Mike Leach on "zombie-like," "empty-corpse quality" seniors

Paul Myerberg, USA TODAY Sports | USATODAY

Mike Leach is funny, quirky, offbeat and unconventional, but that alone is not what makes him wholly different from the majority of his peers on the FBS level.

What makes Leach unique is his undisguised honesty, whether discussing his disregard for typical in-game practices – pass-heavy, pass-first, whether in the first quarter or up 28 points late – his players' significant others or the weather in Lubbock, among other topics.

(Yes, Leach, while the head coach at Texas Tech, did the weather broadcast for a local television affiliate. While the video's grainy, it's a worth another look.)

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Leach hasn't changed since arriving at Washington State. Disappointed with his team's 2-4 start, Leach on Tuesday questioned the attitude of his seniors, the veterans pegged to help the Cougars break into Leach's new offensive system.

"I think it's mixed," said Leach of his team's senior leadership. "I think with some it's stellar... some of them have been great and some of them have been very poor. Some of them have had this zombie-like, go-through-the-motions, that's how it's always been and that's how it'll always be."

"Some of them, quite honestly, have an empty-corpse quality," he said.

As a result, Leach and his staff have been forced to turn to underclassmen. This week's projected starting lineup for a game against California includes only three seniors, all on the defensive side of the ball.

Three true freshmen will start on offense, based on Washington State's depth chart for Saturday. A fourth rookie, redshirt freshman Gunnar Eklund, will start at left tackle.

"It's not pleasant to say or pleasant to think about, but it's a fact, which is why it's been necessary to have the youth movement we've had," said Leach. "We play a bunch of (redshirt) freshmen and true freshmen because we get a higher effort level out of them."

This youth movement hurts the Cougars' chances at reaching bowl eligibility in 2012. But with so many younger players on offense (and only one, junior wide receiver Marquess Wilson, expected to test the draft waters), this season's struggles on offense may yield dividends in 2013 and beyond.