Portland, Ore. (KOIN) — The Pac-12 held an event in Las Vegas two weeks ago as the conference transitions into a new era.
KOIN 6 Sports anchor Brenna Greene sat down with Washington State head coach Jake Dickert to discuss what's next for the program.
Question: What has the last year been like for you?
Answer: What hasn’t it been like? It’s been a bit of whirlwind, but at the end of the day, you can only control what you can control. I’ve been saying this to our team a lot. I know WSU is in a perfect position because we’ve been through the storm. Now everything has been stabilized and settled. Things happened to us first but didn’t happen to us last. They’ll be big things happening this season on the football field which will help lead to a bright future.
Q: What do you think the identity of your team is this year, and how is it different than last year?
A: It’s gotta be toughness. We’ve gotta be a tougher football team than we’ve been in the past. It starts with being better in the fourth quarter. We’ve got to be better finishers. That’s been our focus really since January 1st. Our team is really competitive, and it starts at quarterback. When you don’t know who the quarterback is, it raises the level of everyone else around it. We’ve been recruiting to year 3 since I got the job in 2022. We earmarked this moment. It looks different, it feels different, but our team has been recruited by 98% of our guys. I’m really proud of that. They embody Wazzu, they embody Pullman, and they embody just that hard work and Zzu collar mentality that we’re all about.
Q: You mentioned the quarterback battle. What does that look like for you this year?
A: The best part is we have two guys who we feel are very capable. I think John is a unique blend of athleticism, size, speed, and a great arm talent, and Zevi is just that cool customer who’s seen everything as a three-year starter at Bryant. Excited to see who’s going to win that competition, but they’re both tremendous leaders. Our team has rallied behind both of them. We’ve got to make a hard decision here, but at the end of the day we’re going to go with the guy who gives us the best opportunity to win football games.
Q: If you had to pick a player who isn’t being talked about as much, but you think is going to have a breakout year, who is that?
A: Two guys come to mind really quickly. Fa’alili Fa’amoe I think is one of the best offensive tackles in all of college football. Still very raw and green at the position since we moved him. And then Syrus Webster. Transfer from Utah Tech. He just embodies that blend of everything we look for. He’s an RJ (Ron Stone Jr.) meets BJ hybrid, so Coug fans will be really excited about that. Just his work ethic is there and he’s going to make big things happen on the football field.
Q: What is your hope for this conference going forward?
A: Well, I think right now, you’ve got to look short term, long term. Short term, we’ve done an amazing job putting the schedule together in six months. The partnership with the Mountain West and staying regional is what we needed to do in this moment. Then let’s be big, but you have to win on the football field. Both of our programs have been really relevant in the last five years. We’ve got to embody what that means and what’s next. There’s going to be a shakeup happening, and we’ve got to be ready and put ourselves in a position to invest in the bright future of Washington State because I believe that’s what our alums expect, and that’s the passion of Washington State football.
Q: I think about your journey as Wazzu. You come in as a defensive coordinator, interim head coach in a situation you weren’t expecting, get to be the head coach, then this all happens. What is it like for you to be the leader for this program as it heads into this next chapter?
A: I think the biggest thing, and I learned this from last year, is that I tried to be the voice for Cougs everywhere and the community of Pullman and the university at large. That can be a heavy weight at times, but I’m so thankful for the responsibility to be the head coach at Washington State, and I know what it means. There’s been a lot of transition in our athletics department, in our programs, in our university, but just means a lot to represent our people and Cougs everywhere. It’s something that I wear on my sleeve every day.
