In WSU’s edges room and beyond, what’s the balance between depth and inexperience?

PULLMAN – Ever since they began working together, in the first few days of 2023, Washington State edges coach Frank Maile and defensive tackles coach Pete Kaligis took care to align their coaching styles.

They understood how similar their position groups are, so there’s a lot of similarities in the ways they train their players: shedding blocks , mentality, everything.

“There’s not a drop-off as far as the knowledge and the technique that we’re teaching over here,” Maile said. “It just allows us to have more people that we can move inside and outside to cause problems for the O-line.”

Never has that approach figured so prominently into the Cougars’ plan on defense. Headed into WSU’s season opener against FCS Portland State on Saturday, the Cougars’ first depth chart includes 24 “ORs,” meaning coaches are still deciding on starters at that position, still letting those position battles play out on the field – and six alone come from the edge position.

Those players include Utah Tech transfer Syrus Webster, sophomore Isaac Terrell, veterans Quinn Roff and Raam Stevenson, and seniors Nusi Malani and Andrew Edson, the last two of whom are a testament to Maile and Kaligis’ approach. Malani, a longtime defensive tackle, moved to edge last season. Edson, an edge for the first three years of his WSU career, is set to move to defensive tackle for around 10 to 15 snaps per game.

It speaks to a larger trend within the Cougars’ entire team. Not since the late Mike Leach was the head coach has WSU included so many “ORs” on the depth chart, and in the minds of the Cougs’ current coaches, it’s an indication of depth the team hasn’t enjoyed in some time.

“I think that’s where we’re at as a football team,” WSU coach Jake Dickert said. “I’ve said it throughout this whole season, building up to it, is that we have more competitive depth than we ever have, and I think that’s a positive thing. But we also have the least amount of assured guys that have done it when the lights come on. So I think that’s a product of that a little bit.”

That much is particularly true in the Cougars’ edges corps. Even their most experienced players, seniors Edson and Roff, have operated as backups the past three years. Much of that had to do with who was in front of them – Brennan Jackson and Ron Stone Jr. – but it does offer a glimpse into the inexperience in the room.

Last season, Edson’s highest snap count was 32, many coming in a lopsided loss to Arizona. Malani had a high snap count, but this is his first season playing edge. Roff was in and out of last year’s lineup with injuries, playing just six games. It’s Webster’s first time playing FBS football, Terrell never played more than seven snaps against FBS competition last year. While Stevenson registered four games of 20-plus snaps, he’s being asked to play a lot more.

The Cougs aren’t just deep, but also inexperienced when it comes to snap counts. When it comes to years of experience, though, they have a little more going for them.

The last time WSU played Portland State was in 2021, a 44-24 win . Pull up the video of that game and you might notice a few faces. Getting in the game at edge were Edson and Roff, true freshmen at the time, making their college debuts. Three years later, Roff has used that to his advantage.

“That’s what he brings to the table,” Maile said. “He brings a lot of experience and knowledge that a lot of these guys actually feed off of, because he’s been in the fight for a long time. We actually watched that game, and him and Eddie are both on film playing since they were freshman, so it’s refreshing to have those guys in there.”

“I think we’ve had a great week of preparation, and some of the stuff needs to play out,” Dickert said, “but those guys deserve to be on there, and I’m proud of the competitive nature of this football team.”