Kevin Lopina, who is out with a broken vertebra, should be healthy enough to return in a few weeks (I'm told). Until then, it's safe to say, Marshall Lobbestael will take every snap at quarterback for Washington State (good, bad, or indifferent...and if he stays healthy). That's because the Cougs will do whatever they can to keep (new backup QB) J.T. Levenseller's redshirt intact.

So, I'm here to tell you a little bit about the guy everyone in Cougarville is talking about: Marshall Lobbestael.

The redshirt freshman came to Wazzu from Oak Harbor High School. He earned three varsity letters in football and four in baseball. As a sophomore he earned all-league honorable mention and all-state honorable mention on the diamond. As a junior, he led the Wildcats to the state quarterfinals while throwing for 1,351 yards and 12 touchdowns. He then took Oak Harbor to the 4A State Championship his senior year (blowing past Gonzaga Prep in the process...everyone I talked to who was at that game said you could see his DI talent), tossing 34 touchdown passes (set a school record with six TD's in one game...then threw five the next game) and 2,776 yards. Needless to say, Lobbestael was a stud in high school.

He redshirted last year as a true freshman and came into camp as one of six quarterbacks on the roster this season. With Gary Rogers locked in as the starter and Kevin Lopina the only other "experienced" (he is a redshirt junior) quarterback set to back him up, Lobbestael battled with Cole Morgan for the third-string position. Morgan then transferred to Western Washington (realizing he probably wouldn't get a chance to play at WSU) and Lobbestael was set as the backup to the backup.

Lobbestael took his first college snaps against California (with the game already out of hand). He led two drives against the Golden Bears and both weren't very promising. On the first play of the first drive, he ran for a three yard gain. On the second play, Lobbestael tossed an interception (which led to another Cal touchdown). On the second drive, Lobbestael fumbled twice (both were recovered by the Cougars) and WSU went four-and-out.

Then there was the Portland State game...

Lopina left the game in the first half and Rogers was forced out of the game early in the third quarter (there was about eleven minutes left in the frame). That's when Lobbestael was forced back into action...and this time he was spectacular. On his first pass play, he connected with Jeshua Anderson for a 14 yard touchdown. Lobbestael finished the day 9-for-12 passing for 149 yards and two TDs (he hit Devin Frischknecht on a 53 yard strike later in the third). Lobbestael impressed enough people within the conference to be named the Pac-10 Offensive Player of the Week.

Now, Lobbestael is set to make his first career start against Oregon. Paul Wulff expects him to make some mistakes (and you should too...don't put too much pressure on the kid), but said they'll try to correct them as they happen. Lobbestael has a quick release (quicker than anyone else on the team) and throws a nice ball. He has a chance to make some noise on Saturday, but again, keep in mind he is a redshirt freshman.

Hopefully that gives you a feel for who Marshall Lobbestael is...

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