WSU football chat (transcript)
Sep 28 2016, 11:00 AM
srchat: Thanks for joining our live chat, everybody. We've got some good questions so let's get started.
Sep 28 2016, 11:00 AM
Jeremy Brown: We've been hearing a lot regarding Martin's speed and we've seen his ability to go up and get the ball. Why isn't this combination allowing Luke to really stretch the field?
Sep 28 2016, 11:01 AM
srchat: When Luke Falk has thrown deep to Martin, it's paid off (see: 50-yard touchdown at Boise). Falk has not taken many deep shots at all this year, preferring to play it safe with shorter passes and letting his playmakers do the work. But I wonder if that will change to better align with Martin's skillset
Sep 28 2016, 11:02 AM
Guest8711 (guest): Carrington out this week
Sep 28 2016, 11:02 AM
srchat: I do not expect to see Keith Harrington on the field this week.
Sep 28 2016, 11:03 AM
Sid (guest): Luke said he needed to take the role of pumping the team up and getting off to a fast start. That really isn't his personality. Won't his team mates see through that?
Sep 28 2016, 11:04 AM
srchat: He can't be campy or get too rah-rah, since you're right, that's not who he is. But the team listens to him. Remember before the final drive at Rutgers last year, he pulled the offense together and gave a little speech and the team responded. If he's earnest and honest, they will listen.
Sep 28 2016, 11:04 AM
Guest7144 (guest): So is Morrow out for the first half or no?
Sep 28 2016, 11:04 AM
srchat: Jamal Morrow does not have to sit out the first half. Second-half ejections only follow to the next game for targeting and fighting, and they are not calling what he did fighting.
Sep 28 2016, 11:05 AM
Guest9773 (guest): Was the run game a product of playing Idaho or a sign of things to come?
Sep 28 2016, 11:07 AM
srchat: It was a product of playing Idaho. By that I don't mean because of the talent disparity (though, yeah, that too) but because the Vandals gave the Cougars a lot of favorable run looks. When teams stack the box the Cougars pass, when they keep everybody back in coverage they run. It will be interesting to see what Oregon does.
Sep 28 2016, 11:07 AM
Barret Hamm: any news on priester
Sep 28 2016, 11:07 AM
srchat: Nothing new on Kyrin Priester.
Sep 28 2016, 11:07 AM
Guest8711 (guest): Carrington from oregon
Sep 28 2016, 11:10 AM
srchat: Ah, my mistake. I thought you were asking our weekly Keith Harrington question. I have not seen anything about Darren Carrington being out.
Sep 28 2016, 11:10 AM
Guest1908 (guest): Do you think leach shot himself in the foot with his comments on Pullman policing and recruits now decommitting? Inner city kids see Pullman as not a friendly place?
Sep 28 2016, 11:11 AM
srchat: I tend to think the 1-2 start has as much to do with the decommits as the recent legal troubles.
Sep 28 2016, 11:11 AM
Guest8711 (guest): what is the word on tapa ..?,,he was highly touted
Sep 28 2016, 11:12 AM
srchat: He's done OK as a backup the last couple seasons, but so far has not shown the motor and conditioning to stay on the field for long stretches. It's not that easy to get a guy 300+ pounds and also get him in good enough shape to play a lot of consecutive snaps on the defensive line.
Sep 28 2016, 11:13 AM
Sid (guest): Luke also said that they lost their rah rah guy from last year and that is why he needed to take that role....who was that?
Sep 28 2016, 11:14 AM
srchat: Perhaps Jeremiah Allison, he's the most "rah rah" guy of the folks who graduated. I also know that Destiny Vaeao was very highly respected and listened to, but I don't think he was particularly vocal or anything.
Sep 28 2016, 11:14 AM
Guest1908 (guest): Why is USC not the team of preseason ratings?
Sep 28 2016, 11:15 AM
srchat: That's been the question ever since Pete Carroll left. My guess is that it takes a particular kind of coach to be able to get all those All-Stars on the same page and working together.
Sep 28 2016, 11:15 AM
Guest8711 (guest): Your Pac 12 overview the other day was great, agree with you on Rosen, all they Preseason hype mainly because of his NFL draft potential...Falk had a far better year and same with Browning, Browning has yet to win a big game and look ok against AZ..he can run
Sep 28 2016, 11:16 AM
srchat: Glad you thought it was useful! If the Cougars start winning, Falk will get a lot more recognition. If UW beats Stanford tomorrow, I expect the Browning hype will get a little ridiculous.
Sep 28 2016, 11:16 AM
Guest1531 (guest): Do you have a prediction for the game vs Oregon?
Sep 28 2016, 11:16 AM
srchat: I do! And my predictions will be online in just an hour or so
Sep 28 2016, 11:16 AM
Guest1908 (guest): Pac 12 looks pretty mediocre after 4 weeks...Cougs could break out of the pack?
Sep 28 2016, 11:17 AM
srchat: They sure could. Or Oregon could. Or Colorado, California, Arizona State, etc. The down year presents an opportunity to a lot of teams.
Sep 28 2016, 11:17 AM
Guest9773 (guest): Any insight on when the final decision on Barber will be made?
Sep 28 2016, 11:18 AM
srchat: The latest it could stretch out would be about 2.5 more weeks. I'd assume Barber will try to drag it out as long as possible.
Sep 28 2016, 11:21 AM
Guest9773 (guest): Les Miles coaching in LA next year?
Sep 28 2016, 11:21 AM
srchat: I'm still hoping that LSU and Houston switch coaches, with Herman heading to Baton Rouge and Les Miles taking over a loaded Houston roster.
Sep 28 2016, 11:21 AM
Guest1908 (guest): Who has the better athletes... Ducks or Cougs? What did you think of the orange leggings on the Ducks unis?
Sep 28 2016, 11:23 AM
srchat: The Ducks lost their best athlete when Olympic hurdler Devon Allen went down, but UO probably still has a little more speed than the Cougars. I thought of all UO's gimmicky uniforms, it was nice that the duck lookalike ones at least had some purpose.
Sep 28 2016, 11:23 AM
Guest1352 (guest): Is this the first time that leach has used the bye week to prepare his team for the opposing team coming up next?instead of using the bye to focus on fundamentals
Sep 28 2016, 11:23 AM
srchat: They did do a fair amount of fundamentals work this week. What was different from past years is that they did not focus on the young players at all. Last year they had multiple Thursday Night Football scrimmages, this year there were none.
Sep 28 2016, 11:26 AM
Guest1908 (guest): Other than the Coug contest...best game in the pac12 this week?
Sep 28 2016, 11:27 AM
srchat: Well, I know many of you won't want to hear this, but the Stanford at UW game is shaping up to be the conference's biggest game of the year. Plus, it's on Friday so it has its own spotlight.
Sep 28 2016, 11:27 AM
Guest1908 (guest): Players that decommit...do the coaches go back after them? Success rate?
Sep 28 2016, 11:28 AM
srchat: Most of them have said they still plan on taking their visits, so the coaches are definitely still recruiting them. Once a kid has open his recruiting back up, it feels like the odds of them committing to WSU again are around 33 percent or so.
Sep 28 2016, 11:30 AM
Guest1908 (guest): A lot of recruits this week at Martin?
Sep 28 2016, 11:31 AM
srchat: I know there's a defensive tackle from Florida who is expected to visit. I'm sure they'll try to bring in more to take advantage of the sellout, but last year the coaches decided to do more of the visits after the season and I think they'll stick with that policy when they can.
Sep 28 2016, 11:32 AM
Guest8711 (guest): Cougs are last in Pac 12 in sacks and sure close to the same in pressure, is this going to a season long problem ?..does Moore have the ability to add pressure
Sep 28 2016, 11:32 AM
srchat: Moore will have a good career, but if you're relying on a true freshman to be your pass-rushing difference maker, well, you've got a pretty serious problem.
Sep 28 2016, 11:32 AM
Sid (guest): What is the key to the game? Stopping Oregon's running game?
Sep 28 2016, 11:33 AM
srchat: Stopping Oregon's running backs. Freeman, Benoit and Griffin are all studs.
Sep 28 2016, 11:33 AM
Guest1908 (guest): What grade would Leach give Trump after reviewing the film?
Sep 28 2016, 11:33 AM
srchat: Leach is all about "doing your job" and it sounds like he think Trump did his.
Sep 28 2016, 11:34 AM
Guest1908 (guest): Falk ready to rock and roll this Saturday? Who else is ready to break out?
Sep 28 2016, 11:35 AM
srchat: Jamal Morrow did not have a great game last week, so it seems to follow the pattern that he would have a big game. I think one of the defenders, not going to guess who, breaks out and has some QB pressures at least.
Sep 28 2016, 11:35 AM
Guest6107 (guest): How do you feel the S-R handled Shalom Luani's situation? Is a retraction in order?
Sep 28 2016, 11:36 AM
srchat: We reported the publicly available facts and presented what the police and prosecutors told us, while also giving voice to Mike Leach's concerns and comments from Bill Moos. Why on earth would we retract anything?
Sep 28 2016, 11:36 AM
Guest6315 (guest): Watching Oregon-Colorado last week in seems like Oregon plays lots of Man. Do you expect them to play man on Saturday?
Sep 28 2016, 11:37 AM
srchat: Yes, the challenge will be on the WSU receivers to break free of their defenders before the UO blitz hits home.
Sep 28 2016, 11:37 AM
Guest8711 (guest): Not relying on Moore..just asking if he has the ability to add pressure...and per my question is this going to be a issue the entire season..?
Sep 28 2016, 11:37 AM
srchat: I don't think he's a game changer yet. Yes, it looks like pass rush is and will probably continue to be the team's weak spot.
Sep 28 2016, 11:37 AM
Sid (guest): Haven't seen much from the rush backers. Lack or talent, young, scheme?
Sep 28 2016, 11:38 AM
srchat: Inexperienced, for sure. The scheme has not changed much since last year, but if the pass rush is still struggling in a few games then it will be fair to start questioning the talent drop off after last year.
Sep 28 2016, 11:38 AM
Guest621 (guest): S-R reported what the police said. If fans want to gripe, gripe about what the police said, not the reporters.
Sep 28 2016, 11:39 AM
Guest8711 (guest): Looks like now that Emmitt getting kicked off really hurt the team, if I remember he was a having a very good spring, same with Toki not getting in...
Sep 28 2016, 11:40 AM
srchat: Those big defensive linemen are hard to recruit, and any time one doesn't pan out it has a multi-year effect on the team.
Sep 28 2016, 11:41 AM
Guest1908 (guest): I thought the front page splash on front page of SR was way over the top. Way overblown coverage.
Sep 28 2016, 11:41 AM
Guest8711 (guest): Is Shalom playing closer to the line now or still at safety
Sep 28 2016, 11:42 AM
srchat: Both. He's still primarily a safety, but we did see him move down into a linebacker role in certain packages against Idaho.
Sep 28 2016, 11:43 AM
Guest1908 (guest): If Cougs are able to_____, we win?
Sep 28 2016, 11:44 AM
srchat: "pressure Dakota Prukop"
Sep 28 2016, 11:46 AM
Sid (guest): Any different feel/vibe from the team after the bye than from the first three games?
Sep 28 2016, 11:46 AM
srchat: The team did have a particularly spirited practice yesterday. Without access to players, I can't give you much more than that on their mindset.
Sep 28 2016, 11:46 AM
Guest4502 (guest): How good do you think Dakota Prukop is?
Sep 28 2016, 11:46 AM
srchat: I think he's a solid middle of the conference quarterback. Not as good as Vernon Adams was, but definitely better than Jeff Lockie was the last time the two teams played.
Sep 28 2016, 11:47 AM
Guest1908 (guest): Freshman and Sophs start coming into there own around this time. Which ones do you see getting more pt?
Sep 28 2016, 11:48 AM
srchat: Hmmm, well I think James Williams' role will only continue to grow. The other young players who I expect to play already have been. Johnson-Mack, Dillard, Patmon, etc. I do think there's a good chance you'll see more of Marcus Strong at cornerback.
Sep 28 2016, 11:48 AM
Guest8711 (guest): I know the Cougs really wanted Mattingly...is he starting ?...never will understand why wulff handled his brother like he did, he was a big talent, had huge AC on year,
Sep 28 2016, 11:51 AM
srchat: Not starting, was the guy on a fake punt last week though. His older brother was before my time, but didn't he have some off the field issues
Sep 28 2016, 11:51 AM
srchat: ?
Sep 28 2016, 11:51 AM
Jeremy Brown: What's going on with Molton? It seems like every practice report talks about how great he is but he looked absolutely lost on Saturday... against Idaho...
Sep 28 2016, 11:52 AM
srchat: I think Molton has by and large looked pretty good. It's easy to remember a cornerback's bad plays, and you never really know if he was supposed to have help or whatever. But he's also made a lot of good plays this season, basically ending a Boise State drive single-handledly when getting targeted on three straight plays, for example.
Sep 28 2016, 11:52 AM
Guest4502 (guest): If you weren't covering wsu, what other Pac 12 team would you want to cover? How about any team in the country?
Sep 28 2016, 11:56 AM
srchat: Hmm, well when I evaluate jobs for reporters, coaches, whoever, I look more at lifestyle, area, etc. than the actual football program. But I think the spirit of the question is fun football program to cover so in the Pac-12 I think Oregon would be a trip. Nationally, Florida State always has a lot going on. Texas would be pretty fun, too.
Sep 28 2016, 11:56 AM
Guest1908 (guest): With conference play opening , are we going to see a lot of new schemes, plays on offense and defense that have not been used?
Sep 28 2016, 11:56 AM
srchat: Yeah, that usually seems to be the case.
Sep 28 2016, 11:56 AM
Guest8711 (guest): I think he had an arrest, or fight, seems like some recruits who pick Oregon over wsu get lost in the shuffle down hippy town !
Sep 28 2016, 11:57 AM
srchat: I thought Berkeley was hippy town? Or was Seattle hippy town? Wait, are we sure this isn't a hippy conference?
Sep 28 2016, 11:57 AM
Sid (guest): Which coach on the team has head coach potential?
Sep 28 2016, 11:57 AM
srchat: I expect Alex Grinch to be a head coach before I'm a syndicated columnist.
Sep 28 2016, 11:57 AM
Guest8711 (guest): Molton is the best cover corner I have seen on the Palouse in some time. no pash rush results in a wr eventually getting open...
Sep 28 2016, 11:58 AM
srchat: Good point.
Sep 28 2016, 11:58 AM
Guest1908 (guest): Weather for Saturday night? Advantage Cougs or Ducks?
Sep 28 2016, 11:58 AM
srchat: If it rains that's probably a slight advantage for Oregon, since they run the ball more and it always rains in Eugene.
Sep 28 2016, 12:00 PM
Guest1908 (guest): rain expected?
Sep 28 2016, 12:00 PM
srchat: Weather.com gives it a 50-50 shot.
Sep 28 2016, 12:00 PM
Guest621 (guest): Estimated time of night when the game ends?
Sep 28 2016, 12:00 PM
srchat: 10 p.m.
Sep 28 2016, 12:01 PM
Guest1908 (guest): Late game in Pullman. Jail gets full?
Sep 28 2016, 12:01 PM
srchat: Gotta fill Boss Hogg's coffers somehow.
Sep 28 2016, 12:01 PM
wsucougarbill: actually higher chance of rain early morning, only supposed to be a 10% chance at kickoff
Sep 28 2016, 12:01 PM
srchat: Thanks, Bill.
Sep 28 2016, 12:02 PM
srchat: Alright everybody, I've got to run. Thanks for joining our weekly WSU chat. I'll get the full transcript up shortly.
