Leach says Luani will play at Boise State

PULLMAN—Mike Leach is notoriously succinct when talking about the specifics of upcoming football games, but the Washington State coach needed just one word to drastically change the perceptions of his team’s upcoming game at Boise State.

“Yes,” was the explosive utterance.

The typically gruff answer came in response to a question about whether or not free safety Shalom Luani would play against the Broncos. Luani, an All-Pac-12 honorable mention player as a junior, sat our WSU’s season-opening 45-42 loss to Eastern Washington, likely as part of the fall-out following his late-August arrest for fighting at a Pullman pizza joint.

When further pressed about Luani’s punishment, Leach said, “I think that anything that’s an ongoing investigation ought to be like that, but suffice to say I’m comfortable with any punishment we’ve issued and don’t plan to issue any more.”

The safety was sorely missed against the Eagles. First-year junior college transfer Robert Taylor started in Luani’s place, but was ejected after he was flagged for targeting an offensive player. EWU quarterback Gage Gubrud passed for 474 yards on the Cougars defense, frequently taking advantage of poor secondary play by the Cougars.

Cooper Kupp’s all-alone 26-yard touchdown reception was a particular play where the defense likely felt Luani’s absence, Kupp’s 75-yard dash to the end zone with a safety in hot pursuit was another. Kupp’s key third-down catch on EWU’s final scoring drive might have been more difficult with a big-hitting safety lurking nearby, and who knows if Gubrud’s 30-yard touchdown sprint would have happened if Luani had been available.