Home US SportsNCAAF ‘Right here, right now’: As WSU QB Zevi Eckhaus prepares for fall camp, he’s staying present as ever

‘Right here, right now’: As WSU QB Zevi Eckhaus prepares for fall camp, he’s staying present as ever

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Jul. 12—PULLMAN — On a warm July morning this week, Zevi Eckhaus rode the elevator up to the fifth floor of the Cougar Football Complex, the level that houses all the Washington State football coaches’ offices.

He was headed to chat with his new quarterback coach and offensive coordinator, Danny Freund.

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Freund began talking about the improvements he’s seen from Eckhaus, the Cougars’ incumbent candidate to start at quarterback this fall. Eckhaus said he feels like he’s made all kinds of strides this summer, some physical, some mental. But Eckhaus took care to mention the biggest development he’s made involves tenure.

After transferring to WSU in January 2024, he’s been a Coug for about a year and a half. That, he’s picked up, has made a difference.

“Not only from a player standpoint,” Eckhaus said, “but just being able to connect with my teammates, you know? They know who I am.”

To Eckhaus’ credit, he has lots of new ones this year. He has a few returning receivers to throw to, including veteran Josh Meredith and sophomore Branden Ganashamoorthy, but new faces also abound: Oregon State transfer wideout Jeremiah Noga and junior college transfer Devin Ellison, and that’s only the receivers.

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Returning offensive linemen Brock Dieu and Christian Hilborn are shoo-ins to start, but the remaining three spots are up for grabs. Candidates include New Mexico State transfer AJ Vaipulu, returners Ashton Tripp and Noah Dunham, Division II Grand Valley State transfer Jaylin Caldwell — and maybe someone else entirely who shines during WSU’s fall camp, set to begin at the end of the month.

That makes no mention of one of the storylines that may shape fall camp: Eckhaus is no guaranteed starter. WSU coach Jimmy Rogers made that clear when his team’s spring practice slate wrapped up in mid-April. A few weeks later, WSU landed commitments from two transfer quarterbacks, Pitt’s Julian Dugger and Rutgers’ Ajani Sheppard, who will join returner Jaxon Potter and incoming freshmen Dalton Anderson and Owen Eshelman to make six quarterbacks on next season’s roster.

If nothing else, it reads like a signal that Rogers, Freund and WSU’s coaches want real competition at the position.

“They’re bringing a lot of great intel, great knowledge and competition to the QB room, which is very much needed,” said Eckhaus, who fell short in last year’s QB competition to John Mateer, who transferred to Oklahoma after the season. “Because, like I said, competition brings out the best in players, so I’m really glad that they’re on our roster, that they’re gonna be with us here. I think we’re all going to push each other to be better.”

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It’s still to be seen if Eckhaus gets the chance to be the Cougars’ No. 1 quarterback.

A capable runner but more comfortable as a pocket passer, Eckhaus certainly has the credentials, at least in crimson and gray, filling in to start last year’s Holiday Bowl and taking first-team reps at QB throughout spring ball.

But under Rogers and Freund, whose South Dakota State teams prided themselves on a punishing ground attack, it’s also possible they take a hard look at Dugger or Sheppard, both of whom fashion themselves dual-threat quarterbacks.

Eckhaus didn’t say whether he’s expecting another QB competition like last summer, only that the “best 11 guys are gonna play. You’ve heard Rogers say it multiple times. Best 11 will play. You’ll see the best 11 on the field come (the season opener with) Idaho.”

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Whoever rises to the top of the rotations, though, Eckhaus wants to earn their respect. That’s a key reason why he’s stayed in Pullman most of the summer — he’s improving at his new hobby, grilling, which he picked up toward the end of the Cougs’ spring ball — and why he’s made himself a fixture around WSU’s football complex and practice fields, where he joins teammates in player-run practices.

“There’s just a lot more respect when you really take the time to understand one another,” Eckhaus said. “When you’re asking them to push themselves to their max in the weight room, they listen, they respond a little bit better. And when you’re asking them to lock in on the football field, because we’ve got 20 more minutes, like, ‘Hey, let’s get these plays going,’ they can understand that. They’re a little bit more reciprocated in that aspect.”

As he approaches his final season of college eligibility, Eckhaus isn’t stopping to smell the roses. He’s walking a fine line.

He understands the gravity that comes with being Washington State’s starting quarterback. After meeting with greats like Jack Thompson and Luke Falk this spring, it resonates with him on a deeper level. If he wins the job, he wants to perform for the fans, for the alumni, for the greats who came before him.

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But he also understands he can’t do any of that if he focuses too much on it. He’s adamant about staying present, focusing on the day, the location, the task at hand, the time down to the minute.

“I’m right here, right now,” Eckhaus said. “We’re on July 11, Friday, Pullman, Washington, around 2:10 p.m. That’s where I’m at, and that’s where I’ll be.”

The time was actually 2:18 p.m. It’s about the furthest out of the moment Eckhaus has been this summer.

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