WSU WR Carlos Hernandez will miss at least one game with injury – and other notes from Day 7 of fall camp

Aug. 7—PULLMAN — Washington State is preparing for returning starter wide receiver Carlos Hernandez to miss at least one game due to the foot injury he suffered in Saturday’s practice.

That’s the indication from WSU coach Jake Dickert, who said Hernandez will recover from surgery wearing a cast on his left foot for the next three to four weeks, which would likely force him to miss the Cougars’ season opener, a home contest. with FCS Portland State on August 31.

WSU’s next game is a showdown with Texas Tech of the Big 12, set for Sept. 7 in Pullman. If Hernandez is out of the cast in four weeks, he will do so in the first week of September. It’s unclear if he would play in that weekend’s game, but players typically need time to return to playing shape even after they are cleared to return.

“Carlos will be out for the foreseeable future,” Dickert said after practice Wednesday, the Cougars’ seventh fall camp. “Everything is day-to-day. I want him back tomorrow. He wants to be there tomorrow.”

Dickert did not offer a set timetable for Hernandez’s return, saying the team will evaluate his situation once he is sent off.

It’s a costly blow for the Cougars, who were counting on Hernandez to build on his promising freshman season last fall. During spring and fall practices, he earned consistent reps with first-team units, a sign from coaches that he was in line for a bigger role this season. Hernandez and veteran receiver Kyle Williams are two of WSU’s only returning wideouts with significant experience.

In Hernandez’s absence, Dickert said, coaches are shuffling personnel around on offense.

Oregon transfer receiver Kris Hutson will get more outside reps, and other transfers like Kyle Maxwell and Tre Shackelford will accept bigger roles, offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle said after Tuesday’s practice.

“We have to keep moving. I mean, it’s a football lesson,” Dickert said. “Our guys need to know what their role is, or what their perceived role is right now, you never know when your number is going to be called. Carlos is taking this like a champ. “

Elsewhere in Wednesday’s practice, the Cougars ended up moving from Rogers Practice Field to Gesa Field, where their defense produced some timely stops to complete the final situational periods.

In one sequence, linebacker Kyle Thornton had his third interception in two practices, picking off quarterback Zevi Eckhaus in the end zone to prevent the offense from scoring in a 1 minute, 54 second scenario where they needed a touchdown.

A few moments later, the WSU offense also ran into trouble in a drill when it had 1:10 (no timeouts) to march down the field and get into field goal range for returning starting kicker Dean Janikowski.

On the first attempt, the offense led by John Mateer ran out of time before he could hit the ball and stop the clock, resulting in the defense winning.

The Cougars managed the situation twice more.

On the next series, WSU retired its field goal unit in time, but Janikowski hit the left upright from about 40 yards out.

The next time, Janikowski also arrived on the field in time, but made a mistake on the left in the same place.

The Cougars were successful the next time in the simulation, with a different kicker. Sophomore Ryan Harris, a transfer from San Diego Mesa College, connected by roughly the same distance. He is expected to back up Janikowski as the placekicker.

“We kind of screwed that up a little bit,” Dickert said. “It’s going to be a great learning experience for the coach. This is supposed to be a center and a field goal kick, and then we made the last play. We have to go out there and make the field goal. Lots of learning.”

A year ago, Janikowski was 15 for 20 on field goals. Four of his five misses came in three games – narrow losses to Cal, Stanford and Washington – and in those situations, he had chances to turn the game in the Cougars’ favor.

With 50 seconds left against Cal, Janikowski missed from 50 yards out. In the opening minutes of the fourth quarter against Stanford, he missed a go-ahead field goal.

It may be one of the most underrated factors that can influence this season for WSU, how to improve in late game situations. Janikowski has a hand in that, but his attack needs to align in time, and defenders Mateer and Eckhaus must avoid turnovers. On that front, it’s still a work in progress.

They still have another week and a half of fall camp, which they are also using to test offensive linemen at different positions. Every day, right guard Brock Dieu has been taking reps at center, where redshirt junior Devin Kylany plays. Guard Christian Hilborn has played some tackle and redshirt sophomore Jonny Lester, a redshirt sophomore who is expected to play as a backup this season, has played both tackle and guard.

That was by design, Dickert said, but the team is also finding ways to ensure redshirt freshman Noah Dunham maintains a consistent position on the line. Coaches hope to achieve this type of personnel change by the time of the team’s second exhibition game, scheduled for August 17, two weeks before the season opener.

“We just need to find the right combination,” Dickert said. “It’s about seeing these guys doing different things.”