Cougars defenders go all out

PULLMAN – Not a single Washington State University football coach could find fault with the Cougars’ effort on defense Saturday night at Auburn.

That’s a good thing.

But with WSU shorthanded in personnel – and with fears before the season that the defense might be overmatched again – it still yielded 40 points in the season opener.

That’s a bad thing.

For the Cougars, going back to the drawing board isn’t much of an option. Instead, it appears this season on defense will be about trying to squeeze every drop of production out of the talent on the field, and hope that’s enough to get WSU over the hump.

“I saw some guys still playing strong even when they were gassed and the scoreboard didn’t look pretty late in the game,” defensive coordinator Robb Akey said. “I also saw what that’s done to them and I’d like to be able to roll them (out) a little more.”

By the fourth quarter, the Cougars were clearly hurting, even though they still managed to make some plays. Defensive linemen Mkristo Bruce and Ropati Pitoitua played every snap. Aaron Johnson and Lance Broadus played almost all of them as well.

Without Feveae’i Ahmu on the field because of a broken foot, the Cougars are thin up front, and as expected that became a problem Saturday.

“You know you don’t have a rotation, it’s something you’ve got to do,” Johnson said. “(I’m) 320 pounds, Ropati is 295. You’re going to get tired and you’ve got to suck it up.

“It makes you mad. It’s like, man, I wish we had A’i out here. I wish (Matt) Eichelberger or (Bryan) Tarkington could play a little bit more. But it shows you that the coaches have faith in you and trust in you that you can still stay out there.”

Eichelberger and Tarkington are the next options at defensive tackle, but neither has been deemed ready for significant action. The only recourse at this point appears to be the 3-4 defense, which the Cougars used for significant portions of the second half.

Akey said he has no plans to use the 3-4 as a base defense, but WSU will almost certainly continue to use it, especially while Ahmu watches from the sidelines.

“It’s another front in scheme recognition that I think offenses are going to have to contend with,” he said. “(But) those starters have to be prepared to be out there every snap of the game.”

Added head coach Bill Doba: “I think it gives your run defense a good mix and you don’t have to change secondary coverage or your support system or any of that stuff. So it’s a way to present a different front without making wholesale changes.”

But as Doba noted, the problems for WSU run deeper than scheme.

Auburn had five plays of 34 yards or more, a problem that Doba said can be fixed – all were the results of assignment errors, overrunning the play, or other mental mistakes.

Those, the coaches think they can fix. The numbers game remains.

“At one point,” linebacker and team captain Scott Davis said, “I got the guys together in the middle and said, ‘We need to suck it up. The game ain’t over. We came to Washington State to play football, not to watch from the sidelines. You might as well just give it your all.’ “

Notes

The WSU fieldhouse will be open for its usual pregame festivities Saturday. At once it had been feared the ongoing renovation project within might force the event elsewhere on campus. … WSU has decided to ban smoking from all areas of Martin Stadium this season.