With sophomore Trey Leckner out until midseason and Beau Baker missing time this week with what Moore said is "a mild foot sprain," Reed, Landau and UCLA transfer Jack Pedersen have taken on bigger roles at tight end. Moore said he did not know the specifics or severity of Cedarland's injury, but would meet with the training staff later in the day. Taylor can be reached at 208-848-2260, staylor@lmtribune.com, or on X or Instagram @Sam_C_Taylor.