Cougars scrimmage at end of practice

PULLMAN - Washington State closed Thursday's practice with a "live" scrimmage that was complete with officials and crowd noise in Martin Stadium.

The Cougars worked out for an hour before putting their No. 1 and No. 2 offense and defense up against one another. Quarterback Jeff Tuel led the No. 1 offense to a pair of scores in his three series of work. In the first series, Tuel connected with Rickey Galvin for a 31-yard gain before kicker Andrew Furney connected on a field goal from 34 yards out. The next series was owned by the defense which saw Travis Long record a sack before Steven Hoffart and Ioane Gauta combined for another sack. The offense rebounded as Tuel fired a strike to freshman wideout Gabe Marks, who made a nice catch in traffic near midfield, then outran a couple defenders and juked one more on his way to the endzone for a 70-yard score.

Quarterback Connor Halliday, son of former Coeur d'Alene High QB Duane Halliday, led the No. 2 offense to a score, stepping up in the pocket and hitting Bennett Bontemps on the run, and he trotted in for a 30-yard touchdown.

The defense closed the day with a turnover as linebacker Cyrus Coen jumped in front of a Halliday pass to make the interception.

The Cougars open the season Aug. 30 at BYU.