WSU Spring Football: Mike Leach Says Cougs “a Whisker Away” from Big Things

The Washington State Cougars have really picked up the pace in their 3rd Spring camp under Mike Leach. They had their eighth practice on Saturday.

As with any team this time of year, there is still a very long way to go before the polish begins, but Leach seems more excited than in the past when talking about his young team and the position groups on each side of the ball. After Saturday’s practice Leach characterized the practice individually, but it’s been a common theme throughout the Spring sessions.

"“Thought it was good, thought we had good work today. Thought we dropped to many balls. I thought… we’re a whisker away from some really good things on both sides but we bounced around pretty good. The O-line played pretty good (today).”"

Leach went on to say that both sides of the ball were “a step away” from making the big plays that they needed to dominate the session. But he was pleased with the effort and he said that the Cougs are getting better.

One thing that has been noticeably absent from Leach this Spring is the negative comments on effort. It’s a step that I don’t think a lot of critics will take into account when characterizing the Cougar team, but the always straight-up head coach has been super positive on his team’s mentality. This goes back to Midnight Maneuvers even, when the coaching staff nearly handed out more black shirts (extreme effort above and beyond) than they had in the first two combined.

It’s pretty obvious that the team has fully caught on to the effort that it will take to be competitive in the Pac-12 Conference, an important step in the process of Leach’s ultimate goal of competing for a North crown. It is only halfway through Spring though, there is a lot of work to be done yet.