WSU Cougars stand in solidarity with Universities of Idaho and Virginia

WSU Cougars stand in solidarity with Universities of Idaho and Virginia

WSU Coach Dickert shares message of support in weekly press conference

By Stephan Wiebe Lewiston Trib,  Nov 16, 2022 

 

Pullman, Washington --

Wringing his hands and occasionally glancing down at a paper in front of him, Washington State coach Jake Dickert opened his weekly press conference with a somber message of support and solidarity Monday.

Four University of Idaho students allegedly were murdered Sunday in Moscow, Idaho, with an “edged weapon” in their rental home, police say. The same day, three University of Virginia football players were shot and killed on their campus in Charlottesville, North Carolina.

“I’m going to lead with something that’s weighing on our hearts and minds,” Dickert said. “Just want to say our hearts and prayers go out to everyone involved in a terrible tragedy at the University of Virginia. Thinking of coach (Tony) Elliott and his team, and the impact goes way beyond football and it impacts the people in our building as well.

“... Four young people passed away in our neighborhood at the University of Idaho. Prayers out to them and their families. I take the coaching hat off and go to the dad, the husband, the father. … There’s a lot of people hurting in this world and our thoughts and prayers as a program are with them. It takes you back to why we’re here.”

Dickert stressed he and his staff take the safety of their student athletes seriously.

“Families trust our program with our young men,” he said. “It’s a responsibility that I take very seriously being a dad of three. I want to make sure that’s first and foremost with where our program’s at today.”

WSU’s Jackson tabbed with weekly honor

On a defensive line as deep as Washington State’s, it’s often difficult for a single member to stand out enough to get individual accolades.

That wasn’t the case for junior edge Brennan Jackson this week.

Jackson was named the Pac-12 Conference defensive lineman of the week after tallying five tackles, including a career-high two sacks, and one forced fumble in the Saturday win against Arizona State, it was announced.

Jackson ranks fourth in the Pac-12 in tackles for loss (10.5) and is tied for seventh in sacks (five).

“Obviously, it’s a team effort at the end of the day,” Jackson said. “These accolades are great and all but I was more happy with the ‘W’ at the end of the day.

“Without the guys that go out there every single day and give us a great look on scout team, this wouldn’t be possible, so I gotta give a shout out to those guys.”

Trainer’s room

Dickert said receiver Robert Ferrel and safety Jordan Lee will practice “in some capacity” this week and they’ll see how much they progress before Saturday’s game at Arizona.

Ferrel, a senior slot receiver and returner, was injured in the first half against the Sun Devils. Although it’s unclear when and how he was hurt, Ferrel didn’t return to the game after an Arizona State player put his full weight on the 5-foot-8 receiver after a play was done in the first half. He appeared in street clothes on the sideline for the second half.

Lee, a senior safety, has been injured twice this season and missed half of the team’s 10 games.

Freshman running back Jaylen Jenkins returned against the Sun Devils, rushing for 43 yards on seven attempts.

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Washington State’s men basketball stunned by Prairie View A&M of Texas: In Texas, Cougars never get on track in falling to Panthers in Pac-12/SWAC Legacy Series game

11/16/2022 from Lewiston Trib

PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas  — Will Douglas had 26 points and seven rebounds and Jeremiah Gambrell added 19 points as Prairie View A&M beat Washington State 70-59 on Tuesday at William J. Nicks Building.

 “We knew it was going to be a really tough challenge, being on the road with a team that doesn’t get a lot of opportunities like this, and we knew they were going to take advantage of it,” Cougars coach Kyle Smith said. “They really out-competed us. I can’t put it any other way. You tip your cap to them, but I really thought we should have had a little more fight in us. We got humbled tonight.”

It was the third win for the Southwestern Athletic Conference against the Pac-12 in the inaugural Pac-12/SWAC Legacy Series, after Grambling beat Colorado last week and Texas Southern downed Arizona State.

Douglas was 11-of-20 from the field and Gambrell 6-of-15 for Prairie View (3-0).

The Panthers led by 21 points with 7:28 remaining in the second half before Washington State closed on a 16-6 run.

Douglas scored 17 points in the first half to help Prairie View build a 41-27 lead by halftime. The Panthers shot 56.6 percent from the field (17-of-30) in the first 20 minutes and held the Cougars to 31.8 percent (7-for-22).

TJ Bamba scored nine of his 16 points in the final six minutes for Washington State (1-2). Kymany Houinsou added 10 points. Senior forward DJ Rodman was out with an unspecified injury, allowing some of the younger players to get more playing time.

 “We need everyone to play well, but we should be able to compete a little bit better,” Smith said.

Prairie View held advantages in most every category, including rebounds (33-30), assists (16-6), points in the paint (28-10), points off turnovers (14-2), second-chance points (8-4) and fast-break points (11-5).

The Cougars next play at 6 p.m. Monday against Eastern Washington at Spokane Arena.

WASHINGTON ST. (1-2)   Gueye 0-6 4-4 4, Bamba 4-7 5-6 16, Houinsou 2-3 6-6 10, Mullins 2-7 2-2 7, Powell 2-7 0-0 6, Darling 2-5 2-2 6, Rosario 1-6 1-3 4, Diongue 1-2 4-6 6. Totals 14-43 24-29 59.

PRAIRIE VIEW (3-0)  Rasas 4-8 0-0 8, Douglas 11-20 2-2 26, Gambrell 6-15 3-4 19, Nelson 1-6 0-0 2, Smith 2-3 0-0 6, Augustin 3-5 0-0 7, Harris 1-1 0-0 2, Miles 0-1 0-0 0, Neal 0-0 0-0 0, Bell 0-1 0-0 0, Myles 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 28-60 5-6 70.

Halftime: Prairie View, 41-27. 3-Point Goals: Washington St. 7-21 (Bamba 3-6, Powell 2-4, Mullins 1-4, Rosario 1-4, Darling 0-1, Diongue 0-1, Gueye 0-1), Prairie View 9-19 (Gambrell 4-11, Smith 2-2, Douglas 2-3, Augustin 1-2, Nelson 0-1). Fouled Out: Rasas. Rebounds: Washington St. 28 (Bamba, Rosario 5), Prairie View 32 (Rasas, Douglas 7). Assists: Washington St. 6 (Mullins 2), Prairie View 16 (Nelson 6). Total Fouls: Washington St. 13, Prairie View 24. A: 863 (6,500).

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Cougs add three in early signing period

Lewiston Trib

PULLMAN — The Washington State men’s basketball team announced it had signed three players to the class of 2023.

The Cougars signed forward/center Rueben Chinyelu, forward Oscar Cluff and guard Parker Gerrits.

Chinyelu averaged 12.3 points and 17.6 rebounds in helping his native Nigeria to the third-place game of the 2019 FIBA U16 Africa Championship. He recently made his debut for the national senior team in August. He comes by way of NBA Academy Africa, an elite training center in Senegal for top high school age prospects in the African continent.

Cluff, of Sunshine Coast, Australia, averaged 12.5 points and 10.8 rebounds, hitting 75 percent (165-for-220) from the field at Cochise College (Ariz.). He helped his team earn a berth in the National Junior College Athletic Association Division I tournament. So far this year, Cluff is averaging 18 points and 12.5 rebounds in two games.

Gerris, a senior at Olympia (Wash.) High School, helped the Bears to a 26-6 mark a year ago. He averaged 19 points in helping the team to a third-place finish in the Washington Class 4A state tournament and earned first-team all-state honors

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Former WSU football coach Nick Rolovich files wrongful firing suit

By Emry Dinman Spokesman-Review 11/14/2022

Former Washington State University football coach Nick Rolovich filed a lawsuit Friday claiming his rights were violated when he was fired for failing to comply with the state’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate.

The suit, filed in Whitman County Superior Court, names WSU, Athletics Director Patrick Chun and Gov. Jay Inslee.

Brian Fahling, Rolovich’s attorney , declined to provide additional comment on the filing, as did Inslee’s office.

WSU wrote in a statement Monday that Rolovich’s suit is “wholly without merit” and argued that the institution lawfully complied with the state’s mandate.

“Washington State University will vigorously defend itself against Mr. Rolovich’s claims,” wrote Phil Weiler, vice president of university marketing and communications.

Rolovich and four assistant coaches were fired by the university in October for failing to comply with the state’s mandate, which required state employees to be either fully vaccinated or have received an exemption approval. WSU denied Rolovich’s request for a religious exemption.

Rolovich appealed his firing in a letter submitted in November to Chun, but the appeal was denied. A second appeal was then sent to WSU President Kirk Schulz, who denied the appeal in December, according to court documents.

Rolovich’s suit contains eight counts, alleging breach of contract, discrimination, wrongful withholding of wages, as well as violations of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act and the First and 14th Amendments of the U.S. Constitution.

Rolovich claims that the university and Inslee forced Rolovich to choose between his job and an “experimental vaccine.” He further asserted that the school could have safely accommodated him but improperly questioned the legitimacy of his religious objection to receiving the vaccine.

Chun is being sued in his personal capacity. Rolovich alleged that the athletic director improperly interfered in the school’s review of his exemption request and was openly hostile to Rolovich’s reasoning for not receiving the vaccine.

Rolovich alleges in the suit that Chun tried to get the head coach into counseling, questioned his mental health and accused him of having “extreme views” on several issues as a result of Rolovich’s decision not to get vaccinated. Chun also allegedly referred to Rolovich as a “con-man” with “situational integrity.”

Rolovich claims that Chun stated the governor tightened the personal and religious exemptions to force Rolovich’s hand because Inslee was angry that the state’s highest paid employee was asserting personal and religious objections to the vaccine mandate.

Though Rolovich filed a $25 million tort claim in April against the University, alleging he was wrongfully terminated, the suit filed Friday does not specify how much Rolovich is seeking.

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Washington State football notebook: Cougars still sorting out offensive line

By Colton Clark S-R of Spokane/Inland Empire 11/16/2022

PULLMAN – Two starting spots on Washington State’s offensive line have yet to be decided as the Cougars prepare to take on Arizona at 11 a.m. Saturday.

Right guard Ma’ake Fifita went down with an ankle injury in the third quarter of WSU’s 28-18 win over Arizona State last weekend. The sophomore from Everett has been held out of practice so far this week, coach Jake Dickert confirmed Wednesday.

“We haven’t quite gotten him out there this week,” Dickert said. “We’re going to try in the walkthrough (Thursday) to see how it goes.”

If Fifita is unavailable, the Cougars will ask sophomore Quinn McCarthy to make his first-career start. McCarthy filled in well last weekend during his fourth-career appearance on the WSU O-line.

“We feel confident in Quinn and what he gave us last week,” Dickert said. “We felt like he didn’t miss a beat.”

The Cougars are also sorting out their starter at left tackle. Grant Stephens, the team’s regular starter at right guard, shifted to LT last weekend to replace WSU’s best offensive lineman: Jarrett Kingston, who suffered a season-ending injury Nov. 5 at Stanford.

“I thought Grant did an admirable job,” Dickert said. “Obviously, that’s not easy. … What we asked him to do, not many people can handle it.”

Christian Hilborn, WSU’s starter at left guard throughout the season, is in the mix for the job. Hilborn, a reserve offensive tackle last season, took over for Kingston at LT against Stanford.

“We’re still looking at left tackle,” Dickert said. “Christian Hilborn has gotten better and better. He’s a little more firm out there. We’re still looking at who is going to be the best option at left tackle.”

With Stephens stationed at left tackle, Fifita came off the bench to take his place at right guard last weekend. Fifita played guard last year, then started the first six games of the year at right tackle. He switched back to guard last month and WSU called upon redshirt freshman Fa’alili Fa’amoe to adopt starting duties at right tackle.

“Everything is new to him,” Dickert said of Fa’amoe, who played on the defensive line last year and flipped to offense this offseason, splitting reps at guard and tackle throughout fall camp. “But every week is amazing, not just the small steps but the strides forward that (Fa’amoe) is taking. … He’s having fun out there. He’s getting better. He comes to practice every day and I think he’s been really physical and tough, but he’s taking big strides forward and I’m really excited about what he’s brought to our offensive line and our team. I remember that first conversation, when we told him we were going to move him. It’s the trust he had in our vision and this was the vision.”

Four of WSU’s five starters on the offensive line last weekend have played multiple positions this season. Center Konner Gomness is the only first-team offensive lineman to have played one position throughout the year.

“He’s the anchor,” Dickert said of Gomness, a fourth-year sophomore and team captain. “He’s the anchor, mentality-wise. He’s the anchor, leadership-wise. And we put a lot on our center, too. This is a scheme where he sets the protection, he sets the targets in the run game. … That’s the one position, at least, we’ve had extreme consistency with. We can move pieces around him, but moving that center piece is hard. Konner is the glue to all five.”

Slot receiver Robert Ferrel exited the lineup in the second quarter against ASU after a hard collision. The senior transfer practiced Wednesday “in a non-contact format” and is probable to play Saturday, Dickert said.

 “But he looked great, he looked fast and looked himself,” Dickert added. “Those are the biggest things I look for: no hesitations, no wincing. So, I feel like Rob will be really good to go.”

Senior strong safety Jordan Lee is a “game-time decision” against Arizona. The Nevada transfer sustained an undisclosed injury Oct. 27 versus Utah. Lee had missed three games earlier this season after going down with an injury in Week 2 versus Wisconsin.

 “Although this year hasn’t gone how I expected it would, I realized I’m supposed to be here, supposed to be in this moment,” Lee tweeted Tuesday. “Every roadblock I’ve faced will only help me in my future. I’m built for this. When it’s all said and done, I’ll pay these lessons forward. I can’t complain.”

 

Defensive tackle rotation healthy again

Freshman defensive tackle David Gusta, in the midst of a breakout season, missed three games with an injury, but returned to the rotation versus the Sun Devils and had affected two plays with QB hits.

“(Gusta) has given us a lot this year,” Dickert said. “One of those surprise guys, and I think that’s a big thing as you go throughout a season. You need some of those guys.”

Senior Christian Mejia, the most productive DT for the Cougars this year, played just 10 snaps against ASU due to a nagging shoulder injury. He will “be at full strength this week.”

 “He barely practiced last week,” Dickert said of Mejia, who leads all WSU DTs with 26 tackles, four TFLs and 1½ sacks. “He had a shoulder deal. As the game was going, we kinda kept him out of there. I just talked to him today. He said, ‘Coach, I feel so much better.’ “

Dickert commended his five-man DT rotation for “playing tough and physical, and keeping the line of scrimmage flat” this season. Mejia, Gusta, Amir Mujahid, Antonio Pule III and Nusi Malani have combined for 79 tackles, 9½ tackles for loss and 3½ sacks. In 13 games last year, the Cougars’ DTs totaled 69 tackles, seven TFLs and three sacks.

WSU struggled to hold up against powerful rushing offenses last season, but the Cougars are getting a stronger push this year from their big men, who have helped the team to the No. 4 rushing defense in the Pac-12 (122.6 yards per game).

 “In the past, they’ve gotten a lot of heat for holding us back,” Dickert said. “Not even close (to true).”

Rookies earn kudos

Three veteran Cougars – edge Brennan Jackson, tailback Nakia Watson and slotback Lincoln Victor – had the same answer when asked to name scout-team players that have turned heads behind the scenes this year.

True freshman quarterback John Mateer and rookie cornerback Javan Robinson drew praise this week from their older teammates.

 “John’s intangible pieces are off the chart,” Dickert said. “Then his physical tools … he’s got such a quick trigger. He’s just so different.”

Mateer won a three-man competition in the preseason for WSU’s backup job. The dual-threat QB from the Dallas area made his first-career appearance Nov. 5, playing the entire fourth quarter of WSU’s blowout win over Stanford. Mateer went 2-for-2 through the air for 32 yards and a touchdown, contributing 59 yards on four carries. Dickert has sensed an uptick in Mateer’s confidence at practice since his performance versus the Cardinal.

 “John Mateer is a baller,” Watson said.

 “That kid’s work ethic is next to none,” Jackson added. “It’s insane the amount of time he spends going through extra progressions. I see him in the gym every single night, just getting extra work in. … I think he’s going to be a phenomenal player. He already has that little leadership role down pat. He’s only a freshman, but he still commands the attention of the offense when he goes out there.”

A three-star recruit from the Orlando metro, Robinson’s name came up several times during post-practice media sessions this preseason as a freshman to keep an eye on going forward. Robinson’s fast development and dedication to the mental side of the game reminds Dickert of another CB on the team: Chau Smith-Wade, a first-year starter who has emerged as one of the best defensive backs in the Pac-12.

 “I anticipate him being one of those Chau-type players as he goes throughout his career,” said Dickert, who expects Robinson to play “20 to 40 snaps” per game as a sophomore “then all of a sudden, in Year 3 or 4, you’re like, ‘Dang, this guy is one of the better players in this league.’ “

Robinson has played in two games and Mateer one. The two will use their redshirts this year.

Haberer posting big numbers

Nick Haberer, the Cougars’ sophomore punter, has distinguished himself as one of the Pac-12’s best specialists after earning freshman All-America honors last year.

The Australia native leads the conference in hang-time average (4.16 seconds), fair catches (23) and punts inside the 20-yard line (16). Haberer ranks sixth nationally in hang time. He pinned opponents inside their 10-yard line on six punts over the past two weeks.

 “Not possible without (long snapper Simon Samarzich’s) snaps and my boys blocking their asses off and running down to cover,” Haberer tweeted.

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