Cougs mix it up on Day 4 at Lewiston

Through four days of preseason camp, Washington State football players seem to have proven to coach Mike Leach their degree of investment.

Now he wants them to invest a bit more wisely.

With temperatures reaching the mid-90s at Sacajawea Junior High in Lewiston, the Cougars saw their displays of intensity spill over into after-the-play scuffles Monday, a not unwelcome sight for a team sometimes described by their coach last season as lacking toughness.

But Leach would like to see a little more focus as well.

"You don't mix it up very much if it doesn't mean something - I mean, it means something to them," Leach said. "So I like that. Now we've got to sustain our composure. We still want that intensity burning in the background, but you want to use it to magnify the next play, too."

Still, the day-to-day consistency of this high-intensity mind set has been encouraging to players like Tana Pritchard, a sophomore linebacker bucking for a starting role.

"That's how it's got to be if we want to win," Pritchard said. "That's how the top schools do it, and that's what we're starting to do. And it's nice. It's a new kind of environment around here. ... If we can keep doing that every day, we're going to be a helluva football team."

Among the several newcomers adapting quickly to college football is true freshman receiver River Cracraft, who has drawn plaudits from both Leach and quarterback Connor Halliday.

And for the second straight day, the second-year frosh competing with Halliday for a No. 1 role, Austin Apodaca, played sharply enough to suggest a genuine race. Leach said the two QBs will continue to split reps for as long as camp remains in Lewiston, which is expected to be six more days.

The Cougars will again practice today at 3 p.m., donning full pads for the first time.