Pullman — It looks as though right tackle Fa’alili Fa’amoe won’t be available for Washington State’s August 31 opening against Portland State. After undergoing winter surgery, the 6-5, 314-pound fourth-year player from Pago Pago, American Samoa, has been recovering gradually in fall camp. Although Jake Dickert was optimistic he would return in time for the season to begin, Dickert stated following practice on Monday that it might take an additional week.
According to Dickert, “it’s looking a little bit more like week two.” His next test is scheduled for this coming Saturday or Sunday. After that, there’s a process to get him to make full contact again. We have a lot of hope still. He’s still eight months out (after surgery), and we’re happy with the track that he’s on. I can’t even begin to tell you guys how eager he is to be outside due to his mental makeup.
He’s done a terrific job, but I also need to think about his future. And we’ll take care to ensure that we don’t endanger that.”
In the event that Fa’amoe’s recuperation proceeds more slowly than anticipated, WSU’s starting lineup for the season will probably include Christian Hilborn at right tackle and Rodrick Tialavea at left guard, with the goal of having Fa’amoe return for the team’s match against Texas Tech in week two.
“We’re pretty solid until we get Lili back and having Christian there,” Dickert stated. In fact, I believe he has rather flourished in that role. He’s been helpful with these first few weeks of camp because he uses body position and athleticism. However, I have to give that kid a lot of credit because it seems like he hasn’t held a single position for the past two years. It’s challenging to achieve that. But we’re thrilled about that and I think he can pull it off.”
Related: What we discovered during WSU’s nine-day fall camp
Dickert had stated that he will announce the starting quarterback following the scrimmage on Saturday, but on Monday he provided clarification on the timing of the announcement.
Dickert declared, “That will be our final point of decision.” We’ll most likely release something on Monday. That will be the last day we assess it. On Sunday, we’ll speak with those two guys, then on Monday, we’ll sort of unveil that.
Since the spring, John Mateer and Zevi Eckhaus have been battling it out to be the Cougars’ quarterback, and as the final week approaches, pressure mounts as both make their last arguments to be the starting quarterback.
“I’ve talked to them and it isn’t going to be about the stats,” said Dickert. “Whoever provides us the best chance of winning will be the one to watch. Sometimes, however, it is impossible to justify that using statistics, precise objects, a single instance, or this time frame. Through a body of work over the past eight months, it is a gut sensation. It will be challenging because they are rivals.”
Mateer’s arm strength might be his one weakness at the moment. He keeps demonstrating his ability to spread the field, and on Monday he did so once more by bombing Josh Meredith and Kyle Williams during team periods.
“John has an enormous arm,” Dickert remarked. “They each have distinct styles, but John can throw the ball in a variety of ways down the field by using any arm angle, slot, or position. But he was incredibly accurate today. We must support those pockets because it is precisely what we need to see, especially because he was somewhat under duress. Thus, John had a good day.”
On Monday, Mateer completed some work holding kicks, a task that often falls to Nick Haberer. However, Dickert stated that Haberer’s back locked up on him before to practice, making it more of an emergency situation.
The return game has gained more importance as practice has gone on. And Dickert believes he has three men who can handle return duties more than well as fall camp comes to an end this week.
Dickert remarked, “Tony Freeman has been just incredible.” “Kris Hutson is following closely after him. We’ve had two incredibly talented guys since I’ve been here, but I’m not sure if that’s all. Those are instances of live tackles. I believe that we just need to strengthen our defense a little bit in order to improve our punt game. Up front, we have a number of new guys. Thus, it appears fine. The kickoff and kick return phases will be covered.
“We also need to be very energetic. When the appropriate person returns to that unit, Leyton Smithson shown at the end of the season what can be accomplished.”
Dicker frequently states that he has to watch the tape following a scrimmage in order to properly assess players and certain areas of the game. Over the weekend, he did precisely that and made a note of several notables that drew his attention.
According to Dickert, “I thought John did a good job commanding it, didn’t have a takeaway.” He also made accurate ball deliveries and showed superb footwork when needed, despite the fact that the game was obviously not in play. Zevi did a great job of retaliating, exactly as I had anticipated. All we need to do is extract him from every practice where he makes a throw that he later regrets. Wayshawn Parker demonstrated exceptional football skills.
It’s been pretty tough on Noah Dunham, so we’ve got to get him to play maybe just one position. For us, Tyson Durant is still incredibly reliable in that free safety role. I felt that Wes Steiner stood out a little bit and that, as he continues to work through his issues, we should keep elevating him.”
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