Washington State receiver Renard Bell returns from injury for final game of career in LA Bowl

LOS ANGELES – Washington State veteran Renard Bell returned, just in time for the Cougars’ finale – the last game of Bell’s long collegiate career, which concluded in his hometown.

Bell suited up for the Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl on Saturday against Mountain West champion Fresno State at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California.

The slot receiver, a seventh-year Cougar out of Los Angeles, had been ruled out of the game a couple of weeks ago. Coach Jake Dickert told reporters Wednesday after practice that there had been no changes to Bell’s status.

“Renard’s getting close to being at full strength. I just think it’s something that, at this point in his career, it’s not worth the risk of putting him back out there,” Dickert said. “He’s done an amazing job of being a leader throughout all of this. He’s getting back healthier and almost at full strength.”

Two days later, during a news conference at SoFi Stadium, Dickert provided an unexpected update regarding the Cougars’ most experienced player.

“You might see him out there a little bit (Saturday),” Dickert said. “I’m excited about where he’s at. He’s feeling more confident in his process. He’ll be more of a game-time decision.”

The Cougars (7-6) decided that Bell was ready to go.

The 5-foot-9, 173-pounder missed five games with an injury this season. He finished with 282 yards and two touchdowns in WSU’s first five games of the year, then sustained an arm injury on Oct. 8 at USC. He was sidelined for just over a month, then returned for the Cougars’ matchup against Arizona on Nov. 19, but reaggravated the injury in the second half in Tucson, Arizona.

Bell totaled one catch for minus 5 yards in the bowl game.

Bell established himself in WSU’s receiving rotation as a redshirt freshman in 2017 and held down a key role for the team’s offense over the next four year. He lost his 2021 season due to an ACL injury, suffered in the summer, but was granted a medical redshirt to return for 2022.

A team captain since 2019, Bell recorded 1,971 receiving yards and 18 touchdowns on 174 catches throughout his career before the bowl. He sits in a tie for 10th in WSU history in receiving touchdowns, and is just outside the program’s top 10 in career catches and receiving yards. He finished his career with 51 games played – five shy of the program record for career appearances, shared by linebackers Jahad Woods and Justus Rogers, both of whom played at WSU from 2016 to ’21.

Bell’s did not help a shorthanded WSU offense, which was missing starting receivers De’Zhaun Stribling and Donovan Ollie. The two entered the NCAA’s transfer portal on Dec. 5. The Cougars also played without their offensive coordinator. Eric Morris left the program after one season and accepted the head coaching job at North Texas on Tuesday.

WSU assistants and Air Raid vets Clay McGuire and Joel Filani split OC duties in Morris’ stead. McGuire, WSU’s offensive line coach, handled the ground game while Filani, the receivers coach, took care of passing calls.

Bell paired with senior slot Robert Ferrel, the Cougars’ No. 2 receiver this season (517 yards, four touchdowns). WSU promoted junior Lincoln Victor (216 yards) into a starting role at outside receiver. True freshman Leyton Smithson (217 yards, two TDs) made his sixth start at outside receiver.

WSU’s defense returned senior nickel Armani Marsh, a sixth-year Cougar out of Spokane. Marsh played in his 46th career game. He missed the Apple Cup on Nov. 26 during WSU’s 51-33 loss to Washington.

Marsh made seven tackles and had one pass breakup against the Bulldogs.

“(Having) Armani Marsh back will be really, really important for our defense, our communication and just the confidence of our guys out there,” Dickert said Friday.But the Cougars’ secondary was without two starters. Cornerback Chau Smith-Wade, one of the highest-graded defensive backs in the Pac-12, according to Pro Football Focus, watched the game from the sideline.

Junior Chris Jackson, a second-year Cougar who transferred in from Michigan State, made his first WSU start. He played sparingly throughout the year, totaling seven tackles and one pass deflection.

Free safety Sam Lockett III was inactive. Lockett made 10 starts at the position this season, registering 51 tackles and a team-high three interceptions.

WSU shifted freshman Jaden Hicks from strong safety to free safety. Hicks made 10 starts at strong safety and earned freshman All-America third-team honors from USA Today.

Hicks tied with Marsh for a team-high seven tackles and had two pass breakups on Saturday. Senior Jordan Lee made his fifth start of the year at strong safety. Lee made three tackles against Fresno State.

The Nevada transfer has dealt with injuries throughout the season, but is “feeling more comfortable and healthy to go out there and play the role that I think he’s always known is in there,” Dickert said Friday. “We just had a bunch of injury situations with (Lee) throughout the season.”Dickert took over at defensive coordinator for the bowl game in place of Brian Ward, who led the unit for one season but took the same position at Arizona State earlier this month.