Day 1 fall camp practice report

Hey look at that, an actual practice to recap. The Cougars hit the field for the first time on Friday and from all accounts, things went well. A couple of newcomers got in on the action early, while Mike Leach said Day 1 of 2013 was considerably better than Day 1 of 2012.

Let's get to the nuts and bolts.

Quick notes:

• The Cougars practiced in shorts and helmets as they need to wait a few days before the NCAA allows padded practices.
• From the sound of it, the defense got the better of things.
• WSU is practicing on a grass field in Lewiston, something that came up in seemingly all of the post game interviews.
• John Fullington spent the majority of practice running with the first team at right guard.

Blurb of the day:

Mayle certainly looks the part of a guy who's going to make an instant impact, though he's obviously learning the plays and probably isn't operating at full speed quite yet. But there were a couple times he caught a pass with a smaller defender draped on him, only to shoo the DB away and turn up field. He also dropped a pass and committed a false start on consecutive plays.

Quotable:

"Better, significantly," Mike Leach said when comparing the opening practice to 2012, via the Spokesman Review. "It was more competitive, more people bouncing around. More people kind of knew what to do, where to line up, able to kind of build on and draw on what they did last year, in the spring, in the offseason. Had a lot more productive offseason, we're stronger than we were last year and got a lot more work done."

Injury report:

We don't know if they are injured, but Chester Su'a and Matt Meyer were not at practice. According to Christian, safety Paris Taylor rode an exercise bike during practice.

Tweet of the day:

Another QB pic. #gocougs pic.twitter.com/XvMmg3GBn7

— WSUCougFootball (@wsucougfb) August 2, 2013

Videos:

Three post-practice interviews from WSU Athletics and some practice footage from Christian.

Fall camp links:

Video: Some WSU practice footage - SportsLink - Spokesman.com - Aug. 2, 2013
FROM PULLMAN — Decided I'd try to provide a feel for what one of Washington State's practices looks like. Or what one minute looks like. Anyway, here's some video of WSU's 7-on-7 session today.

Leach speaks about Day 1 - SportsLink - Spokesman.com - Aug. 2, 2013
FROM LEWISTON — Back in Pullman now, and with our newspaper story filed, we'll pass along some quotes from coach Mike Leach's media session after the Cougars opened camp earlier this afternoon.

Day 1: WSU adjusting to Lewiston locale - SportsLink - Spokesman.com - Aug. 2, 2013
FROM LEWISTON — The first day of 10 in Lewiston is over for the Washington State football team, which is probably wrapping up meetings right about now back at the Lewis-Clark State campus. We're back in our Pullman home office with some notes and quotes to pass along from the first day of camp.

Cougars hold first practice of season - Spokesman.com - Aug. 2, 2013
LEWISTON – The beginning of preseason camp is all about adjustments. Like the one Deone Bucannon made earlier Friday on the bus prior to Washington State’s first practice.

Withers: Leach excited about position battles as Cougar camp begins | Walla Walla Union-Bulletin
Mike Leach was plodding through his initial teleconference of the 2013 football season when an innocent question lit him up. He was asked about the most competitive position battles as his Washington State football team starts practice Friday in Lewiston.

WSU Cougars enter fall camp older, wiser | The Columbian
Those who expected miracles out of Mike Leach in his first year in Pullman were sorely disappointed, unless a nine-loss season rocked their boat.

Cougar Football Holds First Practice of 2013 Season - Washington State University Official Athletic Site
The Washington State University football team kicked off its 2013 season with a two-hour workout in helmets and shorts Friday afternoon. The Cougars are the first team in the Pac-12 Conference to open preseason camp.

Women's basketball:

Women’s Basketball Announces 2013-14 Nonconference Slate - Washington State University Official Athletic Site
Washington State women’s basketball will matchup against six NCAA Tournament teams and also head to Hawaii for the Rainbow Wahine Classic to highlight its 2013-14 nonconference schedule, head coach June Daugherty announced Friday.