Countdown to fall camp: How could battles in WSU's CBs room shake out?

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Aug. 2—Editor's note: This is the fifth in a series of stories that will run each day previewing Washington State's preseason camp before it begins on Aug. 6. This edition covers the Cougars' cornerbacks.

PULLMAN — When September rolls around and Washington State players take the field at Husky Stadium to take on rival Washington, and when the Cougars' defense rolls out, good luck recognizing any of the players in the visitors' secondary.

That's because among the 32 transfers WSU landed over the offseason, several of them play cornerback, a position at which the Cougs desperately needed to restock. Head coach Kirby Moore and staff did well to do so, likely using connections like new safeties coach Greg Burns and cornerbacks coach Brandyn Thompson to land a couple players.

But who are the new guys in this position group? And how might they fare this fall?

Players who will be vying for starting jobs include Texas State transfer Khamari Terrell, Oregon State transfer Jalil Tucker, Cal Poly transfer CJ Solis-Lumar, junior college transfer Elmo Wharton and others. A few returners will be in the mix too — keep an eye on redshirt freshman Jamarey Smith, who started in the Potato Bowl last winter, plus Kai Rapolla and Ishmael Gibbs — but the biggest roles will likely belong to a combination of transfers.

In that group, if there's a shoo-in for a starting job, it could belong to Terrell. Listed at 6-foot-1 and 185 pounds, Terrell spent the first three years of his career at Oregon, where he totaled 14 tackles and one pass breakup in that span. Then he transferred to new Pac-12 member Texas State, where he registered 36 tackles, three pass breakups and one interception last season, helping the Bobcats go 7-6 with a bowl game win over Rice.

Terrell came off the bench for the first four games of last season, then started each of the final eight contests. He also picked up one quarterback pressure, a hurry against Louisiana-Monroe. On the season, he allowed 24 catches on 38 targets, a decent catch rate of 63%.

The only complicating thing: Terrell missed a chunk of spring practices with an injury, making it tricky to evaluate him at WSU. His previous experience and size makes him a real candidate to star with the Cougars. He'll get a chance to show he's capable of that in fall camp. We just haven't gotten much of a chance to see him in action in Pullman just yet.

Terrell will also be competing with Solis-Lumar, who comes from FCS club Cal Poly, where he played in 11 games last season, logging 332 total snaps. He also broke up three passes and made 23 tackles. Like Terrell, Solis-Lumar is also listed at 6-foot-1, giving the Cougs some real size at the cornerback spot. This will be one position battle to monitor. Could they both earn starting roles? Or could one get bumped out by the other?

If the latter happens, be sure to keep an eye on Tucker, the Oregon State transfer. Last fall, he totaled five pass breakups and one interception last season for the Beavers, playing 11 games with 10 starts. That year, Tucker registered a Pro Football Focus coverage grade of 54.2, which is below average. He allowed 27 catches on 47 targets, a respectable catch rate of 57%, but he also gave up four touchdown receptions.

A product of San Diego, Tucker is well-traveled. He started his career in 2022 at Oregon, where he played only seven snaps in one game, preserving his redshirt season. He then played the next two seasons at San Diego Mesa College, where he played in 19 total games, posting four tackles and one pick in 2024 and one tackle in 2023.

He will also be in competition with Wartson, who might be the sleeper of this group. Listed even bigger at 6-foot-3 and 174 pounds, he spent the past couple seasons at Modesto College, where he played well enough to earn offers from Baylor, Mississippi State, Boise State and others. He chose WSU, where he looked sharp in the spring, even if he found himself taking reps with the second-team units at times.

The Cougs have what feels like a thousand new cornerbacks. The ones who cement themselves as starters could play an outsize role in how their defense fares this fall.

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