WSU WR Carlos Hernandez hits the portal and three assistant coaches leave for Wake Forest, per report
PULLMAN – The effects of Jake Dickert’s decision to leave Washington State for Wake Forest are beginning to ripple across the Cougars’ staff.
Sophomore wide receiver Carlos Hernandez is entering the transfer portal, he announced Sunday, becoming the 33rd Cougar to do so since the end of the regular season. Hernandez spent two seasons at WSU, blossoming into an impact player in both.
This fall, Hernandez missed the first five games with a foot injury he sustained during fall camp, which required surgery. But he returned to play the next eight games, starting the final six, totaling 31 catches for 397 yards and five touchdowns, including eight receptions for 80 yards and a score in Friday’s Holiday Bowl.
In two seasons combineed, Hernandez piled up 55 receptions for 655 yards and five touchdowns. As a freshman, he played in all 12 games, recording one start.
A Los Angeles-area native, Hernandez turned down offers from Oregon State, UNLV, Fresno State, UNLV, Nevada and FCS Northern Arizona out of high school.
Also into the portal on Sunday went WSU freshman cornerback Jaylon Edmond and senior nickelback Kapena Gushiken, who is taking advantage of a new ruling allowing players who began their careers at a junior college, whose eligibility would have been exhausted this season, to play another year.
WSU’s class of 2025 quarterback, three-star speedster Steele Pizzella, also announced he’s following Dickert to Wake Forest. The Cougars coaches who recruited him, Dickert and former offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle, loved his dual-threat abilities.
Pizzella’s decommitment is the fourth in the Cougs’ class of 2025, which has also lost running back Jamar Searcy, linebacker AJ Tuitele, Pizzella and wide receiver Jack Foley, who flipped his commitment back to Wake Forest to follow Dickert.
Three coaches on the move
Dickert has hired three WSU coaches at Wake Forest, according to a report from 247 Sports: offensive line coach Jared Kaster, wide receivers coach Nick Edwards and defensive tackles coach Pete Kaligis, the last of whom served as WSU interim head coach after Dickert’s departure.
Kaligis was the longest tenured of the three, coaching three seasons with the Cougars, but his relationship with Dickert goes deeper. They overlapped for three years from 2017-19 when they were on staff at Wyoming: Dickert as defensive coordinator and Kaligis as defensive tackles coach and defensive run game coordinator.
Kaligis spent 13 years total at Wyoming.
Kaster’s 2024 season was his only one at WSU, where he helped the Cougars’ offensive line finish the season ranked second nationally in Pro Football Focus’ pass blocking grades with an 88.1 figure. A former offensive line coach at Austin Peay, Kaster helped mentor left tackle Esa Pole, whose 87.8 pass-blocking grade ranked No. 17 nationally, allowing no sacks all season and just nine pressures.
Edwards, who called offensive plays in a Holiday Bowl loss to No. 22 Syracuse, spent two seasons at WSU. A Tacoma native and former standout Eastern Washington receiver, Edwards played an instrumental role in developing a few key receivers the last two years, including Hernandez, Kyle Williams, Kris Hutson and Josh Meredith, plus Josh Kelly and Lincoln Victor in 2023.
It’s unclear which coaches new WSU head coach Jimmy Rogers will be bringing over from South Dakota State, but according to a report from Jackrabbit beat writer Matt Zimmer, Rogers will be bringing his “whole staff with him” – though the details are hazy.
South Dakota State quarterback Mark Gronowski is entering the portal, according to ESPN, which also reported that Gronowski is strongly considering declaring for the NFL draft. Over his career, Gronowski went 49-6 and passed for more than 10,000 yards, leading SDSU to the 2023 FCS national title.