Pac-10 Position Breakdown: Quarterback, Washington State Cougars

Washington State head coach Paul Wulff is looking for a leader. Wulff, a former offensive lineman for the Cougars, is entering year two with his alma-mater and is fully aware that a repeat of last year’s uninspiring season will not go over well on the Palouse.

For the Cougars to right the ship, a quarterback must emerge in 2009.

This proud program has had success in recent years at the position with the likes of Alex Brink and Jason Gesser not too far removed from their productive playing days. There are two main candidates for this year’s job, and both started in games last season.

Redshirt sophomore, Marshall Lobbestael started three games in 2008 and played in a total of five before suffering season-ending damage to his ACL and MCL during the Oregon State game.

His numbers from last year’s limited action, while not spectacular, were solid. He finished 53-of-103 for 571 yards, with 4 touchdowns, and 4 interceptions. His passer rating was a respectable 103.08 and he was sacked 12 times.

Lobbestael’s injury derailed his promising progress, but he showed flashes of brilliance during the brief season. In his first career start against Portland State, he threw touchdown passes on his first two passing attempts and finished the day 9-12 with 149 yards passing, 2 TD’s, 0 Interceptions. The performance earned him Offensive Pac-10 Player of the Week.

2009 did not start well for Lobbestael. In February, he was arrested after police found him passed out in a pickup truck while in possession of alcohol. At only 19 years old, the arrest did not go over well with the coaching staff at WSU, and he was promptly suspended.

Although Lobbestael was in rehab for his injured knee and wasn’t expected back for the start of spring anyway, the arrest was a step backwards in his quest to prove he has leadership qualities.

Lobbestael only participated in non-contact drills during the spring, and it’s therefore hard to gauge his progress. Physically, there’s no question he is a prototypical QB for Paul Wulff’s no-huddle offensive scheme. At 6'3" 206 pounds, Lobbestael has good size and a quick release.

He is expected to be back at 100 percent for the fall, and his performance then will go a long way in determining the fate of the season for the Cougars. While some prognosticators believe he’s the clear favorite to win the job, he still has a lot to prove both on the field and off.

The starter for most of last season was Kevin Lopina. The redshirt senior enters his final year of eligibility after transferring from Kansas State in 2006, and spending the last two seasons with WSU.

It’s difficult to positively spin the year Lopina had in 2008. He started 8 games and finished the season, 87-153 with 841 yards passing, 0 TD’s and 11 interceptions. He was sacked 23 times and had an 88.66 passer rating.

Now I'm not saying these stats aren't dreadful, but it’s important to point out that Lopina's numbers are indicative of a bad offensive football team, and not just one player. Pinning everything on his performance last season would not only be unfair, it would also be inaccurate.

Lopina did have one bright moment in 2008, and it was a big one for all Cougar fans. The Apple Cup remained in Pullman for another year thanks in large part to a career day from Lopina. He was 17-of-29 (career high for passing attempts) for 167 yards, which included a season-high 48-yard strike to set up the game-tying field goal. His effort helped keep the rival Huskies win-less on the season.

The 6' 3" 231 pound Lopina took the majority of the snaps during spring practice, and is therefore very familiar with this year’s personnel on offense. He may be slightly behind on the depth chart, but it’s a slim margin that can easily be made up if he has a sharp fall camp.

Other OB’s competing for time are sophomores J.T. Levenseller and Daniel Wagner. The 6' 1" 187 pound Levenseller played sparingly last season and totaled 17-34 for 134 yards and two interceptions. He is expected to be the third-stringer going into the fall. Wagner spent some time punting last season as well as being under-center. He will provide depth in 2009.

My Take

Baby steps. If either Lobbestael or Lopina can stabilize the position I would consider that a major achievement this year. The problems will start occurring if Wazzu’s offense becomes QB by committee again because it means Wulff hasn’t found the answer.

I can’t honestly say that I see an All-Pac 10 caliber guy in this group, but I believe in the program’s ability to develop signal-callers. My guess is that when the dust settles, Lobbestael will be the starter on September 5th against Stanford. He has more upside than Lopina, but more importantly, he has three years of eligibility remaining compared to Lopina’s one.

-Sam Saig, www.allpac10.com