Injuries still bedevil WSU football team

SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) - Washington State will be without the services of safety Chima Nwachukwu when they play at No. 21 Arizona on Saturday. He suffered an ankle injury while running back a blocked kick against Notre Dame last weekend.

Coach Paul Wulff said defensive lineman Jesse Feagin is out with a broken hand, while tight end Tony Thompson is questionable.

But offensive lineman Steven Ayers should play.

Defensive tackle Toby Turpin has also worked his way back into the starting lineup. Turpin blocked the PAT against Notre Dame after blocking a field goal attempt the previous week against California.

Washington State (1-7, 0-5 Pacific-10) will be looking to break a five-game losing streak when it plays at Arizona (5-2, 3-1).

NOT OFFENSIVE: Washington State's offensive woes continue, but the passing attack has made definite progress since freshman Jeff Tuel was named starting quarterback four games ago.

Tuel, plus receivers Jared Karstetter, Johnny Forzani and Gino Simone, have emerged as the team's main offensive weapons. All are in their first year of college football except for Karstetter, who is a sophomore.

The Cougars are averaging 206 yards per game through the air. By contrast they are one of the worst rushing teams in the nation at 76 yards per game.

Karstetter caught two touchdown passes from Tuel for their only points in a 40-14 loss to Notre Dame last weekend. He now has five touchdown receptions on the season.

Wulff said a key to progress is keeping Tuel healthy. He took some major shots from the Irish.

"He can't take a lot of this hitting as he took this week," Wulff said. "We've got to do a better job protecting him."

A better running game would do wonders for protecting Tuel, by keeping defenses more honest. Veteran Dwight Tardy showed signs of breaking out of a recent slump by running for 72 yards on eight carries against the Irish.

SMART COUGS: Players Casey Hamlett, Micah Hannam and Chima Nwachukwu were named to the district all-academic team by the College Sports Information Directors of America.

This is the third straight selection for Hannam, a civil engineering major from Gig Harbor with a 3.59 grade point average. Hamlett, a management and operations major from Edmonds, has a 3.72 GPA. Nwachukwu has a 3.79 GPA in political science.

The Pacific-10 had eight players on the first team, with the three from WSU the most of any school. Stanford and California each placed two players on the list.