Phil Steele: New-look WSU Cougars in good spot under Jimmy Rogers
Jul 16, 2025, 12:47 PM | Updated: 1:59 pm
WSU Cougars quarterback Zevi Eckhaus throws a pass during the 2024 Holiday Bowl. (Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
(Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
After a major coaching staff and roster upheaval, the WSU Cougars will look completely different this fall.
Jimmy Rogers, who led South Dakota State to an FCS national title in 2023, is the new head coach in Pullman. He replaces Jake Dickert, who left for the Wake Forest head-coaching job last December.
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Rogers brought nearly his entire South Dakota State coaching staff and 16 SDSU transfers along with him to the Palouse, which has helped restock the Cougars’ roster following the mass exodus of players in the wake of Dickert’s departure.
How will Rogers and his crew of former Jackrabbits handle the transition to the FBS level?
Longtime college football insider Phil Steele, who joined Seattle Sports’ Bump and Stacy last week, thinks it will go smoother than expected.
Steele mentioned a parallel to Indiana’s success last season under Curt Cignetti, who brought 13 transfers with him from James Madison and led the Hoosiers to their best season in decades.
Steele acknowledged it’s not an apples-to-apples comparison, as James Madison is an FBS-level school from the Sun Belt Conference and South Dakota State is an FCS-level program. But he said it still shows how a coach and players from a lower-tier program can move up to a larger program and have success.
“I think it’s gonna go better than expected,” Steele said of WSU’s 2025 outlook. “I like the fact that he brought in a lot of players with him from South Dakota State. … Those players know the system and know what’s expected.
“And when they came in, the other players on the team, they learn from a guy (like standout linebacker Caleb Farncl) that played at South Dakota State. He’s able to tell the rest of the guys what’s expected. And South Dakota State had such a great program. So I think he’s gonna do well in the adjustment process.”
Steele said he liked what he saw from Zevi Eckhaus – WSU’s presumptive starting quarterback – in the Holiday Bowl this past December. Making his first-ever start and playing with a depleted WSU roster, Eckhaus completed 31 of 43 passes for 363 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions in a hard-fought loss to No. 22-ranked Syracuse.
Steele also is optimistic about WSU’s offensive line, which was bolstered this offseason by New Mexico State transfer AJ Vaipulu and Idaho transfer Sone Falealo.
And with a hodgepodge schedule that includes an opening three-game stretch against Idaho, San Diego State and North Texas, Steele thinks the Cougars can build some early momentum with a strong start.
“I think he’s got a nice starting part to the season,” Steele said. “… It may not quite what they were last year where they got to 8-1 and No. 19 in the country, but I think Washington State should be able to get back to a bowl game this year.”
Listen to the full conversation with Phil Steele at this link or in the audio player near the middle of this story. Tune into Bump and Stacy weekdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. or find the podcast on the Seattle Sports app.
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