Happy Thursday morning, and wow, one week from today? GAME DAY. Unbelievably soon, and you find yourself wondering how in the world did it get here so fast?? We are truly in “Game Week” mode, and it’s safe to say the WSU fan base is absolutely chomping at the bit to get this thing rolling! Like the big cat behind the fence ready to pounce on it’s prey, the excitement and build-up, and hopefully FOCUS, is starting to build for the fans, but one can imagine what the coaches and players might be going through right now.
Speaking of Game Week, it doesn’t sound like the Cougs did a whole lot in yesterday’s practice, per Christian Caple. Basically a light walk-through, which is similar to what the team will do on Fridays before a game. So let’s see – Tuesday’s practice was like a Thursday, and Wednesday’s practice was like a typical Friday – got it? Good.
There were some other links out there worth checking out, so let’s get started….
Howie Stalwick has this read from the Kitsap Sun, where the word “swagger” (or “swag” for you cool kids) was thrown around. Howie touches on quite a few things, from Andrei Lintz’s excitement with his new role on the team, to BYU’s age and maturity (29 seniors??) to the Cougs’ recruiting class thus far in 2012.
Did you know that for this class, WSU may have 12 commits, but that only one player is of the four-star variety? I know, I know, stars are overrated and all that stuff, what matters is when they arrive on campus and get coached up, blah blah BLAH. But kind of interesting I guess? And still, 12 commits in late August is nine more than coach Wulff had a year ago at this time (3 verbals who actually signed on the dotted line as of 8/2011). It’s not really fair though to criticize Wulff’s commits a year ago, all the uncertainty around his job status, and one can assume all that hanging over the program made things crazier than usual on the recruiting trail!
Speaking of recruiting, Cougfan has a feature story on WSU QB commit Tyler Bruggman. It appears he topped 300 yards in his season opener, and looked fast and efficient in their no-huddle, quick hitting offense. Even better? We can watch this kid play this weekend on ESPN2! Bruggman will lead Brophy College Prep into battle vs. the #2 ranked team in the country, Santa Margarita, Saturday at 7 PM on the deuce. If you are near a TV and want a football fix of some kind Saturday night, it might be interesting to get a peek at this 4-star QB in action against elite competition?
Caple was also picked up in the Seattle Times, with this story about the WSU offense and the QB showdown between Jeff Tuel and Connor Halliday. As has been widely speculated, Tuel has been getting more reps with the 1’s, so it shouldn’t be a huge surprise that he’ll be the starter next week.
Cougcenter has a huge rundown on all the newbie’s on the roster, and who may see the field at Provo. By the estimates of Sandritter, it appears up to 10 new faces will play this year, and those guesses look really strong as to what we should see this season. Is 10 new faces a lot? Back in the day coaches used to want to redshirt entire recruiting classes, but that has been changing for the last decade-plus, or basically ever since they went to the 85 scholarship-limit. Now true frosh or JC’s have such a great shot at playing immediately, not only if they are good enough but often times the war of attrition sees their number called whether they are physically ready or not (and I think as WSU fans, we are painfully aware of what happens when you have such a thin roster!).
That’s it for now. Enjoy your Thursday morning, and of course, GO COUGS!
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