ESPN College Football

Washington concludes spring practices with its spring game on Saturday. Here's a brief primer.

Spring game: The Huskies play their spring game at 2 p.m. ET -- 11 a.m. PT -- at Husky Stadium. Admission is free.

Questions answered: Garret Gilliland's move from middle linebacker to replace Mason Foster on the weak side appears successful. True freshman TE Austin Seferian-Jenkins, an early arrival, proved equal to his recruiting hype. He and Michael Hartvigson will provide a huge upgrade at a position that used to be a program strength. Kevin Smith asserted himself as a potential No. 3 receiver behind Jermaine Kearse and Devin Aguilar in what should be a deep crew of receivers. DE Josh Shirley showed a nice burst off the edge as a speed rusher. The defensive front, as a whole, looks sneaky good.

Questions unanswered: Coach Steve Sarkisian has yet to tap a replacement for Jake Locker at QB, though there was a sense that sophomore Keith Price holds a lead over Nick Montana entering the offseason. The offensive line didn't have a great spring, though it hurt that LT Senio Kelemete was out with an injury. Line issues are not a good thing for a run-first offense breaking in a new QB. The pecking order at safety wasn't resolved in large part because of an injury to sophomore Sean Parker. The third LB spot on the strong side remains up for grabs (a number of candidates battled injuries this spring).

Spring stars: Shirley was a revelation as a speed rusher, while Hartvigson answered the challenge from Seferian-Jenkins. Two big, athletic tight ends will provide a nice security blanket for the new QB. Smith asserting himself is important because touted incoming freshmen Kasen Williams is expected to be in the mix immediately.

Oregon State concludes spring practices with its spring game on Saturday. Here's a brief primer.

Spring game: The Beavers play their spring game at 3:15 p.m. -- 12:15 PDT -- at Reser Stadium.

Questions answered: With starting quarterback Ryan Katz out, backups Cody Vaz and Sean Mannion were solid to impressive. There are few worries at quarterback -- Katz is throwing after a wrist injury -- which is always good. The outside linebackers are set with Cameron Collins and Michael Doctor. The secondary, led by safety Lance Mitchell, looks solid and there's good depth behind the starting four. Kicker Trevor Romaine has been consistent and may be an immediate upgrade on Justin Kahut.

Questions unanswered: A lot of questions heading into the offseason, starting with the health of wide receiver James Rodgers, whose return is uncertain after a serious knee injury, and continuing with the uncertain seriousness of tight end Joe Halahuni's shoulder problem. Those are two big presences in the passing game. The pecking order on the offensive line, at running back and middle linebacker are far from set. Ryan McCants, Jovan Stevenson, Jordan Jenkins and the freshmen Terron Ward and Malcolm Marable are in the mix at running back. While the left side of the O-line is set, the right is not: Burke Ellis and Michael Lamb are competing at guard, and Colin Kelly and Michael Philipp at tackle. Rueben Robinson, Kevin Unga and Tony Wilson are still splitting time at middle linebacker. Further, there are questions about who will provide consistent pressure on the quarterback from the D-line.

Spring stars: Doctor is going to be a player at weak-side linebacker. The move of Dominic Glover from defensive end to defensive tackle has yielded positive results. Jordan Poyer has been solid after replacing James Dockery at cornerback opposite Brandon Hardin. Markus Wheaton was a standout at receiver, and Obum Gwacham flashed some potential at the same spot. Spring started with writers celebrating Mannion over Vaz, but things reversed by the end -- mostly because of strong play by Vaz and not anything Mannion did or didn't do.

California concludes spring practices with a final scrimmage -- not really a game -- on Saturday. Here's a brief primer.

Spring game: Cal will hold an informal scrimmage Saturday from 12-2:30 p.m. at Contra Costa College.

Questions answered: The Bears have closed practices and a lot of injured players, so it's hard to say which questions were answered. The QB competition has been reduced to three from five -- Zach Maynard, Brock Mansion and Allan Bridgford -- with Maynard appearing to hold a slight lead due to practice order. Whoever wins the job will have a solid group of receivers, particularly if Michael Calvin stays healthy, which he did this spring. A number of young players on defense played well. Spring helped new-old coaches Jim Michalczik (offensive coordinator/line) and Eric Kiesau (receivers/passing game coordinator) -- who both previously coach with Jeff Tedford -- get back into the swing in Berkeley.

Questions unanswered: The starting QB likely won't be anointed until well into fall camp. The running back depth behind Isi Sofele is uncertain, and incoming freshmen -- Brendan Bigelow and Daniel Lasco --are expected to immediately enter the mix. The pecking order on the offensive line is unclear. There will be lot of young talent looking to breakthrough on defense, even at the expense of veteran players.

Spring stars: Some of the young standouts on defense include safety Michael Coley, defensive end Gabe King, linebackers Dave Wilkerson, Chris McCain and Nick Forbes and Cecil Whiteside. Freshman Kaelin Clay looks ready to help at receiver.

Oregon concludes spring practices with its spring game on Saturday. Here's a brief primer.

Spring game: 4 p.m. ET at Autzen Stadium. The game will be televised on ESPN2. Here’s the link to the Oregon spring game on ESPN3.com.

Questions answered: The Ducks lost five starters from the defensive front seven, but this one may be more a reload rather than rebuild. This is due in large part to the experience of the so-called new guys, most of whom saw significant action last fall. Ends Dion Jordan and Brandon Hanna -- returning starter Terrell Turner sat out with a leg injury -- and tackles Ricky Heimuli, Taylor Hart and Wade Keliikipi all played well. At linebacker, Kiko Alonso takes over in the middle for Casey Matthews, while Michael Clay, Josh Kaddu and Boseko Lokomobo capably man the outside spots. More depth is provided by Dewitt Stuckey and Derrick Malone.

Questions unanswered: The defense was mostly in control this spring, and a lot of that was due to three new starters on the offensive line. Things aren't settled there other than tackles Mark Asper and Darion Weems and guard Carson York. Further, the Ducks are replacing their top two receivers, Jeff Maehl and D.J. Davis, and that may be a spot the requires help from a touted crew of incoming freshmen.

Spring stars: Jordan was an intriguing prospect when he switched to defensive end last season. Now he's starting to look like a player. Alonso missed last season due to suspension -- he also was injured -- but he's brought a physical presence to the middle of the defense. Running back Lache Seastrunk has played well enough to earn touches at a deep position. Spring always provides good walk-on stories, and the Ducks have theirs in Ramsen Golpashin, a fifth-year senior who's in the mix at offensive guard. Now some of you less sentimental sorts might not be thrilled with what a senior walk-on winning the job says, but let's see the glass as half-full.