New game in town

PULLMAN – Before he faced the boosters, before he faced the press, before he faced anyone else at Washington State University, new football coach Paul Wulff had to face a key group.

He had to meet the Cougars.

On their turf.

So Wulff, the 31st head football coach in WSU history, descended into the football team’s locker room and met his players, a group that has known only one coach, Bill Doba, in their time in Pullman.

For Wulff, it was a new experience as well – as a coach.

“This was a first-time experience, being at one school and coming here,” Wulff said of meeting with the team early Tuesday afternoon.

But he did have some memories on which to draw.

“What I did tell them … I’ve been in their shoes,” he said. “As a student-athlete at Washington State, I had three different head coaches in five years.”

They were, in order, Jim Walden, Dennis Erickson and Mike Price. So Wulff had some experience in hearing what a new coach had to say, and what the players were worried about.

“There’s a great deal of uncertainty of not knowing what’s next, what’s going to happen,” he said. “People naturally resist change to a certain level. I’ve been there, I’ve been in their shoes and I understand where they are at.”

Wulff didn’t have to sell center Kenny Alfred, whose brother Matt played for Wulff at Eastern.

“I’m just excited,” said Kenny Alfred, who is entering his junior year. “Change is always exciting. Any coach who is going to come in and bring new things is probably a good thing.”

Alfred and others said Wulff brought a message of change with him into the locker room, change in attitude and change in how they play.

“He basically told us how he got hired, the coaching staff and stuff and what he plans to do in the off-season with spring ball, the system he’s run on offense and defense,” said guard Dan Rowlands, who will be a senior. “He said he was going to play into our strengths. We’ve got more guys in certain positions, he might move guys around.

“He said we’re going to be aggressive, come off the ball, regardless, on both sides of the ball, play downhill, play fast.”

He also made it clear there is a new era coming.

“I’m a believer the new season begins now, and each kid has an opportunity to prove themselves,” he said. “It’s our job to put the players on the field who are doing the best for the team and the program. So I guess that means all the jobs are open.”

Most players were just happy to know a coach had been hired, and happy to have the chance to meet him.

“That was the first time we heard anything since coach Doba got fired,” Rowlands said. “It’s been a week or two with no information whatsoever.”

Even linebacker Greg Trent, a senior-to-be who was a member of the athletic department’s advisory committee, met Wulff for the first time.

“He’s a good fit,” Trent said. “He’s a young coach, he’s an enthusiastic coach. I think he’s going to change some things around here. It’s going to be something a little different, but I think the boys are going to adjust to it.”

That enthusiasm is what sold Cory Evans, another senior-to-be linebacker.

“He’s a very enthusiastic coach,” Evans said. “He has a lot of energy, you can tell, from the first impression. A few changes are going to be made, so we’re just looking forward to it. We’re looking forward to bonding and coming together as a team.

“He gave us one thing, he said it’s our team, so we’re going to have to come together as a team, get the ball rolling and get moving.”

If there were doubters in the locker room? Wulff had a response for them as well.

“The only answer I have is time,” he said. “Let’s come ready to work, let’s get to know you and let’s build some trust in each other – and let’s move forward.”