Countdown to fall camp: What’s to make of WSU’s offensive line?

PULLMAN – Here is the second installment of our countdown to Washington State’s fall camp, which starts on Wednesday. This issue covers the Cougars’ offensive line.

What can we expect from WSU’s offensive line?

The good news for Washington State’s offensive line: Outside of tackle Esa Pole, who turned pro, the Cougars hung on to their two best players from last year, veterans Brock Dieu and Christian Hilborn, who will man the center and guard spots, respectively.

The bad news: The Cougars have question marks at the other three spots.

For WSU, retaining Dieu and Hilborn amounted to a victory in the transfer portal era, losing two other starters to Wake Forest, where former head coach Jake Dickert left for last winter.

In Dieu and Hilborn, the Cougars enjoy experience and reliability. The two have combined to play in 68 games, including 21 starts. They’ve played in all kinds of games, which figures to benefit them – and the team – come the season.

But head coach Jimmy Rogers and offensive line coach Taylor Lucas will need to assess their best options around that duo.

Based on WSU’s 15-practice spring schedule, the leading candidates include redshirt sophomore Ashton Tripp and redshirt freshman Noah Dunham – but that’s only counting returners.

Later in the spring, the Cougs added New Mexico State transfer guard AJ Vaipulu, a veteran of 39 games (37 starts) with the Aggies, an immediate starting candidate. WSU also landed commitments from Idaho transfer Sone Falealo, a 6-foot-6 lineman who redshirted his true freshman season last fall, and Division II Grand Valley (Michigan) State transfer Jaylin Caldwell, a 6-6, 325-pound presence. Expect all three to enter the mix for starting duties this fall.

The most interesting name might belong to Caldwell, a Chicago native who redshirted at GVSU in 2022, lettered in 2023 and started all 13 games in 2024, helping his group’s rushing offense rank seventh nationwide in the Division II ranks with 247.2 yards per game. When Caldwell entered the portal in the spring, he fielded offers from Kentucky, Missouri, Arkansas State, Coastal Carolina, North Texas and others, choosing WSU.

Whether he can adapt to the Division I level in time to make a splash this season might depend on where coaches see him slotting in on the offensive line.

With his hulking size, Caldwell profiles as a guard, where he’s better equipped to slow down opposing interior defensive linemen in pass protection and push past them in run blocking. He could complement Vaipulu well.

But no matter what position he plays, he’ll have competition, including from players who have been Cougars for longer.

One is redshirt junior Jonny Lester, who also impressed during spring ball, earning first-team reps at left guard throughout the 15 practices. A Spokane native, Lester played in 12 games last season, often on mop-up duty when the game was out of reach.

But Lester, listed at 6-5 and 306 pounds, could make an impact this fall. During the past two years, Lester’s name has floated around the program as a late bloomer, a solid guard whose day would likely come sooner than later. Before departing last year, Dickert sung Lester’s praises on several occasions from 2023 on, and Rogers seems inclined to believe the Northwest Christian High grad isn’t far off from carving out a consistent role on the offensive line.

It’s also worth keeping an eye on Dunham, whose career has followed a similar structure, hearing his name circulate around the program since his true freshman season in 2023. Dunham also played first-team reps at right guard throughout spring ball, signaling he’s more than on the radars of Rogers and Lucas. Listed at 6-5, Dunham’s physical style would play well in the Cougs’ new offense, which will likely skew toward the run.

That’s the part that will color coaches’ personnel decisions on the offensive line during fall camp. It might be less about finding the five best offensive linemen and more about finding the five who best suit the needs of the offense, widely expected to be anchored by the run, much the same way Rogers and his staff handled things at FCS South Dakota State, their previous stop.

That may be true of every offensive line unit, but it bears particular importance with WSU, which is trying to build a new identity with new faces this season. The starting offensive line may end up setting the tone for the Cougars’ approach to the rest of their personnel groups.