Michael Bumpus shares his WSU Cougars football Mount Rushmore
Jul 18, 2024, 5:58 PM
WSU Cougars quarterback looks to pass in a 1992 game against USC (Stephen Dunn/Allsport)
(Stephen Dunn/Allsport)
The WSU Cougars have had plenty of iconic players over the course of their football program’s 104-year history.
How a CFB insider sees WSU Cougars football season playing out
If there was a “Mount Rushmore” of WSU football stars, which four players would have their faces carved in stone on the Palouse?
Coming up with a “Mount Rushmore” for college or NFL teams has become a popular summer exercise – one that’s always sure to stir up passionate debate among fans. Former WSU wide receiver Michael Bumpus, who played for the Cougars from 2004 through 2007, joined the trend and gave his WSU “Mount Rushmore” during a Four-Down Territory segment on Seattle Sports’ Bump and Stacy.
Here’s a look at the four Cougs that Bump picked.
QB Drew Bledsoe (1990-92)
Before he was drafted No. 1 overall by the New England Patriots, Bledsoe had a decorated three seasons on the Palouse. The Walla Walla native ranks seventh in school history with 7,373 career passing yards and eighth with 46 career touchdown passes – numbers that surely would have been even higher had he played in the Mike Leach era of pass-heavy WSU offenses.
As a junior in 1992, Bledsoe finished eighth in the Heisman Trophy voting and was the Pac-10 Offensive Player of the Year, making him one of just seven Cougs to ever win a conference offensive or defensive player of the year award. He threw for 3,246 yards that season, which was a school record at the time. He had a legendary performance in the Apple Cup, throwing for 260 yards and two TDs to lead WSU to an upset of fifth-ranked Washington in the snow at Martin Stadium. And he then threw for 476 yards in a Copper Bowl win over Utah, which still stands as a bowl-game program record.
After bypassing his senior season at WSU to enter the draft, Bledsoe became a two-time All-Pro and four-time Pro Bowler in the NFL. He led the league with 4,555 passing yards in 1994 and finished with 44,611 passing yards and 251 TD passes over his 14-year pro career.
Bump: Ex-WSU Cougars star has chance to be multi-year NFL starter
Of course, Bledsoe also will always be remembered for the injury that changed the course of NFL history. After taking a hard hit during a September 2001 game, Bledsoe suffered internal bleeding in his chest and a partial tear in his rib cage. A backup by the name of Tom Brady filled in at quarterback and led the Patriots to a Super Bowl title that season – the first of six Lombardi Trophies that Brady and legendary coach Bill Belichick won together in New England.
“The first pick in the 1993 draft, four-time Pro Bowler and he’s responsible for Tom Brady’s career,” Bumpus said with a laugh. “You’ve gotta go with Drew Bledsoe. And he’s a good dude. His wine is amazing. He’s a great WSU ambassador.”
CB Marcus Trufant (1999-2002)
Trufant was a lockdown corner who racked up a school-record 46 pass breakups over his four-year career at WSU. He also snagged 11 career interceptions, which is tied for ninth in program history. The Tacoma native was a second-team Associated Press All-American as a senior, when he helped the Cougs to a share of the Pac-10 title and their third Rose Bowl trip in school history.
After a standout career at WSU, Trufant was drafted by his hometown Seattle Seahawks with the No. 11 overall pick in 2003. He went on to have a success-filled career in Seattle, totaling 21 interceptions, two interception-return TDs and 112 pass breakups in his 10 seasons with the Seahawks. He was a Pro Bowl selection in 2007, when he snagged a career-high seven interceptions, which was tied for third-most in the NFL that season.
Bumpus, who played four games with the Seahawks in 2008, said he knew he was going to make Seattle’s roster after beating Trufant for a touchdown in practice.
“I knew I was gonna make the team when I twisted Trufant up in a route,” Bumpus said with a laugh. “… You might not remember me because he had so much more success than I had, but I hit him with the (hesitation move), flipped them hips and scored a touchdown.”
RB Jerome Harrison (2004-05)
Harrison only played two seasons on the Palouse, but he made his limited time count with a record-setting 2005 campaign. He rushed for a school-record 1,900 yards and a school-record 16 TDs in 2005, while averaging 6.2 yards per carry. He was the second-leading rusher in FBS that year, finishing one spot ahead of USC legend and Heisman Trophy winner Reggie Bush. Harrison still owns four of the seven highest single-game rushing totals in program history, including a career-high 260 yards against UCLA in 2005. He was a first-team AP All-American that season and finished ninth in the Heisman voting.
Harrison was a fifth-round pick by the Cleveland Browns in 2006 and went on to play six seasons in the NFL. He ran for a Cleveland franchise-record 286 yards and three TDs in a win over the Kansas City Chiefs in 2009, which broke a mark that had been held by all-time great Jim Brown for 52 years. Harrison’s record still stands today.
“Jerome Harrison might be the greatest running back of all-time at WSU,” Bumpus said. “We called him ‘The Ghost’ – now you see him, now you don’t. He’s about 5 foot 7. If you blink, you missed him. My man might be one of the best football players I’ve ever played with. … ‘The Ghost’ Jerome Harrison, best running back I’ve seen.”
286 yards. Three TDs, including the game-winner.@JimBrownNFL32 had held the @Browns’ single-game rushing record for 52 years before this HUGE day from Jerome Harrison.
(Dec. 20, 2009) #KCvsCLE pic.twitter.com/JChCSh9o17
— NFL Legacy (@NFLLegacy) November 4, 2018
LB Will Derting (2002-05)
Derting grew up on a cattle ranch 30 miles southwest of Okanogan with no phone service, internet or TV. He quickly earned cult-hero status in Pullman, intercepting three passes against Nevada in his first college game – including a school-record 98-yard pick-six.
Derting battled through a slew of injuries throughout his career, undergoing four ACL repairs and playing most of his junior season with a cast on his hand after fracturing his wrist. But through it all, he earned first-team All-Pac-10 honors in 2003 and finished with 32 career tackles for loss, which ranks 10th all-time in WSU history. He was part of the Cougs’ 2003 team that upset fifth-ranked Texas in the Holiday Bowl and finished with a No. 9 final AP ranking, which was tied for the best finish in program history.
Derting and his wife, Nicole, a fellow WSU graduate, now own and operate a ranch in Ephrata.
“His numbers aren’t gonna impress you, but when you think of WSU football, he embodies that,” Bumpus said. “My man is a good, ol’ country boy. He’s so country he owns a ranch now with a whole bunch of cattle, making a whole bunch of money. Will Derting is not going to impress you with the numbers, but he had the cowboy collar, he played with a broken wrist all cast up, he was hard-nosed, he’d stick his face into every single tackle. … Will Derting embodies the Palouse.”
Listen to the full Four Down Territory segment at this link or in the audio player near the top of this story. Tune in to Bump and Stacy weekdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. or find the podcast on the Seattle Sports app.
