This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Hollywood, Calif. • Washington State receiver Gabe Marks is not diminishing the importance of coach Mike Leach to the Cougar football program, but his nickname and job description for Luke Falk speak of the quarterback's value.
The Logan High School alumnus is the "Messiah of the Palouse" and the "CEO of Washington State football," Marks said Thursday, during the Pac-12 Media Days.
"Leach gets a lot of the credit — and he should, because he's Mike Leach," Marks said. But "Luke is the reason why this started working. Without a quarterback that people will follow as a leader, you can't win."
Marks admires how Falk "relates to everybody," responding to their personalities. He treats shy teammates well, and "if you're out there and outspoken and funny like I am, he can go shot for shot with you," he said.
Falk passed for 4,561 yards and 38 touchdowns as a sophomore in 2015, when the Cougars went 9-4 overall and 6-3 in the Pac-12. The quarterback has "no glaring weakness," Leach said, but can keep improving.
The Cougars again will miss Utah in the Pac-12 scheduling rotation in 2016.
Mysterious matchup
Arizona can become the first team to beat Utah five straight years in Pac-12 play when the Wildcats visit Rice-Eccles Stadium on Oct. 8. The Wildcats open the season Sept. 1 vs. BYU at Glendale, Ariz.
With the Cougars' new coaching staff, "Trying to figure out what BYU is going to do has been the biggest challenge, just because … even though we know who they hired and can check their background, you don't know for sure in the first game," said coach Rich Rodriguez. "So we're going back and studying what they did in the past."
That research includes offensive coordinator Ty Detmer's work as a high school coach in Austin, Texas. The Wildcats will have a new look of their own, with Rodriguez having replaced his defensive staff. Marcel Yates, the coordinator, came from Boise State.
Seeing Stevie
As a graduate transfer from Utah, defensive tackle Stevie Tu'ikolovatu is expected to bolster a USC defensive line that is the Trojans' thinnest area. "Great player," said USC offensive lineman Zach Banner. "The man has experience. … He's going to be able to help our team right away, bottom line."
Tu'ikolovatu and the Trojans will meet Utah on Sept. 23 at Rice-Eccles Stadium in the Utes' conference opener. By then, USC will have played Alabama, Utah State and Stanford.
Facing a former teammate will be "interesting," said Ute offensive tackle J.J. Dielman. "I know he was just looking for the best situation for him, so it's hard for me to be mad at him or anything like that. He deserves it. I hope he has a good career there and makes it to where he wants to go."
Another reminder
Oregon coach Mark Helfrich said he already had heard "97 questions" about last September's 62-20 loss to Utah. Yet he fielded a 98th inquiry, noting how the Ducks learned from the defeat. One play — Ute quarterback Travis Wilson's 60-yard run to the Oregon 6-yard line late in the first half — was repeatedly cited by the Ducks as an example of what happens when one defender misses his assignment, Helfrich said.
In contrast to Rodriguez's overhaul of Arizona's staff, Helfrich reassigned his coordinator and brought in former Michigan coach Brady Hoke to direct the defense.
Revising history
Kyle Whittingham's only reaction to his Utah team's being picked third in the Pac-12 South was acknowledging the highest preseason ranking in the program's six years in the conference. Not that he's expected to keep track, but Whittingham forgot the Utes were picked second in 2012, when they finished fifth with a 3-6 league record.
That selection reflected how the Utes challenged for the South title the previous year (with USC ineligible) and the division had three new coaches in 2012.
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