WSU QB Zevi Eckhaus announces he’s entering the transfer portal
PULLMAN – Zevi Eckhaus may have played his final game at Washington State.
The Cougars’ Holiday Bowl quarterback announced as much on social media Monday morning, sharing that he will be entering the transfer portal, citing WSU’s recent head coaching change and the uncertainty around his future.
Eckhaus, the 34th Cougar to enter the transfer portal this offseason, has one year of eligibility remaining. He retains the option to return to WSU.
As new WSU head coach Jimmy Rogers prepares to take the job and hire a new staff, things are changing for Eckhaus, who backed up former Cougar quarterback John Mateer this season, getting a chance to play last weekend in the absence of Mateer, who has decamped for Oklahoma. In Friday’s Holiday Bowl, Eckhaus completed 31 of 43 passes for 363 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions.
Eckhaus added 11 carries for 28 yards and one touchdown, which came on a QB keeper on the Cougars’ first drive of the game, showing he isn’t entirely just the pocket-passer he fashions himself as.
For the season, Eckhaus appeared in two games, including WSU’s season-opening win over FCS Portland State in August. All told, Eckhaus connected on 37 of 50 (74%) passes for 363 yards, four touchdowns and two interceptions.
Eckhaus, transferred to WSU in January after starting three years at FCS Bryant, where he matched the school record for single-season touchdown passes last season with 28. He’s also the school record holder for career touchdown passes, total offense and completions. He spent three years with the Bulldogs, from 2021 to 2023, starting nearly all three seasons.
Originally, Eckhaus decided to transfer from Bryant to Jacksonville State, making a commitment to JSU. But that’s when former WSU offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle stepped in, offering him a spot with the Cougs, where he could compete for the starting role. Because he was a portal player who had yet to enroll at his new school, Eckhaus was free to change course, per NCAA rules.
A former star at Los Angeles-area Culver City High, Eckhaus started nearly all four years in high school, totaling a school-record 10,210 passing yards and 137 touchdowns.
Will Eckhaus stay at Washington State? That much may depend on Rogers and the players he brings over from South Dakota State, the FCS school he’s coming from. Jackrabbit quarterback Mark Gronowski entered the transfer portal on Sunday, but he’s also weighing whether to declare for the NFL draft, according to a report from ESPN.
The 2023 Walter Payton Award winner as the top offensive player in FCS, Gronowski is eligible for one more season if he elects to forgo the draft. This fall, Gronowski completed 206 of 338 passes (61%) for 2,721 yards, 23 touchdowns and seven interceptions, leading SDSU to the FCS national semifinals.
Two more Cougars enter the portal
Around the time Eckhaus made his announcement, so did two more Cougs: freshman defensive backs Kamani Jackson and Gage Jones, the latter of whom made a surprise appearance in the Holiday Bowl.
They make up the 35th and 36th Cougs to enter the portal this offseason.
Jackson, a three-star prospect out of the California Bay Area, figured to feature prominently into the team’s long-term plans. Before departing for Wake Forest, former WSU coach Jake Dickert said he planned for Jackson to enjoy a healthy dose of snaps in the Holiday Bowl – but in his true freshman season, Jackson never saw the field.
Jackson turned down offers from UNLV, Utah State, San Jose State, Nevada, San Diego State and FCS Portland State to become a Cougar.
Jones was a three-star class of 2022 prospect out of Boise-area Eagle High before going on a two-year church mission, set to return and suit up for FCS Idaho State in 2024. But while he was gone, ISU experienced a coaching change, and Jones flipped to WSU.
A two-time all-state selection and the Idaho 5A Defensive Player of the Year in 2021, Jones led the Mustangs to a state semifinal appearance as a senior and a quarterfinal appearance as a junior.