Sack Stats Belie Efficiency Quality Front Leads The Way

Washington State’s defense is tied for last in the Pacific-10 Conference with only nine quarterback sacks, but don’t be misled.

After a shaky beginning against UCLA, the Cougars have rebounded with several strong defensive performances, helping the team to a 5-0 start and No. 13 ranking in both major college football polls.

“We’re not getting any sacks, huh?” WSU defensive coordinator Bill Doba said Wednesday. “I’ll be honest to God: I have not even looked at that stat sheet.”

When UCLA’s Skip Hicks broke loose for a 92-yard run on the season’s second play, Doba figured the defensive statistics were shot for the year.

“So much for leading the nation in anything,” he remembers saying. “That part was over. We got that out of the way and now all we’re trying to do is win football games.”

Even so, nine sacks in five games sounds terrible. Through five games last year, the Cougars had 16 sacks. In 1994, that figure was 25.

But this season’s low sack total doesn’t mean WSU’s well-publicized defensive line is underachieving, Doba said. To the contrary, starters Dorian Boose, Leon Bender, Gary Holmes and Shane Doyle are playing well.

So well, in fact, that opposing quarterbacks can’t wait to get rid of the football. “They take three steps and launch it,” Boose said.

While that tactic has kept opposing quarterbacks upright, it hasn’t allowed them to be successful. In fact, the Cougars lead the Pac-10 in pass defense.

“Teams are throwing a lot of short passes because they’re afraid of our rush,” Doyle added.

But there’s another reason WSU isn’t getting to the quarterback as often as one might expect. The Cougars are blitzing less frequently, a decision based partly on personnel.

“I found out after Mark Fields left it wasn’t so much the blitzes, it was the blitzers,” Doba said. “You do what your team can do best.

“We’re covering pretty well and our linebackers are doing really good in their drops. It doesn’t mean that we’re never going to blitz again or we’re not working on it.”

With WSU’s offense sustaining longer drives, the defense can afford to take fewer chances - knowing there will be ample time to rest between defensive series.

“With this year’s offense, we come off the field, we sit down and get a drink of water, make adjustments and relax,” Doba said.

That wasn’t always the case.

Two or three years ago, when the offense had trouble sustaining a drive, the defense felt compelled to make the opponent go three-and-out as many as seven or eight times per game. That became a heavy burden - a burden that often led to friction.

“We’re trying to emphasize the team part of it,” Doba said. “Being a part of the team, not talking about how the damn offense did this or that.”

Of course, success brings its own set of problems. As Doyle complained, “Sometimes our offense scores too fast.”

WSU injury update

The Cougars are remarkably healthy heading into Saturday’s 2 p.m. home game against California.

Backup tight end Jon Kincaid, who missed most of last season with a serious ankle injury, has been limited this week after tweaking the ankle during the Cougars’ 24-13 victory at Oregon two weeks ago. His status for Saturday is uncertain.

Backup linebacker Kenny Moore, who has not played since hurting a shoulder against Boise State on Sept. 27, could return for the Oct. 25 home game against Arizona.

Backup defensive tackle Delmar Morais returned to practice Wednesday after being held out because of illness. The former starter has missed several games since undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery last month.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color Photo