Gary Rogers is RIPPED

You won’t like me when I’m angry.

I know from his diary he says that everyone has been working hard, but geez Gary Rogers. You’re like, HUGE. As the picture shows from Cougfan, I mean yeah, he’s been a thick 6-7, 240 before:

But to see him now? It’s going to be like trying to tackle the goal post for opposing defenses. I guess he’s taking this whole #1 QB thing pretty seriously. Rogers has a new diary up on Cougfan by the way, so give it a read here.

The new scoreboard has been press-released by DakTronics. They have included a new picture of it, which is updated from the version we were showing off around here. Looks good. Can’t wait to see and hear it in action this fall, as a new sound system is included to enhance the gameday experience.

The video display will be 53 feet wide by 25 feet high, same as the version we were showing before. But to get an idea of the sheer size of it, it will be slightly larger than the video screen at Safeco Field, which is 46 feet wide by 26 feet high. Cool.

The East-West High School classic is underway tonight. WSU recruit Cory Mackay has been turning heads in practice and looks like he’s getting ready for the tight-end position on the next level, as he’s already up to 240 pounds on his 6-4 frame with 4.6 40-speed. Sounds good to me!

Coach Wulff has decided on the new helmet scheme for next year. We’ll see the script Cougars on the home helmet, while the crimson road helmets with the logo will remain the same, at least for the ’08 season. All bets are off when we become a NIKE school in 2009. Stay tuned for a WSU Football Blog “Uni Watch”, where we’ll go over some previous combo’s and run a poll to see which threads YOU want to see on these guys.

Speaking of NIKE, is there any doubt they are the most powerful entity in sports apparel? This story is making the rounds, about the Team USA team picture. Check out the picture, and the player on the far-left, Dwight Howard.

Notice anything different about him compared to the rest of Team NIKE….er…I mean Team USA?? Could his positioning with his shoes hidden behind the seated Coach K and his hand over the NIKE logo on his shorts have ANYTHING to do with Howard being the only Adidas guy on the team??? Nah…probably just a coincidence!

Kyle Weaver spoke to KJR a couple of days ago. He touched on a lot of things, mainly the NBA and the draft experience, but towards the end of the interview he had some good little tidbits on next year’s team. He too is hearing good things about the incoming talent, including DeAngelo Casto, who apparently has been wowing them in summer workouts already. Cool.

Speaking of Cougar hoopsters and the league, our own D-Low has found a home. Sort of. He’ll play for the Dallas Mavs summer-league team, with a hope for an NBA future if he can impress. Good luck D-LOW!

Sigh. Yes, the NBA. Which brings me to the last point on hoops, of course, the Sonics. A dark day for Seattle sports fans. I know you are sick of it, and I won’t say anything else about it. But looking at that Team USA picture above, it’s not hard to picture Kevin Durant eventually in that lineup by 2012. And seeing how Durant has a 7-year, $60 million dollar deal with Nike, you can bet he won’t be covering up the logo. And, oh yeah, he WON’T be a member of the OKC Thunder or Barons or whatever they are going to call themselves. He’ll be where he can maximize his exposure as the next great superstar, and you better believe that won’t happen rotting on a losing team in the dust bowl.

My new favorite team? Anyone who’s playing OKC.

Finally, breaking news from Cougfan tonight – the earliest verbal in WSU football history has happened. This time a JUNIOR-TO-BE has committed to WSU? Unbelievable. Tight-end Aaron Dunn from Shadle Park in Spokane has committed to WSU for the class of 2010. Here’s his bio from Scout.com:

Starred in both football and basketball for Class 4A Shadle Park as a true freshman and as a sophomore last year. He earned honorable mention accolades in football and was the only-non senior on the first team All-GSL squad in basketball his sophomore campaign. Dunn is also an outstanding student, with a near perfect GPA.

Starting as a frosh in both football and basketball is pretty remarkable. I don’t care what level that is, let alone a 4A school like Shadle. And that Dunn, the 6-6, 220-pounder, took home the MVP for the tight-ends group from the WSU summer camp, it sounds like things just went from there. Good news!

If there is any doubt about it, this staff is busting butts, on the recruiting trail and at the WSU camp that drew raves from high school players and coaches. These guys are hungry and driven and are bringing a lot of energy to everything they do. You have to believe that this staff is going to make everyone forget about the crap that was going on under the prior regime.

Happy 4th!