WSU transfers
Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2005 4:26 pm
Lets hear your reasons as well.
Maybe this will sway your opionions.longhorn_22 wrote:Lets hear your reasons as well.
The 'hidden' cougars
By Craig Smith
Seattle Times staff reporter
Jonathan Smith
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The 15th-ranked Washington State team that will take on No. 5 Texas in the Holiday Bowl includes a variety of characters with off-field skills:
Best turnaround: Senior defensive tackle Josh Shavies was kicked off the team as a sophomore, but got a second chance and wound up having a productive senior year.
Most misnamed player: Junior tackle Sam Lightbody. He is 6 feet 9, 310 pounds.
Most respectful of history: When senior running back Jonathan Smith was at Pasadena City College, he asked his coach if he should go ahead and break Jackie Robinson's records. He got the green light and broke them.
Easiest target for kidding: Sophomore linebacker Aaron Wagner returned to the team this year after a two-year Mormon mission in Las Vegas, which didn't exactly strike his teammates as tough duty. (He plans to transfer after the bowl to Brigham Young, where he figures he has a chance to start).
Strangest academic load: Senior guard Billy Knotts took nine hours of classes in graduate business school this fall, plus a one-hour class in billiards. One of his regrets is that he never beat receiver Trandon Harvey in the pool class.
Best student: Senior defensive tackle Jeremey Williams is a graduate student in communications.
Sam Lightbody
Best singing voices: Freshman running back Kevin McCall and senior defensive tackle Tai Tupai. Tupai, who is the son of a minister and is accustomed to singing in church, has sung the national anthem at Cougars athletic events.
Best baseball player: Wide receiver Steve Mortimer played on the Cougars' baseball team. He also has recorded a rap CD.
Most unusual job: Quarterback Matt Kegel used to hunt coyotes for bounty. The Montana native also is considered the best fisherman on the team.
Best Ping-Pong player: Senior kicker Drew Dunning.
Best bicyclist: Linebacker Steve Dildine raced BMX bicycles into his sophomore year at Bethel High School.
Most rural: Will Derting grew up on a ranch outside Okanogan that was so far out that there were no telephone lines to it and cellphones didn't work.
Best dancer: Wide receiver Javon Miller. ("He can do things you can't believe," said a teammate.)
Strongest player: Senior defensive end D.D. Acholonu.
Best on-field talker: Senior cornerback Jason David is an advertising major who uses his sharp tongue to needle opponents.
Most unusual home state: Senior linebacker Don Jackson is from Natchez, Miss. WSU found him at a California JC.
Most visible father: Troy Bienemann's dad, Tom, is a reporter for Spokane TV station KHQ (Channel 6).
Best nicknames: Junior linebacker Pat Bennett is called "Popeye" because teammates say he resembles the cartoon character. Freshman defensive back Husain Abdullah is called "H2" because his older brother, Hamza, a junior defensive back, is on the team.
Warmest gesture: When junior wide receiver Devard Darling scores a touchdown or makes a big play, he taps his chest and points to the sky. It's a tribute to his deceased twin, Devaughn. "Two hearts beating as one," he says.