Cougar Corner | WSU Football: Top 10 Players for 2009: No. 7

The first three players selected to my Top 10 list for Washington State football this coming season have all been on the offense.

There is no question that there is plenty of room for improvement on both sides of the ball. The Cougs managed to put together a tough combination of weak offense and lack of depth on defense to hold down opponents. That won't be the case this coming season.

So, it makes sense that my fourth selection for the Top 10 comes from the defensive unit. And if you guessed that would be the case, you'd be wrong.

Before revealing No. 7, here's a list of the first three picks, none of which have had outstanding seasons prior to 2009, but are ready to make their mark in the Pac-10:

No. 10: Marshall Lobbestael

No. 9: Johnny Forzani

No. 8: Jeshua Anderson

The No. 7 player who will significantly influence the success of WSU football this season is junior running back James Montgomery. He's a transfer from Cal-Berkeley where he redshirted his first year on campus and played in 2007.

Last season, Montgomery was forced to sit out because of NCAA rules regarding transferring within the conference. He may have technically sat out, but when it came to working with his new team, he didn't spend time sitting around. Working hard on the Cougar scout team, Montgomery was voted the WSU scout team Player of the Year.

It's no secret that Cal has been loaded with talented running backs the past few years. Trying to earn playing time carrying the rock has been tough in Strawberry Canyon of late. That's just fine with Coach Paul Wulff. He'll have no trouble finding Montgomery some playing time.

Here's a look at Montgomery's stats at Cal. He was their third leading rusher in 2007:

James Montgomery Stats at Cal

	Games/Started	Carries	Yards	Average	TD	Long	Receptions	Yards	TD
2007	13/0	36	171	4.8	2	20	4	48	1

There are more reasons to expect great things from Montgomery. Coming out of high school, he was rated the No. 14 running back prospect in the nation by Rivals.com. They also rated him to be the No. 18 prospect overall in the state of California.

Montgomery looked very good during spring camp this year. He's ready to get back on a Pac-10 field anywhere. His first chance will be against the Stanford Cardinals in Pullman, the first game of the season. Montgomery is just one of the outstanding players Coach Wulff has at running back this year.

Running a no-huddle offense with so many talented players will quickly erase the scoring woes of the past season. James Montgomery will have Cougar football fans enjoying the present and looking forward to the future.

Check back tomorrow to find out who will be selected No. 6.

Originally published on Examiner.com