SPOKANE — Washington State’s fate Saturday will be in the hands of an inexperienced and largely untested third-string freshman quarterback.
Marshall Lobbestael, an Oak Harbor High alum, will start Saturday’s game against Oregon because of injuries to the Cougars’ No. 1 and No. 2 signal callers, both hurt last weekend in the 48-9 victory over Portland State,
Kevin Lopina, who started against the Vikings, broke a bone in his lower back and will be out indefinitely, the team announced Tuesday. “He’s out for this game,” WSU football spokesman Bill Stevens said. Backup Gary Rogers suffered a broken neck in the same game and is out for the season. Both quarterbacks are walking and are expected to recover.
The injuries leave Washington State (1-3, 0-1 Pacific-10 Conference) with virtually no experience at quarterback heading into its game with Oregon (3-1, 1-0).
Lobbestael, in his first extensive playing time, completed nine of 12 passes for 149 yards and two touchdowns during the second half against Portland State. He was named Pacific-10 offensive player of the week, but that doesn’t make Wulff comfortable.
“Lets be realistic, he’s a redshirt freshman with very little experience,” Wulff said.
It’s one thing to be on the sideline and get shoved into a game on short notice, Wulff said. As the starter, there is much more preparation and expectation.
“You feel like you’ve got more on your shoulders and the team is depending on you,” Wulff said. “Hopefully, those nerves will not effect his play.”
It will be a rush for Lobbestael to get ready this week. He never got to practice with the No. 1 offense during training camp because all the snaps went to Rogers and Lopina, Wulff said. The Cougars likely will simplify their play selection because of that, he said.
Lobbestael is also spending a lot of time watching film.
“We were here last night at 10:30 and he was still watching film,” Wulff said. “We told him to get the heck out of the office.”
On the plus side, Lobbestael looked poised on the field.
“He seems to do some things during the game that came real natural for him,” Wulff said. “That’s very enticing for us as coaches to see that.”
Behind Lobbestael, the Cougars’ remaining quarterbacks are walk-on Dan Wagner and J.T. Levenseller, a true freshman who enrolled in January. Wulff had hoped to redshirt Levenseller, the son of offensive coordinator Mike Levenseller, but said he would play if needed.
Washington State dominated Portland State of the Big Sky Conference for it’s first win of the season after three blowout losses, but the Cougars were still intercepted three times and fumbled four times, although they lost only one of the fumbles.
“If we make the same mistakes during games against good football teams, the outcome will be a lot different for us,” Wulff said Tuesday. “We’re still struggling.”
Lopina, making just the second start of his career, was knocked out of the Portland State game when he was sacked by Eloka Anyaorah with 3:03 to play in the first half. He walked off the field and did not return.
Tests showed Lopina had a fracture in the L-4 transverse process of the vertebrae in his lower back, team trainer Bill Drake said Tuesday. Lopina’s status will be evaluated on a weekly basis, Drake said.
The team also announced Tuesday that junior linebacker Jason Stripling will need surgery on his left shoulder and will miss the rest of the season.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
