In fall camp practice No. 11, Washington State’s secondary takes center stage

PULLMAN – Ahmad McCullough jogged over to the Rogers Practice Field’s second gridiron, a wide smile on his face and an infectious energy in his step. Washington State’s transfer linebacker wasn’t dressed for Tuesday’s practice, the Cougars’ 11th of fall camp, but he looked ready to line up anyway.

“We’ll be back!” McCullough shouted. “Gonna wreak havoc!”

For WSU, the encouraging part was that even without McCullough and a couple other key cogs on defense, the Cougars did so – in ways that look repeatable when it counts.

A day after Washington State’s offense dominated practice over at Martin Stadium, the Cougars returned to their regular practice fields, where the artificial crowd noise vanished. WSU’s defense did not. Returning starter Chau Smith-Wade snared an interception, as did true freshman Warren Smith. Junior Kapena Gushiken came close to a pick, and second-year linebacker Taariq Al-Uqdah recovered a fumble.

The Cougs unleashed their will up front, too. Defensive back Cam Lampkin recorded a sack – the presumptive kind, since there’s no hitting the quarterback. Senior edge Ron Stone Jr. did the same. Linebacker Devin Richardson logged one of his own. Later in practice, true freshman Carlos Hernandez caught a check-down pass in the flat, went to turn up field and ran right into senior safety Dominic Tatum, who delivered what had to have been one of the hardest no-contact hits football has ever seen.

All told, it amounted to one of the Cougs’ most encouraging practices on defense, a complete performance from seniors and freshmen alike. Even without McCullough and returning starter Jaden Hicks, a sophomore who sat out with a minor ankle roll, WSU’s defense produced the kind of practice that figures to encourage everyone involved in the operation.

“It was one of the best ones in my eyes,” redshirt freshman defensive back Javan Robinson said. “I feel like the energy was there. I feel like guys were flying around, flying to the ball, making plays.”

Robinson didn’t mention the play he made, so let’s do it for him. In a red-zone situation drill, quarterback Cameron Ward dropped back and lobbed one to receiver Josh Kelly in the end zone. That’s when Robinson leapt up and batted it away. The ball went careening out of bounds. Robinson’s teammates made sure he knew how much they liked the play.

“It came because I’m just a competitor,” Robinson said. “I feel like when it gets to the red zone and the offense tries to throw at me, I take it as disrespect, personal. So it’s just knowing that I’m gonna make that play, and just denying anything that comes my way.”

Robinson did plenty of that, but so did Smith, a 6-foot-1 cornerback who has developed into something of a godsend for WSU. A product of El Cerrito High in Richmond, California, Smith looks to be in line for some serious playing time this fall. He’s been practicing with the No. 2 group, alongside fellow true freshman Adrian Wilson, and he’s made enough plays to vault himself into the backup conversation.

The interesting part is how he became a Coug. Smith received his first offer back in May 2021, when he was a high school sophomore from Colorado. Seven months later, Washington extended an offer. Then the offers came by the bushel: Arizona, Washington State, Utah State, San Jose State, Boise State, San Diego State, Nevada, UCLA.

All were interested in Smith for the reasons WSU was: He has size, instincts, speed, everything you want out of a cornerback. When he arrived on campus in January and participated in spring ball, though, Dickert saw a hesitant freshman. Smith is still a freshman – but he looks like a different guy to his coaches.

“It just shows when you’re comfortable, the real player comes out,” Dickert said. “I just keep reminding our coaches, our players, like, give these guys time. Give these guys time. Our world talks about instant gratification all the time.

“I had a great conversation with Coach Ben (Iannacchione) about Justin Jefferson being the number one receiver in the NFL – played scout team for two years. It’s OK. It’s part of the process. Remember that. So it’s a subtle reminder for our guys as we start to break off into scout teams now.”

Zoom for a moment, though, and you see Washington State’s defense starting to come into focus. The Cougs’ defensive line looks set: Edges Stone and Brennan Jackson around linemen Nusi Malani and David Gusta. Cornerbacks will be Smith-Wade and Cam Lampkin. Sam Lockett and Jaden Hicks will man the safety spots. Linebackers will include Devin Richardson, McCullough, Kyle Thornton and Al-Uqdah.

Under first-year defensive coordinator Jeff Schmedding, will that be enough to help the Cougs thrive in the final year of the Pac-12 as we know it? It’s too early to tell, but this is for sure: WSU plans on wreaking havoc.

Victor away from team with personal matterOn Tuesday, one Coug’s absence was hard to miss: Senior wideout Lincoln Victor.

Victor missed his first practice of fall camp because he’s away from the team due to a personal matter, Dickert said. WSU expects him to return “whenever he’s ready,” Dickert said.

The most tenured member of the Cougs’ receiving corps, Victor has supplied a steady hand all fall camp, hauling in passes and encouraging teammates.

Rodman making noise on the defensive lineHere’s one name we haven’t written about much during fall camp: Defensive lineman Na’im Rodman, a transfer from Colorado.

Rodman played his first three years for the Buffaloes, playing in almost every game, starting in a handful. Last fall, in his final season at Colorado, Rodman totaled 18 tackles, one for loss and four for zero. He also made five third-down stops.

He signed with Washington State in May, and ever since, he’s submitted himself as a candidate for backup snaps on the defensive line.

“I think Na’im has slowly put together a really, really strong fall camp,” Dickert said. “It’s hard to talk about guys you don’t see in the spring, but we’re talking about a guy with 1,000 snaps in the Pac-12, I believe. So there’s so much experience. He’s one of those guys that’s just a football player. You watch him in the summer training drills and the movement drills and you’re like, OK, let’s see that translate. And oh boy, it translates. We’re really excited about what he’s doing. He’s given us a real, legit option in the middle of our defense.”

Thompson makes a cameo at practiceDuring a break in Tuesday’s practice, Dickert made his way over to the back of the practice fields, where he chatted with one of the greatest players in Washington State football history: Jack Thompson.

Known colloquially as the “Throwin’ Samoan,” Thompson recorded three record-breaking seasons in Pullman, where he collected 7,698 yards in total offense during his career, third most in NCAA history. A Class of 1978 WSU Hall of Fame member, Thompson returned to the Palouse on Tuesday, taking in practice on the sidelines.

“I think it’s so important for a guy of Jack’s stature, one of only two truly retired numbers in Washington State football history,” Dickert said. “The respect that just his name carries in Pullman is huge and important, and (he’s) a guy that wants to give back every step of the way. I can’t tell you how many times you look around the corner, any sort of adversity, Jack’s right there. He’s waving the flag for Cougs.

“I think it’s really important that we have guys just like that. And we have a lot of Cougs all over this country, where you can come back and you can share an experience. He’s talking to all of our Polynesian-descent players right now, how this place changed his life. How he’s turned this experience into something more and more and more and has built up something really good for him and his family.

“I just love that he wants to give back and he’s passionate about giving back. It’s something that I want deep within all of our guys, that they have such a great experience here, whenever they come back here, they just want to share that experience and give back to the next generation of Cougs.”