Cougars shuffle defensive linemen
PULLMAN – Midway through the morning practice Tuesday, Washington State’s No. 1 offense and the No. 1 defense squared off in a goal-line drill.
Quarterback Alex Brink took a snap from center, quickly turned to his right and tried to throw a pass to Michael Bumpus in the flat. The ball never got that far. Instead, it met the outstretched hand of a defensive end and fluttered to the ground.
Not to be deterred, Brink went the other side on the next play. But again, a big hand of a defensive end knocked the ball out of the air.
Two good plays by the defense, but nothing extraordinary – other than the man who made both was Ropati Pitoitua.
Yes, the same Pitoitua who started the nine games he was healthy last year at defensive tackle. And the same Pitoitua who was – and is – slated to start inside again this season.
But Tuesday, the 6-foot-8, 290-pound Pitoitua was taking snaps at defensive end, adding a new look to the Cougar defense.
“We’re moving some people around, looking at Ropati at an end and a tackle,” Cougar head coach Bill Doba said.
Doba then went on to explain the logic behind the move: “We said, let’s try to get our 11 best players for that situation – if we can guess right – on the field. In the run game, to have A’i Ahmu sitting on the bench doesn’t make sense.”
The idea to move Pitoitua outside, allowing Ahmu, a 6-foot, 292-pound run stuffer to be on the field at the same time, sprouted in a late-night coaching bull session.
According to Doba, defensive end coach Marty Long and safety coach Leon Burtnett tossed around the idea until late Sunday night, then the coaching staff, which spent much of Monday’s no-practice day talking football, debated it some more. Tuesday they tried it on the field.
But, according to Long, such an unexpected move should have been expected by the defensive linemen.
“The thing we tell them is be ready to be surprised,” Long said. “Be ready for something new to happen every day. We looked at the film, and said ‘OK, these are the guys who are playing the best right now, let’s put them on the field.’
“We told them that in the meeting room and eyes immediately lit up, because you start to wonder where I’m at on the depth chart. It keeps them on their toes – and keeps us on our toes, too.”
With Ahmu sitting out the morning practice – he and selected others coming off injuries are not participating in both two-a-day practices – the line during the drill included Liberty High’s Matt Mullennix and Ropati at end with Aaron Johnson and Matt Eichelberger inside.
Sophomore defensive end Kevin Kooyman, who has been with the first unit most of the fall, was the odd man out in the new alignment. Of course, returning starter Lance Broadus, the 6-2, 227-pound speed rusher, should work his way back into the lineup when he is fully healed from off-season shoulder surgery, but that may not be in time for the season opener Sept. 1 at Wisconsin.
Notes
Morning practice, in helmets and shoulder pads, wasn’t the Cougars’ best of the fall, but Doba thought he knew why. “We gave them a day off, we had a great time yesterday, we had a good team building session, and they just came out a little sluggish,” he said. “They’ll be alright.” … The team-building session Doba referred to was a team dinner and a night of bowling. … The walking wounded are starting to pile up. Reserve linebacker Andy Mattingly of Mead has his right ankle in a boot due a to a sprain he suffered late in Sunday’s night practice. But Doba doesn’t seem too worried yet. “It’s not too bad, I bet if you check this time last year we had just as many if not more,” he said of the nicks and bruises. “Other than Andy, the guys who are going to be playing are (out for) just a day or two.” Mattingly should miss seven to 10 days. … Receiver Brandon Gibson was sidelined midway through morning drills with a left-knee injury, the severity of which is unknown. Other notable new injuries include long snapper Tony Thompson, who has a bad right knee, and receivers Daniel Blackledge and Keith Rosenberg, with a hamstring and a groin strain, respectively. … The Cougars will hold their second scrimmage today at 1:30 p.m. Like the first one, it is free and open to the public. … Fox Sports Northwest will air a WSU preview show tonight at 8.