April 20 – PULLMAN – Washington State linebacker Kyle Thornton is used to it at this point. It will be late at night, around 8 or 9, and he will look down and see his phone ringing.
On the other side will be fellow linebacker Frank Cusano, a true freshman and early enrollee, ready with a list of questions for the elder statesman of the group.
“Talking about, ‘Hey, if this happens, what am I doing?’ ” said Thornton. “I’m always trying to ask for extra advice and things like that. It was very good to see. He will be something special.”
Cusano stood out in Saturday’s game, the second of the Cougars’ spring schedule and his 12th of 15 practices, standing out with a sack and a pass breakup — in addition to the pick-six he got in the team’s first game. He helped anchor a defense that recorded several key stops, including a few at the goal line and an interception by junior defensive back Cole Norah.
In turn, the Cougs’ offense recorded several good moments, including a 99-yard touchdown capped by running back Djouvensky Schlenbaker’s 1-yard plunge and two scoring passes from quarterback John Mateer, which caused the first-team representatives to be every scrimmage. His competition for the starting job, Bryant transfer Zevi Eckhaus, completed a touchdown pass to redshirt freshman tight end Trey Leckner.
If there was an individual highlight, however, it was Cusano. A true freshman from Northern California, he put together an excellent spring, playing well enough that if the season started now, he would travel with the team, WSU coach Jake Dickert said.
“One of the things that impressed me most about Frank is that he processed the defense like a true freshman,” said Dickert, whose team will wrap up spring practice with Saturday’s spring game. “(That’s) very, very hard to do with Mike’s position. He embodies the physicality — I think it’s pretty evident on that fourth-down stop. He was a little banged up there, but he comes right back and makes plays, very proud of where is he.”
If there is a challenge facing Cusano, WSU takes a deep look at the linebacker.
Ahead of him on the depth chart are Thornton, junior transfer Keith Brown and sophomore Buddah Al-Uqdah. He will also be competing for snaps with Portland State transfer Parker McKenna and second-year linebacker Hudson Cedarland.
No matter what his playing time will be like in the fall, Cusano has impressed his coaches and teammates. This is a good first step.
“I think what he adds is really good, reliable depth and, honestly, just a playmaking aspect,” Thornton said. “What impressed me most was how young he is and how dedicated he is to improving and knowing what he should be doing. I mean, this kid is always talking about movies.
Another development from Saturday’s game: Dickert got a little closer to identifying who he can count on in the kick return game.
College transfer Tony Freeman, a speedy 6-foot-9 sophomore, threw a kick return for a touchdown, showing the sheer speed the Cougs need at that position.
WSU needs something at that location. The Cougs’ previous wide receiver, Lincoln Victor, graduated and moved on. His only scoring play in last season’s return game came on the kickoff return of junior Leyton Smithson, who is using this spring to switch positions from receiver to defensive back. It opened up an opportunity for Freeman, who is also getting consistent reps at the wide position.
“I thought he caught a big explosive play early in the scrimmage with a punt return touchdown,” Dickert said, “which was good to see because we need to figure out who that guy is going to be.”
At the quarterback position, the Cougs are no closer to naming a starter, and Dickert joked last week that he might wait until the first game to decide. Mateer may be taking first-team reps, as he has all spring, but the coaches aren’t ready to hand him the job over Eckhaus. Expect this battle to be fought throughout fall camp as well.
The only progress Dickert and the coaches appreciate is that Mateer and Eckhaus aren’t turning the ball over as much as they did at the start of camp. Neither man threw an interception in Saturday’s scrimmage, a change of pace from the first scrimmage, in which they threw a combined three. For offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle, it could be a step in the right direction to separate the two.
Mateer is trying to find the right balance between making an effort to avoid interceptions and avoiding overthinking.
“You can definitely be too conservative,” Mateer said. “Actually, in that late-game scenario, I was being very conservative. We had about 30 seconds to get 60 yards, and I just didn’t want to throw the game away with a pick, but you have to push the ball down the field… It’s weird and I’m still trying to find that balance.”
