Spring camp takeaways: Washington State defense enjoys consistency in system and stability at several spots, but questions remain

PULLMAN – Under a first-year coordinator, Washington State’s defense is staying consistent with its system. The Cougars welcomed new standouts in their linebacking corps. The team boasts experience, depth and plenty of talent on the edges. WSU’s defensive tackles are looking to prove themselves. In the secondary, the Cougars are confident in a few returners, but uncertain about a couple of positions.

With spring camp finished, let’s round up what we learned about the team’s defense and assess where each position group stands heading into the offseason.

Standouts return, secondary has work to do

Both safeties and a standout cornerback return. The Cougars are still sorting out starters at nickel and the No. 2 CB spot.

Strong safety Jaden Hicks had a solid campaign as a freshman in 2022. Senior free safety Sam Lockett III, a Spokane native, captured first-team duties last year after transferring in from the junior-college ranks.

There were growing pains last season for WSU’s first-year safeties, who sometimes struggled to defend against deep passes. But progress comes with experience. Hicks and Lockett are now more consistent in downfield coverage, and their tackling abilities have improved. There was a noticeable drop-off in WSU’s passing coverage when Hicks and Lockett came off the field during scrimmages.

Behind Lockett, the Cougars are young. WSU feels comfortable with junior Tanner Moku as its No. 2 strong safety. Moku has seen some defensive reps in games over the past two years.

Chau Smith-Wade emerged last season as one of the Pac-12’s best cornerbacks. He looked the part this spring. The junior gave up only a handful of catches during full-team drills throughout camp.

Senior Cam Lampkin took the bulk of first-team snaps opposite Smith-Wade during spring ball.

Robinson rotated in, and finished camp as the team leader in interceptions with six. Head coach Jake Dickert shined a light on both Lampkin and Robinson recently when asked to name players who have the most significant jumps since last season. Lampkin wasn’t called on much last year – WSU didn’t often substitute corners in place of Smith-Wade and No. 2 CB Derrick Langford Jr., who graduated. Robinson, one of the team’s top freshman additions in 2022, redshirted last season.

“I’m really happy with where we are at corner,” Dickert said. “If those guys can stay competitive, it allows us to kinda open up the playbook.”

WSU has depth at the position, but aside from Smith-Wade, the Cougars’ corners are mostly untested at the Pac-12 level, and they were inconsistent in coverage against the team’s starting receivers at camp.

Backup options include juco transfers Jamorri Colson and Stephen Hall. They showed flashes at camp, but it was clear that the two newcomers are still adjusting to the speed of the Pac-12 level.

A promising newcomer will be added to the mix in the fall. WSU recently signed Utah State transfer Dominic Tatum, who made four starts last season for the Aggies. Tatum played safety for his first three collegiate seasons, then shifted to CB midway through the 2022 campaign. It’s uncertain whether Tatum will be added to the mix at cornerback or serve as a depth piece at safety.

WSU conducted a tightly contested position battle at nickel throughout spring camp. There was minimal separation between the three competitors – Jackson Lataimua, Chris Jackson and Kapena Gushiken.

The position battle will proceed well into fall camp, according to safeties/nickels coach Jordan Malone.

Lataimua got the start in WSU’s spring game. The sophomore was primarily a special-teamer last year, but he’s the most familiar with the playbook out of the three, Malone said. Jackson converted to nickel this spring. He was a reserve cornerback last year. The senior is the best tackler at the nickel position. Gushiken, a juco transfer, seems to be the fastest of the three.

WSU enjoyed stability at the position over the past three years. Spokane native Armani Marsh was consistently dependable and rarely came off the field, but he graduated and left the Cougars with big shoes to fill at nickel.

A new look at linebacker

Finding replacements at linebacker was an offseason priority for WSU’s defense, which lost its top three players from the position group after the 2022 season.

All-Pac-12 star Daiyan Henley was selected by the Los Angeles Chargers last month in the third round of the NFL draft. Francisco Mauigoa and Travion Brown, who shared starting duties at middle linebacker, both transferred out.

The Cougars’ linebacking corps probably won’t be as strong as it was last year – there’s no clear-cut all-conference candidates, and certainly no one as talented as Henley on the roster – but there are several capable players at the position.

The Cougs restocked with two Power Five transfers, a veteran backup was asked to take on an expanded role and a young player was promoted into the rotation.

After wrapping up spring camp, Dickert called the position a “work in progress.”

“Linebacker is probably the biggest position that we gotta shore up,” he said.

Texas transfer Devin Richardson is the favorite to start at middle linebacker. He quickly emerged as a vocal leader during spring camp and held down first-team responsibilities throughout the month.

The 6-foot-3, 230-pound senior did his finest work this spring when defending against the ground game. He reacted well to running plays, flowed through gaps at the line of scrimmage and exhibited adept tackling abilities.

Richardson appeared in nine games off the bench last year for the Longhorns and served primarily on special teams the previous season.

At outside linebacker, it appears likely that WSU will assign starting duties to Maryland transfer Ahmad McCullough.

The 6-2, 220-pound senior is the most athletic of the bunch. A sideline-to-sideline defender, McCullough’s speed showed up in scrimmages.

McCullough appeared in 24 games for the Terrapins over the past two seasons but made just five starts.

The Cougars’ two new LBs have plenty of experience, but they’re still a bit unproven. They were both rotational players at their previous schools, which begs the question: Can they become key players at WSU?

Kyle Thornton will cross-train at both linebacker positions. The fifth-year Cougar provided depth over the past two seasons, appearing in 25 games and making his first-career start in the 2022 finale at the LA Bowl. Thornton has developed into a well-rounded LB – a serviceable run-stopper and pass-defender. He’ll be expected to take on additional reps next season and settle into a leadership role.

Hudson Cedarland, one of WSU’s prized recruits of the 2022 class, was a scout-team gem last year during his redshirt season. WSU gave the freshman a healthy workload during scrimmages this spring, and Cedarland’s confidence seemed to grow as camp progressed. The Gig Harbor native could be a steady contributor with WSU’s second team next season.

Experienced edges, unseasoned interior

WSU is well-equipped on the edges.

All-conference stalwarts Brennan Jackson and Ron Stone Jr. are the headliners of WSU’s defense. The sixth-year seniors/fourth-year starters were models of consistency at camp. Jackson and Stone are the program’s most experienced players, so they didn’t need to prove anything to coaches this spring. They played limited reps during WSU’s scrimmages and spring game.

“It’s an honor to be able to go with someone like (Stone) these past six years, someone who has pushed me every single day – just the competition and the friendly rivalry we have,” Jackson said. “I’m just super excited for (the season) and I can’t imagine doing it with anybody better.”

The Cougars boast plenty of depth behind those two. Quinn Roff, Andrew Edson, Lawrence Falatea and Raam Stevenson each had bright moments in the rotation last season. Roff – the next best edge behind Jackson and Stone – missed the last two weeks of camp with a minor injury. Falatea was sidelined for the final week of spring ball, but the others filled in nicely. Edson showed off his strength during scrimmages, pushing past blockers for a few sacks. Stevenson added a speed element to the position.

“Those guys are the future of this edge room,” Jackson said.

The edge rusher position is WSU’s deepest and most proven group. The edges set the pace for the Cougars defense during camp, and they should be expected to lead the way for WSU next season. At defensive tackle, the Cougars are much less seasoned.

The top three players in WSU’s DT rotation graduated after the 2022 campaign. The Cougars return only one DT who played a significant role last year – Nusi Malani.

Malani, who logged two sacks last year, has established himself as the group’s leader. The 6-4, 275-pound junior exhibited impressive pass-rushing skills at camp.

Sophomore David Gusta saw some action last season, but not much. He lined up with the starting unit for most of camp and performed to mixed results. Also competing for reps are junior Ty Garay-Harris, and freshmen Rashad McKenzie and Ansel Din-Mbuh. Garay-Harris was a special-teamer last year. McKenzie, who missed most of camp with an injury, took a redshirt in 2022. Din-Mbuh is a true freshman from Texas who has shown advanced strength for his age.

There might be potential among the four, but the Cougars knew they’d need some extra experience at the position heading into the 2023 season.

“Defensive tackle – we gotta solidify there,” Dickert said on the final day of camp.

So, WSU made use of the transfer portal and landed a veteran DT who can provide immediate help. Senior Na’im Rodman, a former starter at Colorado, signed with the Cougars earlier this week. The 6-2, 300-pounder should boost WSU’s effectiveness against the run.

New coordinator, similar approach

Fans shouldn’t expect many changes in the way WSU’s defensive system operates under first-year coordinator Jeff Schmedding.

The Cougars didn’t need to overhaul their defense, a 4-2-5 system which Dickert installed three years ago. WSU has been a respectable defensive team over the past two seasons.

Dickert wants the defense to retain about 80% of its schemes and principles. He’s asking Schmedding to stay consistent with a proven defense while adding some tweaks. WSU players say it’s been a smooth transition.

“I think everyone has done a really good job of learning (Schmedding’s) scheme,” Brennan Jackson said after the spring game. “It’s not too different, not too complex. But there are obviously some nuances we have to figure out. I think this summer is going to be a really key point for us to learn that system and be really dialed in.”

Dickert and Schmedding share defensive philosophies. Both preach the importance of “relentless pursuit” – a tagline of sorts for WSU’s defense, which has established a swarming identity over the last few years.

“To me, a great defensive team is flying to the ball, getting 11 hats to the ball – a fast, physical and aggressive mindset,” said Schmedding, a former longtime Eastern Washington assistant who most recently coordinated the defense at Auburn. “You have to be able to stop the run, and pressure and confuse the quarterback. You have to eliminate explosive plays and get takeaways. … Those types of things have been instilled here with coach Dickert, and we want to uphold and advance the standard.”

Schmedding is building upon the staples of Dickert’s defenses – hunting aggressively for turnovers and dialing up disguised pressure packages, to name a couple of examples. WSU will still send out unique formations like its “Cheetah” set, a speed-oriented defensive front used on passing downs that includes four edge rushers.

The Cougars sometimes used the Cheetah formation and mixed in creative blitzes during spring camp, but only sporadically. WSU didn’t get too tricky, mostly staying in its base formation as newcomers got settled in. So, it was difficult to get a read on the adjustments Schmedding has made.

Overall, the defense had a satisfactory spring. The edges shined. The new linebackers showed promise. The defensive tackles were hit-and-miss, but decent against the run game. The secondary allowed a few too many explosive passing plays, but improved in that regard as camp progressed.