Washington State spring football takeaways

Washington State wrapped up spring football with the annual Crimson and Gray game at Gesa Field on April 22, capping 15 practices and an early look at the 2023 Cougars.

The Crimson team cruised to a comfortable 42-14 win over the Gray team after a high-scoring second quarter, with multiple quick drives ending in scores. Team Crimson did not have a scoring drive last over 2 minutes in the second quarter.

Even though it is a game between the WSU football roster, the primary goal was to establish competition battles between some additions to the roster from the transfer portal or guys who have been waiting for an opportunity to climb the depth chart.

This year looked a lot different than last year’s Crimson and Gray game, with the development of a new offensive under new offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle on display.

The Crimson team had most of the ‘first-team’ offense on the field, including quarterback Cameron Ward, in his second year on the Palouse, along with running backs Nakia Watson and Jaylen Jenkins, who controlled most of the backfield.

The Gray team had most of the ‘second-team’ offense, with wide receiver Leyton Smithson even taking a few snaps behind center in the game and completing a few passes, but while backup quarterback John Mateer handled most of the snaps.

For the defensive side of the ball, the Gray team had a lot of the starters from the previous season, with stars such as Ron Stone Jr. and Brennan Jackson, two great pass-rushers for the Cougars.

The defense for the Crimson team had a mix of transfers along with some faces looking to move up the depth chart. Linebacker Devin Richardson, the transfer from Texas, made his WSU de'but' with two total tackles for the Crimson defense.

After a look at the current roster for the Cougars heading into the 2023 season, here are some takeaways after the end of the spring session for WSU:

The Crimson team racked up over 500 yards of offense against the Gray team, with Ward throwing for 259 yards on 12-of-16 passing with a touchdown, while Watson and Jenkins scored two rushing touchdowns each.

WSU had a major issue to address heading into the offseason, and that was the offensive attack and play-calling for the Cougars, to not set themselves up in third-and-long situations so often.

The offensive play-calling with Arbuckle has completely changed and the explosive plays for the Cougars seem to be back.

The starters scored on their first touchdown when Ward hit DT Sheffield for a 63-yard pass and Jenkins rushed in for a 14-yard score. That started a run of six straight touchdowns for the Crimson squad.

The second quarter saw three scoring drives from the Crimson team, and every score in the quarter was only three to four plays, going at least 45 yards in distance in under 2 minutes. Ward hit Sheffield for a 51-yard touchdown and Watson punched in two short touchdown runs to close out the half.

In what was a little glimpse of the 2023 offense for WSU, it looks like the spark is finally back, and moving down the field quickly will be a huge improvement from the slow-paced offense from last season, especially in a conference with loaded offenses that can score quickly, like Washington.

The Cougars lost most of their receiving corps during the offseason, with the transfer portal playing a key role along with some expiring eligibility that led to a transfer portal hunt to rebuild the unit.

One of the ‘under-the-radar’ receivers for the Cougars, JUCO transfer DT Sheffield from NW Mississippi CC, had himself a very impressive day, with 3 receptions for 121 yards and a touchdown.

True freshman Cole Pruett, out of Monroe, Washington, was targeted the most for the Crimson offense, with 5 receptions for 84 yards as the slot receiver, looking to emerge as a key weapon for Ward.

Two highly-recruited transfers, receiver Josh Kelly from Fresno State and Kyle Williams from UNLV, also made their Cougar debuts, combining for 5 receptions for over 110 total yards.

Even though most of the Gray team was consisted of backups or third-string guys with some practice squad athletes, the offense still showed plenty of promise as to the Cougars' depth on that side of the ball.

Quarterback John Mateer completed 16 of 27 passes for 236 yards and a touchdown, also using his legs when need be. Mateer has a little bit of experience backing up Ward last season, but this reaffirmed his position as the second quarterback on the roster.

The young receiving corps had many bright spots, with receiver Tsion Nunnally, the redshirt sophomore, leading team Gray with 4 catches for 84 yards. True freshman Carlos Hernandez also had 4 catches.

In the running game, the third-string back for the Cougars, Djouvensky Schlenbaker, totaled 13 carries for 49 yards and a TD. Even with his little experience in games last season, Schlenbaker definitely has the potential to contribute when needed -- or more likely in the future.

In the battle of the first units, the offense definitely won, collecting 470 passing yards and absolutely torching the secondary, and even though it is great that the offense seems to be rejuvenated after struggling last season, what about the secondary?

The secondary for the Cougars last season had many ups and downs, and having your own team put over 470 yards in the air is a little concerning.

WSU has always prioritized defense through the Dickert era, and with many stars in the pass rush along with strong linebacker play, the only remaining question will how the secondary can step up to match the level of the front seven.

In a conference with loaded offenses, the secondary for the Cougars will be constantly tested with top talent, and the question of limiting the explosive plays still remains, after a very impressive performance from the Crimson offense.

But all these questions and speculation will be on pause as the spring for the Cougars comes to a close, and summer camp looms for WSU with more names potentially entering the transfer portal.