Washington State Football: WR Gabe Marks Hit with Probation

Sep 28, 2013; Seattle, WA, USA; Washington State Cougars wide receiver

(9) runs with the ball after making a catch against the Stanford Cardinal during the game at CenturyLink Field. Stanford defeated Washington State 55-17. Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports

Washington State’s Gabe Marks finally got tagged for the incident he had back in February at Stubblefield’s bar in Pullman.

The junior wide receiver and leading pass catcher for WSU in 2013 pled guilty last Thursday to second-degree criminal trespassing and a minor exhibiting signs of alcohol abuse. Apparently while intoxicated (again back in Feb) Marks hauled off and punched a Stubblefield’s employee, earning the visit from the police.

Overall this really isn’t much to get worried about if you’re a Cougar fans, but for a little bit over the Summer there were a few incidents here and there that really just needed to be avoided. Boys will be boys but it’s important for this team to really understand the opportunity they have and represent themselves in a orderly fashion.

In Marks’ case in particular, he is a vital asset to the offense and the team. Connor Halliday relies on him as much, if not more than any other receiver to go make a catch. He’s the one player out there whom losing would really change the dynamics of the offense. He’s just such as versatile receiving threat from either the outside or the slot.

At any rate hopefully he stays out of trouble and gets a plan to deal with the drinking issue. WSU really needs him on the field and it’s silly, stupid mistakes like this that derail a player’s career. Mike Leach won’t feed us anything if he has a team related punishment (I suspect he’s already served his sentence there) but we know that even though this isn’t something that violates one of his big-3 unbreakables, he’s on top of the issue.

Hopefully the entire team can focus on football and stay out of the news now that football’s only a month and a half away.