Spokesman Review: Cougars: Will Brink recognize anyone he's throwing to?

By GLENN KASSES

PULLMAN -- Alex Brink could be looking at a very different corps of receivers on Saturday than what he's become accustomed to in the first six weeks of the season.  Star wide receiver Jason Hill is 50-50 to play on Saturday because of a shoulder sprain, and without any progress today Hill could be ruled out of action against No. 10 California. If he plays, coach Bill Doba said the senior probably wouldn't play all four quarters as he usually would.  "It'll probably be a game-time decision," Doba said. "I doubt if he could play the entire game." WSU has plans to modify Hill's shoulder pads to make things easier for him. Hill, who caught six passes for a career-high 240 yards and three touchdowns against Cal last season, watched Tuesday's practice in street clothes. Yet it's the loss of two other potential pass catchers that seems to have Brink worried.

Although Doba said tight end Cody Boyd's ankle sprain may not be as bad as initially feared, the senior is out for this week, and possibly next week against No. 18 Oregon. No. 3 tight end Ben Woodard is out for about four weeks with a knee sprain.  The loss of those two forces Jed Collins into the starting role. While Collins has started to catch more passes, at 6 feet 2 he's far from the safety blanket the 6-foot-8 Boyd provided. Collins also has been utilized as an H-back in the backfield.  "We can do a lot of similar things with Jed. He's obviously not as big of a matchup problem for people, but he's got great hands. He's a physical route-runner so he creates separation from people."  Senior Jesse Taylor, another tight end, was able to practice Tuesday after missing the past three games with a knee injury. If he isn't able to go, walk-on and long snapper Tony Thompson would be the second tight end.  

BLACKOUT: For a brief time Monday, it seemed the game Saturday might be on TV, but almost certainly in the Bay Area only. The school was approached about having a cable broadcast for the game, but doing so would have required moving the kickoff time from 2 p.m.  That notion, apparently, did not sit well with WSU administrators, who had already announced the 2 p.m. time as official and were cognizant of homecoming weekend festivities that could have been disrupted. "If (fans) know ahead of time that it's going to be a 7:30 game so they can make arrangements, that's a different thing," Doba said.  Next week's game against Oregon also has not been picked up by television.

NOTES: Safety Michael Willis, who missed last week's game with a shoulder injury, practiced with a no-contact jersey. ... Linebacker Andy Mattingly returned to practice after sitting out a week with a concussion. ... Tight ends coach Greg Peterson missed practice to attend to a family matter. ... QB Arkelon Hall, fully recovered from a broken leg in training camp, is running the scout team while transfer Kevin Lopina has been out sick. Cole Morgan remains the third-string quarterback.