Reactions from WSU Football’s Saturday scrimmage

Good morning. The Cougar football team managed to pry itself away from the Lentil Festival on Saturday, just long enough to hold its final fan-witnessed scrimmage. As with every time the team plays against itself, there were plenty of good things that happened, which means there were also plenty of bad things close behind.

The quarterback race seems to be clearing a bit with each passing day, and every sign is pointing toward Gardner Minshew taking the first snap in Laramie. While Mike Leach hasn’t come out and named a starter, Minshew continues to get the longest look in terms of reps. That continued on Saturday, as the East Carolina transfer completed more passes than any other quarterback attempted.

Here is what Mike Leach told the Spokesman Review afterward:

“That’s the biggest difficulty we’ve had, is all three are pretty similar,” Leach said. “And with less experience with us, Gardner’s coming along rapidly and he’s right there with the other two. So I definitely want to know what he can do with more reps, which that’s why we gave him more reps this week.

“The other thing is, I think he does a great job controlling and elevating the unit and getting those guys all hyped up.”

While it appears to be only a matter of time before Minshew assumes the role of QB 1, it would be really great if one guy decisively stood out above the rest. Let’s get to a few brief reactions, based solely on game stories.

The Good

• The Cougars scored 11 touchdowns. Maybe they can do that in a regular season game!
• Looks like Boobie Williams and Max Borghi are going to pack a pretty good 1-2 punch at running back. We all know what Boobie can do, and Borghi appears to be as-advertised.
• Brandon Arconado may take the title of Training Camp All-American after catching two more touchdown passes, giving him four in two scrimmages.
• The receivers as a whole continue to look like the team’s best position group.

The Bad

• The last time Keith Harrington was a regular in the running back rotation, he lost his spot in part due to a proclivity toward fumbling. Saturday, he did it again, losing the ball just short of the goal line. If you can’t hold on to the ball, you aren’t gonna play.
• Lamonte McDougal is probably WSU’s best defensive lineman. He can’t play this season.
• You should be very, very concerned about the defensive line’s current state. Like, “we’re 35,000 feet over the North Atlantic, both engines just flamed out, and the pilots have food poisoning” concerned.

The Ugly

• College kickers

The Cougars will practice Sunday evening, then take the day off Monday, as classes begin. According to the Spokesman Review, practice will be closed to the media and the public following Tuesday’s session. That’ll make all the difference as to whether WSU is any good in 2018. Or not.

Football

Brandon Arconado hauls in two more TDs ... and four other reactions from Washington State’s second fall scrimmage | The Spokesman-Review
Nearly two weeks shy of their 2018 opener at Wyoming, the Washington State Cougars returned to Martin Stadium on Saturday afternoon for the second scrimmage of the preseason camp.

Lentil Festival

Mike Price’s Pullman Walk of Fame induction is well-deserved and long overdue. Wait, Pullman has a Walk of Fame? In that case, I think I deserve a spot in front of the old Shermer’s.

This Week in Parenting

We’ve been driving all over western Germany trying to find a place to live. As such, we’ve driven on the autobahn quite a bit. Below is the German sign denoting an autobahn exit. I have two boys under the age of 10. The next time they don’t laugh about this will be the first time.

Beer

Best beer I had this week: Before I left Tampa, I mailed myself a few bombers of Tampa’s finest. Among them was Cycle Brewing’s S’mores. While the beer is tremendous, one of the bottles I mailed broke open. It made me sad.

Uh-Oh, Germany Is Rapidly Running Out Of Beer Bottles : NPR
In Germany, beer consumption is up as temperatures remain unusually high. This is good and bad news for the beer industry.

Non-Sports

The Fall of the Meth King: An Oral History of the Best ‘Breaking Bad’ Episode Ever - The Ringer
Inside the making of "Ozymandias," the harrowing, violent end to the reign of Walter White.