PULLMAN - Washington State's Wednesday, Aug. 17 scrimmage didn't feature the first-team offense much, but that didn't stop the O from moving the ball at a frenetic pace throughout the 45-minute session at Martin Stadium.
"We intentionally didn't play the ones a lot, and we held some guys out from playing at all," coach Paul Wulff said. "More importantly, we knew we only wanted to go roughly 60 plays, so we needed to make sure there were a lot of twos and some ones that got the majority of the snaps today."
The limited time didn't affect the production of quarterback Jeff Tuel, who led the first-team unit - sans receivers Marquess Wilson and Jared Karstetter - on a seven-play, 70-yard drive that was highlighted by a 37-yard pass to Isiah Barton and a 20-yard touchdown strike to tight end Andrei Lintz.
While that was the end of the day for the first-team offense, the real significance of the scrimmage may have taken place in the battle between quarterbacks Marshall Lobbestael and redshirt freshman Connor Halliday for the primary backup role.
Halliday finished 5 of 7 for 96 yards, while Lobbestael ended the day a pedestrian 3 of 5 for 24 yards. The anticipated fourth-stringer, redshirt sophomore David Gilbertson, went 5 of 5 for 60 yards, underscoring the fact that the offense threw the ball effectively no matter who was at the helm.
Perhaps the most striking part of the scrimmage was the offense's pace, which could only be described as blistering. The Cougars appear dedicated to playing much faster this season, and Wulff was crystal clear as to the tempo he'd like to achieve when the finished product hits the field.
"As fast as humanly possible," he said. "There'll be sometimes we won't, but the goal is to operate at a level that very few people are accustomed to."
The running game remained inconsistent, although Carl Winston put together two impressive runs totaling 20 yards. On first and 10, Winston ran the ball off tackle only to run right at junior Lenard Williams, so he shifted inside for a 9-yard gain that left Williams looking for his jock strap.
Wulff has commended Winston on his play throughout fall camp and, for Winston, the scrimmage was a chance to show people that the starting running back battle is not just between Logwone Mitz and Rickey Galvin.
"I take it personally. I don't show it (emotionally). I show it with my play," Winston said. "Coach gave me an opportunity to come out here with the ones and show what I got, show how the knee is, and when an opportunity presents itself, just step up and make plays. That's what I'm doing and that's what I'm going to continue to do."
True freshman running back Marcus Mason also was impressive in limited action, gaining 19 yards on three carries.
Halliday made the would-be play of the day when he connected with Gino Simone on an 87-yard touchdown pass, but it was called back due to offsetting unsportsmanlike conduct penalties. Originally, it looked as though Simone was down after a 15-yard gain, but he rolled over the defender and sprinted past a confused secondary and into the endzone.
The defense wasn't without highlights, as they collected four sacks, including one from defensive star Travis Long. They also blocked two field goals - both attempted by Colfax High School product Tyler McNannay - and managed to hold the offense to just one touchdown on eight drives.
