Olson to get his Pac-10 chance at WSU
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KENT - Bryan Olson always believed he belonged in the Pac-10.
When the Washington State Cougars bought into the idea, the two became a perfect pair.
Olson, a Kentlake senior considered one of the top defensive players in the state, has made an oral commitment to play football for WSU.
"I've always wanted to play Pac-10 football," he said. "Now I've got my chance."
For a while, it looked as though no Pac-10 team was going to give Olson (6 feet 4, 250 pounds) a chance, despite his impressive play at inside linebacker the past two years. Although Big Sky schools - Idaho State, Boise State and Portland State - were giving him a hard rush, WSU was hot and cold.
"They talked to me early, kind of left me alone, then came back," Olson said.
He said Bill Doda, WSU's defensive coordinator, talked to him two weeks before Christmas, then the Cougars' interest seemed to cool.
"Then when I started talking to Arizona State, he (Doda) came back again (right after New Year's) and set up a home visit and talked to my parents," Olson said.
Olson said he never took a trip to ASU, where former teammate Mike Karney, a 2000 Kentlake graduate, became a starter at fullback.
"I knew I wanted to stay close to home," Olson said.
So he set up a visit to Pullman for last weekend, and said he knew before he went that he wanted to commit to the Cougars. He did so Sunday before he came home.
"I liked it (there) a lot. All the new facilities and everything are pretty cool," Olson said. "All the people are real nice and the coaches are real nice."
Kentlake Coach Mark Torgerson was not surprised by Olson's decision.
"I thought all along he would probably end up there," he said. "The Big Sky schools were all over him. They did a real nice job. I just thought at some point WSU would come back, and they did. He (Olson) is a kid with a big frame who can add some weight. He can easily add 25 to 30 pounds."
Notes
** Torgerson said three other Kentlake players are close to making their college decisions. Kenny Jackson (6-1, 185), a wide receiver and defensive back, likely will end up at Eastern Washington as a Proposition 48 athlete, meaning he will be ineligible to play for one year and will not be on scholarship until he becomes academically eligible.
** Torgerson said offensive lineman Aaron McCabe (6-2, 260) is drawing "secondary" interest from Eastern and Idaho State, but added that Western Washington is "very interested" in him and in outside linebacker Jeff Thomas (6-0, 195).