For Washington State, what's better than starting 3-0? Doing it all while staying rested

Sep. 19—PULLMAN — Cameron Ward likes to say that when he was growing up in West Columbia, Texas, a small town about an hour outside of Houston, he was raised to work hard. Don't make excuses. Don't try to prove other people wrong. Prove yourself right.

"I keep those three things going with me every day," Ward said. "It'll get me to where I wanna be."

That's why Washington State's quarterback hates getting removed from games when things are out of reach. In their rout over Northern Colorado last weekend, Ward said, the Cougars could have been up 50 and he would have preferred to stay in the game and prove the right things to himself.

He hasn't needed to, though, which illustrates a lot about the season Ward is delivering. The numbers are one thing. The ones he's missed out on because his team is taking care of business are another.

Ward is one of four quarterbacks in the country with nine-plus touchdowns and zero interceptions. With a 72% completion percentage, he's one of nine quarterbacks to clear the 70% mark with 900-plus passing yards.

In WSU's season-opening romp over Colorado State, Ward had a career-best 451 passing yards. He followed that by totaling 208 passing yards in his club's upset over Wisconsin. In the Cougars' win over the Bears, he completed 20 of 26 passes for 307 yards and four touchdowns.

For all those nice stats, these might raise even more eyebrows: Through these first three games, Ward has played 190 of 235 available snaps, per Pro Football Focus. That comes out to 81%. Against CSU, he played 79 of 90. Against Wisconsin, Ward played all 68. Against Northern Colorado, he played 43 of 77 snaps.

That might demonstrate two things: One, Ward has become one of the nation's best quarterbacks — on limited snaps. Two, he's been able to rest, which bodes well for No. 21 WSU and its Pac-12 schedule, which begins on Saturday with a home showdown against No. 14 Oregon State.

"It's helped me physically for sure, to start Pac play," Ward said. "The past three games, they really don't mean anything. Everything comes down to this Saturday. This is what we worked for this summer. It all comes down to Saturdays. We try to go 1-0. So it's a mindset, but it for sure helps me physically."

For the Cougars, if there's anything better than starting the season 3-0 and earning a No. 21 ranking, it's doing it all and getting rest at the same time. Many of their top players exited early from their wins over Colorado State and Northern Colorado. They might not have liked it at the time — "They could have left me in the whole rest of the game, I wouldn't have cared one bit," linebacker Kyle Thornton said after Saturday's game — but they also understand the value: They get some rest. They avoid injuries. They give their younger teammates chances to get reps and build experience.

That has provided meaningful experience for those guys. Backup quarterback John Mateer, who took over for Ward in Saturday's second half, hit 7 of 8 passes for 138 yards and two scores. Even third-stringer Emmett Brown entered in the fourth quarter. On defense, players like Reece Sylvester took over for starter Jaden Hicks, and cornerback Stephen Hall relieved Cam Lampkin. Their chances to play important snaps might not be too far away.

Here's what happens when players get pulled early, according to safety Sam Lockett III: Their position coach will recognize the game is getting out of hand, so they'll alert starters, "You have one more series.".

"Depending on how that series goes," Lockett said, "they'll take it from there."

Lockett has had his fair share of rest. For a guy who broke his hand at the tail end of fall camp and played with a cast for the first two games , that might not be the worst thing. In WSU's win over CSU, Lockett played 58 of 66 snaps. Against Wisconsin, he played all 71 snaps. Against UNC, he played 42 of 63 snaps, departing in the third quarter.

Linebacker Devin Richardson, tied with Lockett for most tackles on the team with 21, has also had early exits. In the CSU game, Richardson played 51 of 66 snaps. He played all 71 against Wisconsin. He played 33 of 63 against Northern Colorado.

"Oh, rest definitely helps," Richardson said. "I think the coaches are doing a great job of managing reps and making sure we have other guys getting looks, too, because getting deeper into the season, you never know, an injury could happen. So we gotta make sure every guy is ready.

"I'm OK with (getting pulled early) because, I mean, from my previous experience, I know how to stand on the sidelines and get mental reps as if I was in. Whether I'm in or out, I'm mentally working. If I'm out, I'm gonna just make sure I'm coaching up the guys when they come out to the sideline and tell them what I see."

Edge rushers Ron Stone Jr. and Brennan Jackson have received the same opportunities. Both played 25 of 63 snaps in their team's win over Northern Colorado. Stone played one more snap than Jackson in WSU's win over Wisconsin, 51 over Jackson's 50, and he did the same against Colorado State, playing 43 of 66 snaps to Jackson's 42 of 66.

Even in those limited capacities, Stone has stood out . He's had three sacks, which ranks 12th in the country, and his two forced fumbles — both against Wisconsin — are tied for the most nationally.

That's helped the Cougars pull away early from the Rams and Bears, and in turn, that has opened up chances for them to gauge their depth at the edge position, handing out more playing time to guys like Raam Stevenson, Andrew Edson and true freshman Isaac Terrell.

Whether that helps Washington State take down Oregon State this weekend is unknown, but this much seems clear: The Cougars will take the field with fresh legs.