Another day, another WSU practice
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FROM PULLMAN -- Another scorcher on the Palouse this afternoon, with Washington State going through its fourth practice of camp -- and its final practice before putting on full pads. We were there, as usual, and have some notes and observations after the jump.
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Some personnel notes to start off ... After missing the last two days of practice, offensive lineman Wade Jacobson was back. He wasn't in pads, though, since this was only his second official practice. He'll be able to put on shoulder pads tomorrow. Jake Rodgers was also back at practice. ... Alex Jackson has made it to Pullman and practiced with the team today, though he wore a white defensive jersey and worked out with the defensive backs. He's listed as a receiver. Asked about it afterward, coach Mike Leach said that since Jackson can't be in pads yet, "we’re just running him through drills and seeing some good things he can do ... we're looking at him at a variety of stuff." Sounds like Jackson could wind up somewhere other than receiver. ... CORRECTION: A WSU spokesman has clarified that Rahmel Dockery was indeed at practice yesterday, wearing a defensive No. 32 jersey, the same as freshman safety David Bucannon. It appears as if Dockery will be working with the defensive backs. ... OL Rico Forbes did some light workouts on the side, though he was using crutches to get around and had a large wrap on his lower left leg. CB Nolan Washington and LB Corey Laufasa also worked out on bikes and didn't wear pads. Neither did LB Tana Pritchard. ... As for the action on the field, Leach said it was the best practice of camp so far. He said he thought the team practiced without hesitation, which he liked because "if you have nobody playing slow, then you can correct techniques and stuff like that." ... Gabe Marks continues to get plenty of action during team session, catching a number of balls today (and letting the defensive backs know about it). ... Another of Leach's recruits, Brett Bartolone, ran some plays during team session and made a couple of nice grabs at the slot receiver position. ... With Jacobson unavailable due to the whole pads rule, the first-team offensive line featured John Fullington, Matt Goetz, Elliott Bosch, Jake Rodgers and Dan Spitz. ... Had some questions about who's been playing along the defensive line. Today, the starting unit was Toni Pole, Xavier Cooper and Matthew Bock, though others such as Steven Hoffart and Ioane Gauta (pronounced You-WAHN-ay NOW-tuh, by the way) are getting looks, too. ... Damante Horton made two interceptions during team session, one of them in a red-zone drill. ... Marquess Wilson had an impressive touchdown catch in the back corner of the end zone, in which he tipped the ball over the defender to himself.
That's about all for now.
Christian Caple can be reached at christianc@spokesman.com. Twitter: @ChristianCaple