By JOHN K. WILEY
SPOKANE, Wash. -- Washington State's defense has become a pleasant surprise for coach Bill Doba at the midpoint of the season. The Cougars are 4-2, thanks to some sterling play by the defense, and despite injuries that have depleted the front line. Senior defensive end Mkristo Bruce leads the nation with 10 sacks, while linebacker Scott Davis is the Pacific-10 Conference defensive player of the week. He had three sacks against Oregon State, including two of quarterback Matt Moore in a crucial series that ended a late Beavers scoring threat in a 13-6 WSU victory. As the Cougars prepare to play No. 10 California, the Pac-10's best offensive team, Saturday in Pullman, WSU's defense has Golden Bears coach Jeff Tedford's attention.
"You're not going to find a more physical front than these guys. Bruce, he's an all-around complete player," Tedford said. "They do a really nice job of being relentless and getting after you. They do a nice job of making you hold the ball a little bit so the pass rushers can get to you. They're a very dangerous group that way." The Cougars defense leads the Pac-10 in sacks with 27, and has three of the top four conference sack leaders in Bruce, Davis and end Lance Broadus. WSU coach Bill Doba, a former defensive coordinator, gives credit to a group of players playing through injuries, and to his assistants. "The last couple of weeks, they've played really well. It's a combination of some kids maturing and darn good coaching," he said, mentioning defensive coordinator Robb Akey, linebackers coach Leon Burtnett, secondary coach Ken Greene and defensive line coach Mike Walker.
Their task was made more difficult when starting end Matt Mullennix and tackle Fevaea'i Ahmu were knocked out early by injuries, forcing the Cougars to change from a four-man front to a 3-4 scheme. "To draw it up on paper is easy, but to get that coordinated you can't teach it," Doba said of the switch. "Especially on defense, you cannot think. It has to be a reaction. I think they're doing a great job." The Cougars are ranked third in conference in both scoring defense, allowing 18.2 points per game, and rushing defense, limiting opponents to 98.9 yards per game on the ground.
"They can really pass rush," Tedford said of the Cougars. "It all starts with the passion and the intensity they play with. They don't ever stop coming at you." California leads the conference in scoring offense (32 TDs, 39.5 points per game), and passing offense, with 18 TDs and 280 yards per game.
Quarterback Nate Longshore is the most efficient passer, completing more than 65 percent of his passes for 1,410 yards, 17 TDs and five interceptions. The Bears also boast the top scorers in the conference in sophomore wide receiver DeSean Jackson and junior tailback Marshawn Lynch. Jackson has 10 TD receptions and Lynch has seven, while Lynch leads the Pac-10 with 100.8 yards per game rushing. That plays into another Cougars strength. "The inside guys aren't their big pass rushers, but they're the pluggers who can really plug up the middle and are hard to move," Tedford said. "Their linebackers are able to flow and make a lot of plays in the run game. It's very solid, they're very well coached." Against Oregon State last week, the Cougars allowed just two field goals in a 13-6 win in Corvallis. Compare that to last season, when the Cougars' defense gave up 44 points. WSU quarterback Alex Brink was asked if there is a danger the offense is relying too much on the defense. "I think there can be, at the same time, it is a team game. So we know that at times, they are going to be counting on us and we're going to be counting on them," Brink said.
"The danger is more that, you don't prepare as well because you're banking on them to make big plays for you," he said. "You need to, as an offense, just come out and expect to score 28-35 points and be the ones that give them that cushion, so they can make big plays."
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