In WSU's first spring scrimmage, defensive line imposes will and QBs record uneven showings
Apr. 11—PULLMAN — Not long after entering the transfer portal in the winter, DJ Warner got a call from a name he recognized. On the other end was Trent Bray, who had recently become the defensive coordinator at Washington State, and he was interested in bringing Warner along.
Warner might not have known much about WSU at the time, but he certainly knew Bray. When Warner was a high school sophomore, Bray became the first college coach to show interest, pitching him on coming to Oregon State, where Bray was the defensive coordinator at the time. In his playing days, Bray was a linebacker, which gave him some credibility with Warner.
Some four years and three schools later, Warner and Bray are back together. Warner spent one year at Kansas, then one at SMU. Bray spent the past two seasons as Oregon State's head coach.
Now the two have joined forces at WSU. "So this time, it was kind of a no-brainer," Warner said after Saturday's WSU scrimmage, the team's eighth practice of the spring. "Especially just the way my college career has (gone), it showed me that relationships take you a long way, and I feel like I have the closest relationship with him than any other college coach.
" In Saturday's scrimmage, which included full contact for about the first 30 minutes, Warner and the Cougars' defense imposed their will with regularity. A likely starter in WSU's 4-2-5 defensive scheme, Warner made several plays and found himself in the offensive backfield, as did several of his teammates, including defensive ends/linemen Matyus McLain, Ben Beatty, Kaden Beatty, Paul Hutson III, Michael Hughes and Linus Zunk. That crew made things hard on its offensive counterparts, including quarterbacks Caden Pinnick, Owen Eshelman and Julian Dugger, who are competing for starting honors this fall.