WSU’s QB situation isn’t set, defense relying on experience and other notes from Cougs’ spring football finale

PULLMAN – During six long weeks of Washington State’s spring schedule, as a new coaching staff implemented its schemes and new players found their places in them, it seemed to be understood that quarterback Zevi Eckhaus had the reins of the Cougars’ offense.

Eckhaus was the team’s backup last season, after all. The player in front of him, John Mateer, transferred out. Then Eckhaus looked mostly sharp in WSU’s Holiday Bowl loss to Syracuse in December. Shortly after taking over later that month, coach Jimmy Rogers prioritized retaining Eckhaus, pulling him out of the transfer portal after a brief two-day stint.

Eckhaus may still be one of the faces of WSU’s program, but if there were any developments to come from the Cougars’ Crimson and Gray Spring Showcase on Saturday afternoon, the biggest was this: Rogers isn’t handing Eckhaus the starting job today.

“The job isn’t just straight up Zevi’s. That’s part of this,” Rogers said. “There’s gonna be competition, and there’s gonna be more competition coming in this summer.”

As he works to integrate 32 newcomers, Rogers didn’t expand on what that incoming competition might look like, but he seemed to indicate he’s looking to add a transfer quarterback before fall camp, perhaps before long. The spring transfer window closes on April 25, but players have no deadlines to sign with new teams, so Rogers and offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Danny Freund can take their time with their decisions.

But Eckhaus’ main competition might already be on the roster. Playing with the second-team offense, redshirt sophomore Jaxon Potter enjoyed a sterling outing in the live competition periods of Saturday’s showcase, finding reserve tight end Ben Dutton for a 12-yard touchdown pass in one sequence.

Potter may have been WSU’s third-string quarterback last season, but since arriving on campus, he’s carried an upside.

At 6-foot-5, he has size. He may be the most accurate passer on the team, dating back to the 2024 season. Pair that with his strong arm and you get a player full of potential.

Headed into his third season of college action, Potter may be ready to compete for a starting job. With Rogers and Freund’s offensive approach, which figures to revolve more around the run and a grind-it-out mindset, Potter may even fit more into what they have in mind for the quarterback position.

“I think Zevi has a great grasp of the team, which is maybe the most critical part of playing quarterback, is that the guys will rally around him,” Rogers said.

“I think Potter’s taking huge jumps. I’ve been impressed with Potter.”

Eckhaus is still the leader in the position group, to be sure. Piloting the Cougars’ first-team offense, Eckhaus avoided any turnovers. After WSU’s practice in Spokane on March 29, that seemed to be a concern for Rogers, who said he’d like to see Eckhaus improve his decision-making skills.

In Saturday’s showcase, Eckhaus did that and more. He showed a rapport with emerging senior wideout Leon Neal Jr., finding him for a 9-yard touchdown pass on one play. Eckhaus was quick to sing Neal’s praises – “I’m so proud of the growth that Leon has had, and it’s a shame that you guys are just now finding out how damn good that player is,” Eckhaus said – and he seemed confident in WSU’s wide receiver corps, which operated without incoming junior college star Devin Ellison, still out with what seems to be a minor injury.

Another reason why Rogers scrapped the traditional spring game format for a showcase style is to avoid injuries.

WSU did well on that front, save for what appeared to be a lower-body injury to redshirt junior Ashton Paine, who has been practicing with the second- and third-team units.

Outside of that, Eckhaus and the Cougars’ first-team offense operated well, working the way it figures to this fall – by hammering the run.

With South Dakota State transfer running back Angel Johnson out all spring with an injury, WSU’s featured backs were returner Leo Pulalasi and SDSU transfer Kirby Vorhees, signaling that’s likely the trio to get carries in Rogers’ inaugural season at WSU.

Vorhees and Pulalasi are also beginning to show their differences in running styles. Vorhees has shown he welcomes contact. He’s quick to lower his shoulder to plow through tackles. Pulalasi isn’t shy of contact either, but his game involves a tad more finesse and a bit more speed.

“Kirby is a dog. I love Kirby,” Eckhaus said. “He came in, and him and I meshed really well off the bat. He’s just got a great personality. He runs the ball hard. And the thing that I love about Kirby most is he really, really … cares about not only (the team), but the Cougs, man. He’s so bought in.”

Clearing the way for running backs like Vorhees, WSU’s first-team offensive line featured left tackle Ashton Tripp, left guard Jonny Lester, center Brock Dieu, right guard Noah Dunham and right tackle Christian Hilborn. It’s not impossible for them to add another offensive lineman out of the portal, but that seems to be the Cougs’ starting five, according to Rogers, who said “that first group is pretty solid.”

On defense, WSU did well to stack up several of those runs, too. That was thanks in part to linemen like returner Bryson Lamb and Cal Poly transfer Soni Finau, who is in position to compete for a starting job.

It’s a welcome development for WSU, which lost each of its top three defensive linemen to the transfer portal over the offseason, most notably Kentucky-bound David Gusta.

The good news for Rogers is he doesn’t see as many question marks in his secondary, where many of his best players at South Dakota State roam. Safeties Tucker Large and Matthew Durrance are shoo-ins to start at their positions. So is cornerback Colby Humphrey, another SDSU transfer. It’s clear Rogers trusts them, plus veteran safety SDSU transfer Cale Reeder, who is out with an injury.

“He’ll be a big plus for us on the back end,” Rogers said of Reeder. “Jamorri Colson has shown flashes that he could be really special at corner. Excited about certain groups, obviously nothing set in stone. There’s gotta be competition all the way through camp, and we’ll take strides this summer.”

In somewhat of a surprise development, WSU got a strong showing out of redshirt freshman defensive end – Rogers has scrapped the term “edge” – Ben Beatty, who recorded a pair of simulated sacks.

Playing with the Cougs’ second-team defense, Beatty and Kent State transfer defensive lineman Kaden Beatty both impressed, leading Rogers to say Kaden is “still learning the defense, but he’s shown promise that he can be in the rotation.”

Third-year cornerback Smith likely on his way out

Redshirt sophomore cornerback Warren Smith, who played in eight games with four tackles and one pass breakup last season, is likely to wind up in the transfer portal, Rogers said.

Smith, a three-star prospect in the class of 2023, missed the showcase plus several other practices this spring.

He appears to be on the outside looking in on WSU’s cornerback rotation.

Smith entered the transfer portal in early December, then later withdrew his name.

Veteran TE Dollar still trying to return from injury

Tight end Andre Dollar, who would be entering his fourth season this fall, is still working his way back from an undisclosed injury, Rogers said.

Dollar, who has missed much of this spring with the injury, has a bit of competition in the Cougs’ tight end corps, including Michigan State transfer Ademola Faleye and South Dakota State transfer Beau Baker.

In the showcase, Faleye saw the most first-team reps, catching a handful of passes in the flat. WSU coaches appear to like their tight ends with big frames for blocking purposes, a key reason why they pursued the 6-foot-7 Faleye out of Michigan State, where he played all 12 games last season, catching two passes for 18 yards.

Lamb high on new coaching staff

Defensive lineman Bryson Lamb, a redshirt junior, has one thing in common with many of his teammates: He’s excited about Rogers, defensive line coach Jalon Bibbs, assistant D-line coach Everette Thompson and the rest of the staff, describing them as “amazing.”

Lamb also revealed that in early January, shortly after entering the transfer portal as WSU’s coaches changed, he got a call from Rogers.

“Having a head coach actually call my phone for the first time ever, being in college, really speaks a lot of volume for the person that he is,” said Lamb, who played in all 13 games last season under former coach Jake Dickert, one as a starter.

“It made the decision pretty easy coming back. After meeting them and having about four months with them, I know I made the right decision.”

After totaling 11 tackles last season, including one fumble recovery, Lamb’s career is on an upswing.

A former walk-on in 2022, Lamb has the build to stand out on the Cougs’ defensive line – 6-2, 301 pounds – and he looks poised to start and break out in 2025.

“A year ago, I was trying to prove myself, fighting to get on the two-deep,” Lamb said.

“So it’s been a lot different, coming back with a season under my belt, feeling a lot more confident on the field. Having that experience has definitely been a lot more helpful.”