‘We’re very explosive on offense’: Washington State’s first-team offense shines, leads Crimson team to win in spring game

PULLMAN – Washington State’s first-team offense showcased its big-play potential.

WSU’s No. 1 offense amassed 305 yards and scored 28 unanswered points in the first half. The “Crimson” team – consisting of offensive starters and defensive reserves – shined brightly in WSU’s annual spring game, beating the “Gray” team 42-14 in front of a few thousand fans on a sunny Saturday afternoon at Gesa Field.

New receivers DT Sheffield and Josh Kelly made highlight-reel catches. Starting quarterback Cameron Ward had an impressive performance, guiding scoring drives on four of his six possessions.

“Every day that we come to practice, as an offense, we’ve got a plan that we’re going to ball out and especially beat the defense,” Sheffield said. “Yeah, we’re very explosive on offense.”

Sheffield broke free down the middle of the field for a 63-yard reception from Ward on the Crimson team’s second drive, setting up a touchdown. On the Crimson squad’s next series, Sheffield flew past a defender on a deep crossing route, caught a precise pass in stride and raced ahead for a 51-yard touchdown.

“He brings a different dynamic to this offense,” Ward said of Sheffield. “DT is a one-of-a-kind playmaker, someone who brings the top off for our offense. He’s going to give defenses struggles in our conference.”

Sheffield, a junior college transfer slot receiver, led all pass-catchers with 121 yards on three receptions.

“DT is the one that really stands out as I was watching it live,” WSU coach Jake Dickert said when asked to name top players from the game, which included 20 possessions. “I thought (Ward) was super sharp. He’s put in a lot of hard work, so I’m happy for him to see the results today.”

Ward and most of WSU’s first-team skill players were held out of the second half. Ward completed 12 of 16 passes for 259 yards and a touchdown with no turnovers and no sacks taken.

“I think his accuracy has really improved. I think his leadership is way better than it’s ever been,” Dickert said of the Cougars’ second-year QB. “We’re going to keep pushing him to make him the best version of himself, and I think he’s more comfortable in his skin now.”

On his final possession, Ward lofted a deep ball down the near sideline toward Kelly, a Fresno State transfer who has established himself in WSU’s starting lineup. Kelly jumped over a defender for the catch and gained extra yardage before being brought down. The 65-yard reception was WSU’s longest play of the day. Kelly finished with 82 yards on three catches.

Connecting on more deep passes has been an emphasis this spring.

“It’s our new mentality: ‘Great things happen when you throw the ball downfield,’ ” Dickert said. “I loved what’s happening after the catch, too. Josh isn’t just satisfied with making the play. He wants to make someone miss. I think you saw (backup receiver Tsion Nunnally) make some people miss. We got some guys that, if we get the ball in their hands in space, they can make some people miss.

“On the flip side, defensively, we need to tackle better. But I think we’ve got some guys that can catch it, take the top off and make something happen with the ball in their hands.”

Nunnally, taking reps with the second-team offense, had 84 yards on four catches – with 53 yards after the catch. Gray team receiver Carlos Hernandez had 70 yards on four catches, with a 29-yard TD late in the game.

The starting offense, led by first-year coordinator Ben Arbuckle, used a trick play late in the second quarter. Ward fired a pass left to veteran slot Lincoln Victor, who threw a deep pass down the sideline to tight end Cooper Mathers for a 46-yard gain. That set up the first of starting tailback Nakia Watson’s two touchdown runs.

The Cougars sometimes went with four receivers in Arbuckle’s system, then shifted to heavier sets that included two tight ends. WSU passed the ball 64 times and called 50 rushing plays.

“With the playbook opening up, it shows the flexibility coach Arbuckle has,” left tackle Esa Pole said.

Sophomore tailback Jaylen Jenkins had 62 yards and two touchdowns on 11 carries for the Crimson team. Watson finished with 17 yards and two scores on seven carries. Third-string quarterback Emmett Brown led the Crimson offense throughout the second half, which had a running clock, and went 11 of 14 for 165 yards.

The Gray team – the No. 1 defense and reserves on offense – made a fourth-down stop in the red zone on the opening possession. Backup QB John Mateer led a touchdown drive on his first series, but the Gray team didn’t score again until the 16th possession.

“Obviously, the Gray team, it didn’t quite go the way we hoped it was gonna go, but the energy all around I thought was really good,” linebacker Kyle Thornton said. “Even though we were competing against each other, we were celebrating each other’s success.”

Mateer completed 16 of 27 passes for 236 yards and a touchdown in eight possessions. Redshirt freshman Djouvensky Schlenbaker shouldered the bulk of reps at tailback for the Gray team, recording 49 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries. He added a 35-yard reception on a wide receiver pass from Leyton Smithson.

“We had some trick plays on both sides,” Dickert said. “I thought the coaches did a good job of putting some tough ones in there.”

WSU’s first-team Crimson offense went up against an inexperienced defense for a large part of the first half. Several defensive standouts played limited snaps. All-Pac-12 edge rushers Brennan Jackson and Ron Stone Jr. were only on the field for the first series. No. 1 cornerback Chau Smith-Wade participated in two drives. Starting safeties Jaden Hicks and Sam Lockett III were done after the first quarter.

The Cougars rotated defenders frequently throughout the game as they evaluated position battles at nickel, linebacker, backup cornerback and backup safety.

Reserve safety Joe Taylor led all defenders with six tackles. Five others had five tackles apiece. The teams combined for nine tackles for loss and five sacks – players credited for sacks include Erling, second-string edge Andrew Edson, backup safety Bryce Grays, reserve edge Peter Eyabi and defensive tackle Ansel Din-Mbuh, a true freshman who might see the field early in his career.

The Crimson team had a limited number of offensive linemen available, so it kept most of its starters on the field for the entire game. WSU’s O-line struggled with protection issues last season, and sacks have been a problem in team drills during camp for the Cougars’ first-team offense. But the unit only surrendered two sacks – one on each of the last two possessions of the game.

“They want to be better. They want to prove it. They want to take a step forward,” Dickert said of the offensive line.

The Crimson defense, mostly made up of reserve players, recorded two takeaways. Linebacker Joshua Erling intercepted fourth-string QB Luke Holcomb in the red zone on the first drive of the second half. Nickel Chris Jackson forced a fumble early in the game. Hernandez turned upfield after making a short reception, but Jackson caught up and ripped the ball free. Safety Reece Sylvester was there to recover it.

More observations from the spring game

Linebackers Thornton and Ahmad McCullough lined up with the defensive starters on the Gray team. Texas transfer Devin Richardson has taken reps with the No. 1 defense throughout camp, but he played middle linebacker with the Crimson defense.

“We’re going to be a rotating door at linebacker,” Dickert said. “It’s probably the biggest position that we gotta shore up. … (Playing Richardson with the backups) was probably to get more reps. I think Thornton has been a pretty big bright spot. We’re going to play him at (middle and outside linebacker). We gave Devin an opportunity to go command that side of the ball.”

Lataimua started at nickel for the Gray team. Jackson and Kapena Gushiken, both of whom are also in the mix at the position, played with the backups on the Crimson team.

WSU went with Pole and guard Christian Hilborn on the left side of the Crimson team’s offensive line and started Ma’ake Fifita at right guard. Christy Nkanu, who’s competing for a starting role at guard, played right guard for the Gray squad.

Sheffield, Kelly, Victor and transfer Kyle Williams are the front-runners to start at receiver next season. Williams had 19 yards on two receptions. Victor had 10 yards on two receptions. Mathers and Billy Riviere III shared first-team snaps at tight end. Mathers had 60 yards on two receptions and Riviere gained 25 yards on one .

Players of note who did not participate in the spring game: edges Quinn Roff and Lawrence Falatea, both of whom will be important pieces in the rotation next season; receiver Isaiah Hamilton, a transfer who took second-team reps earlier this spring; slotback Orion Peters, who’s seen action with both the first and second teams during camp; defensive tackle Rashad McKenzie, who’s looking to earn playing time; center Devin Kylany, the No. 2 option at the position behind team captain Konner Gomness; and Dylan Paine, who is vying for backup reps at running back.

Arbuckle served as head coach of the Crimson team and first-year defensive coordinator Jeff Schmedding was in charge of the Gray sideline. Dickert stationed himself on the field and surveyed his team from behind the offense. A few other assistant coaches took part in the play-calling.

“What I love about spring games is we had about five different coaches calling plays on both sides of the ball,” Dickert said. “The competition was high. Coach Arbuckle got his first head coaching win.

“(I gave) those guys some ownership, allowed them to have fun because I want to mentor coaches, too. I want guys that want to be head coaches, that want to be coordinators.”