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Will have lots more from my visit to Washington State, which starts spring practices Thursday, but here are some notes from a conversation with coach Paul Wulff.

• The Cougars are much healthier this spring than last: 24 players missed offseason workouts last year. This year, just four will sit out spring practices: running back James Montgomery (knee, calf), defensive tackle Josh Luapo (knee), linebacker Louis Bland (knee) and cornerback Anthony Houston (knee).
• As for Montgomery, he had knee surgery in addition to his scary episode with "acute compartment syndrome" with his calf. Wulff said he won't be cleared to start full-speed running until June. As for the depth at running back Wulff listed Marcus Richmond, Chantz Staden, Logwone Mitz, Carl Winston and Leon Brooks, a walk-on who's made a positive impression.
• Wulff said there's no hope for receiver Johnny Forzani returning to the program: "He's going to try to play in the CFL." The Cougars have four receivers back who caught at least 20 passes: Jared Karstetter, Gino Simone, Jeffrey Solomon and Daniel Blackledge. Wulff said he expects JC transfer Isiah Barton and perhaps a couple of the four incoming freshmen receivers to contribute, most particularly Marquess Wilson. "Most everybody in the Pac-10 was trying to go on him," Wulff said. "He's a big-time, big-time player."
• Offensive lineman Brian Danaher, a 12-game starter over the past three seasons, won't be back because of recurrent concussions.
• Starting defensive tackle Toby Turpin's status is questionable due to an academic dispute, which Wulff said should be resolved -- positively or negatively -- within the next week or two. Turpin will be allowed to practice until his case is resolved.
• Wulff, perhaps surprisingly, said he believes the offensive line will be the strength off the offense. Andrew Roxas, who missed all of last season due to illness, will step in to fill the void at center due to the departure of stalwart Kenny Alfred. B.J. Guerra, Zack Williams and Steven Ayers will compete at guard. At tackle, two JC transfers will be in the mix this spring -- David Gonzales and Wade Jacobson -- along with Micah Hannam, Tyson Pencer and Alex Reitnouer. Wulff also said the he thinks incoming true freshman John Fullington might be ready to immediately contribute. "I think he was one of the best [high school] offensive linemen in the country," he said.
• Tight end Zach Tatman was granted a sixth year of eligibility, which means the Cougs will have three experienced tight ends with Skylar Stormo and Andrei Lintz.
• Redshirt freshman Sekope Kaufusi will see time as a hybrid outside linebacker-defensive end. Wulff said he's been impressed by redshirt freshman end Jordan Pu'u Robinson during the off-season.
• Touted JC transfer Brandon Rankin -- he was offered a scholarship by Alabama -- will play both end and tackle.
• Defensive tackle Bernard Wolfgramm continues to struggle with back problems, but Wulff said he was "moving around and participating in drills better since his back surgery. So that's promising." Still, it's likely his action will be limited this spring.
• Depth at defensive tackle is a question, but sophomore Dan Spitz, who started five games at tackle and end last year, redshirt freshman Justin Clayton and sophomore Anthony Laurenzi are promising prospects.
• Wulff said the defense will be much faster at linebacker. When he's healthy in the fall, Bland will move to middle linebacker. Mike Ledgerwood also is a top candidate in the middle, along with redshirt freshman Darren Markle. Alex Hoffman-Ellis will move from middle to weakside linebacker. Arthur Burns will move from running back to "Will" linebacker. Myron Beck and Andre Barrington will man the strongside. Incoming recruit C.J. Mizell also could be in the mix.
• The secondary, hit hard by injuries a year ago, should be much improved with LeAndre Daniels, Tyree Toomer, Chima Nwachukwu, Jay Matthews and redshirt freshman Anthony Carpenter, Casey Locker -- Jake's cousin -- and Jamal Atofau competing at safety and Daniel Simmons, Aire Justin, Terrance Hayward and promising redshirt freshman Nolan Washington at corner.

After every season, starters leave. But not all starters are created equal.

Here are the biggest shoes to fill in the Pac-10 with spring practices just around the corner.

Toby Gerhart, RB, Stanford

How do you replace the best running back in the nation, a guy who scored 28 touchdowns and rushed for 1,871 yards? You don't. Those sorts don't come around every season.

The Contenders: Stepfan Taylor and Tyler Gafney will get first crack, as well as Jeremy Stewart, who's coming back from a knee injury. Incoming freshman Anthony Wilkerson could be a dark horse.

Sean Canfield, QB, Oregon State

The first-team All-Pac-10 quarterback became an NFL prospect during a strong senior season. He led the conference with 3,271 yards passing and 21 touchdowns, which tied with Washington's Jake Locker.

The Contenders: This will be a showdown between Ryan Katz and Peter Lalich this spring, with Katz starting as the leader.

Brian Price, DT, UCLA

Price could be an NFL first-round draft pick. He led the Pac-10 with 23.5 tackles for a loss in 2009. 'Nuff said.

The Contenders: Good question. The Bruins are perilously thin here, considering both tackles need to be replaced and only senior David Carter has much experience. The answers here might be in the Bruins' recruiting class.

Syd'Quan Thompson, CB, California

The Cal secondary was a huge disappointment this season, but Thompson, a four-year starter and two-time first-team All-Pac-10 performer, was mostly his usually stellar self.

The Contenders: Will Darian Hagan step up in his senior season? Perhaps the answer is sophomore Josh Hill? Or maybe a redshirt guy? The Bears only signed one player listed as a corner in their most recent recruiting class. Expect there to be a lot of competition here this spring.

Daniel Te'o-Nesheim, DE, Washington

Te'o-Nesheim, a high-motor guy who started four years and earned second-team All-Pac-10 honors his final two seasons, ranking third in the conference with 9.5 sacks.

The Contenders: Considering the other end, Darrion Jones, also is gone, the Huskies will trend young here. Andru Pulu was listed behind Te'o-Nesheim on the depth chart, with Talia Crichton and Kalani Aldrich on the other side. There also will be opportunities for younger players here.

Ed Dickson, TE, Oregon

Dickson not only was the Ducks' second-leading receiver with 42 receptions for 551 yards and six touchdowns, the matchup problems he presented forced defenses to scheme specifically for him. That helps an offense in ways that aren't accounted for in statistics.

The Contenders: Junior David Paulson was Dickson's backup last year, and he had some nice moments, but he's no Dickson. JC transfer Brandon Williams and touted incoming freshman Curtis White will be in the mix here.

Kenny Alfred, C, Washington State

Alfred, a four-year starter, was a good player on a bad -- and beaten up -- line. His brain as well as his physical ability will be hard to replace.

The Contenders: Walk-on junior Chris Prummer was listed as Alfred's backup -- largely due to injury -- but Andrew Roxas, who redshirted this year after contracting viral hepatitis, is probably the leader here, though Steven Ayers could move inside to challenge him. Or there could be some reshuffling.

Posted by ESPN.com's Ted Miller

Back in 2000, the weekly Pac-10 coaches conference call took on an amusing sameness when Washington State coach Mike Price's turn came up.

Remember that scene in "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" when the teacher -- "Anyone? Anyone? ... the Great Depression, passed the ... Anyone? Anyone? The tariff bill?" -- was desperate to get a student to participate in his class?

That was conference call moderator Jim Muldoon, the Pac-10's associate commissioner, trying to get reporters to ask Price a question.

	Stephen Dunn/Getty Images
	Paul Wulff and the Cougars have won just one Pac-10 game in their last 13 tries.

Price was a good quote and one of the nicest guys in coaching, but his team was in the midst of winning just three conference in the three seasons since it had played in the 1998 Rose Bowl. His Cougs weren't terribly relevant.

"Anyone with a question for Coach Price?" Muldoon would plead.

"There are no questions in the cue," the operator would reply.

What then happened most weeks was Bob Condotta, now with the Seattle Times but then with the Tacoma News Tribune, then would hit the "*1" to ask a question. Condotta covered Washington, but he was a Washington State graduate and he felt bad for Price, he'd later explain to me.

Over the next three seasons, though, Washington State won 30 games and finished ranked in the top 10 each year. Price and then Bill Doba got a lot more questions because they were relevant.

This is a long-winded way to make a simple point: There isn't much to say about Washington State right now. The Cougars aren't good and odds are decent they won't win a game in perhaps the deepest conference in college football.

And when a program in a BCS conference is looking at the possibility of winning only three games over a two-year span, it lands that program's head coach on a perceived hot seat, no matter what circumstances he inherited. Perhaps that's why Paul Wulff gets plenty of questions on the conference call.

So it's not completely unfair to call Wulff "embattled" or whatever. The debate over Wulff's two years on the main WSU blogs -- here , here and here -- has been fairly animated, though the always positive Lew Wright has tried to keep the Coug nation bucked up.

Two points, though.

First, the Cougars have been pretty awful for stretches throughout their history. And they have always bounced back.

Second, the Cougars, despite epidemic injuries for a second consecutive year, are better and playing harder than a year ago.

Now, be forewarned that what follows won't be much consolation to Washington State fans. But it's something to think about during the bye week.

In its four Pac-10 games thus far, the Cougars have dramatically reduced their margin of defeat from last year.

Stanford beat the Cougs by 58 in 2008 but by 26 in 2009; USC won by 69 in 2008, 21 in 2009; Oregon, 49 in 2008 and 46 in 2009. A bad Arizona State team beat the Cougs by 31 last year but a decent one only eclipsed them by 13 last week.

Hey, it's tangible progress.

What's a great measure of a team just slopping around? Turnover margin. Last year, the Cougars finished ranked 119th -- last in the nation -- in turnover margin. They forced only 13 and gave away 38.

So far this year, the Cougs aren't even last in the Pac-10 (OK, they're ninth, but still). They've forced 18 and given away 20, which ranks 76th in the country, ahead of plenty of quality teams.

Of course, it's easy to find bad news. They are at or near the bottom of the Pac-10 in every major offensive and defensive statistically category.

With a makeshift O-line missing three starters, they gave 12 sacks last week at home against Arizona State.

"We're playing some guys in there right now who physically, it's tough for them," Wulff said. "They are not ready to play every down in the Pac-10."

Wulff also didn't hide from an obvious area where he, with some validity, could be criticized: Behind that overmatched line, he again started a true freshman quarterback, Jeff Tuel, whom Wulff had planned to redshirt.

Yes, Wulff, said he was concerned that his young quarterback might lose his confidence under such an assault.

“That’s the thing we have to be real careful with,” he said. “We’re trying to grow up some young guys who have got enough potential to be awfully good. But in the process of growing up, we don’t ruin or do any sort of psychological damage, and or physical damage to our players.”

When Tuel, understandably, got out of sync, Wulff sat him down for a bit and inserted former starter Marshall Lobbestael, who's only a sophomore himself. When Tuel came back in the second half, Wulff felt he played much better.

Tuel finished the day completing 11 of 22 passes for 175 yards with two picks and two TDs, one of which went for 99 yards to receiver Johnny Forzani.

The beat up offensive line might get both starting guards -- B.J. Guerra (knee) and Zach Williams (ankle) -- back for the visit to California on Oct. 24. That should help, though there are now some questions at left tackle where Tyson Pencer (ankle, illness) and Steven Ayers (ankle) have been alternating injuries.

The athletic department is cash strapped and attendance at Martin Stadium is down.

There are no significant signs that athletic director Jim Sterk is going to suddenly lose one of his good qualities -- patience -- but who knows.

These are rough times in Pullman, and they may inspire hasty, drastic measures.

But if Coug fans look close enough they might see reasons for hope.

Anyone? Anyone? Reasons for hope? Anyone?

Posted by ESPN.com's Ted Miller

Some injury notes based on news reports.

Arizona
Guard Conan Amituanai sprained his knee against Washington. He won't play against Stanford. Defensive tackle Earl Mitchell was hurt in a freak accident on Oct. 9 -- he was knocked out by a door and required stitches -- and didn't play Saturday, but he might return this week. Receiver Bug Wright (knee), defensive end Brooks Reed (ankle), running back Nic Grigsby (shoulder), running back Keola Antolin and defensive end D'Aundre Reed (hand) are all questionable.

Arizona State
The Sun Devils got two player back at Washington State -- guard Garth Gerhart and safety Ryan McFoy -- and didn't suffer any additional injuries. Receiver Kerry Taylor (hamstring), guard Matt Hustad and cornerback Omar Bolden (knee) each missed the Washington State game and are questionable this week.

California
After taking the weekend off, the Bears may get guard Matt Summers-Gavin (shoulder), wide receiver Nyan Boateng (foot) and tight end Spencer Ladner back for the UCLA game. On the downside, receiver Verran Tucker is battling a calf injury and backup nose tackle Kendrick Payne, who didn't play against USC, is doubtful with plantar fasciitis.

Oregon
The Ducks only practice Wednesday and Friday during their bye week. It's unclear if quarterback Jeremiah Masoli (knee) or safety T.J. Ward (ankle) will be ready to participate. Offensive tackle C.E. Kaiser sat out all last week with a shin injury but he played against UCLA.

Oregon State
Offensive guard Gregg Peat bruised his knee against Stanford but he should be able to play after the bye week at USC. Running back Ryan McCants (knee) has yet to play this season but he is questionable for the USC game. Receiver Darrell Catchings (ankle) isn't expected to be ready by Oct. 24.

Stanford
Defensive end Erik Lorig didn't play at Oregon State because of a groin injury. Safety Delano Howell is nursing a quad injury. Both are questionable for the visit to Arizona.

UCLA
Linebacker Reggie Carter played through a sprained knee against Oregon but he's questionable for the Cal game. Tailback Johnathan Franklin and safety Glenn Love are both nursing sprained ankles. Defensive end Korey Bosworth bruised his ribs but is probable for Saturday.

USC
Receiver Ronald Johnson (collarbone) and defensive end Armond Armstead (foot) are expected to be cleared to play at Notre Dame.

Washington
Offensive guard Greg Christine broke his fibula against Arizona and is likely done for the year. He was replaced by sophomore Nick Wood. Running back Chris Polk played through a sprained shoulder against Arizona. Linebacker E.J. Savannah and defensive tackle Cameron Elisara are nursing stingers.

Washington State
It's good news and bad news for the Cougars. Cornerback Daniel Simmons may be done for the season after breaking his leg against Arizona State. On the plus side, guard Zack Williams (ankle) should be ready for the visit to California after the bye week. Tackle Steven Ayers (ankle) and guard B.J. Guerra (knee) are questionable, as are defensive tackle Bernard Wolfgramm (hip) and linebacker Alex Hoffman-Ellis (staph infection).

Posted by ESPN.com's Ted Miller

Updating the worst part about the game.

Arizona
Arizona is banged up but it has a chance to get much healthier during its bye week and before it visits Washington on Oct. 10. Receiver Bug Wright is out after knee surgery, but running back Nic Grigsby (shoulder), running back Keola Antolin (ankle), defensive end Brooks Reed (ankle), offensive tackle Mike Diaz (concussion), offensive guard Vaughn Dotsy (concussion) and receiver Delashaun Dean (thigh bruise) all could be ready to go after the bye.

Arizona State
The Sun Devils get defensive end James Brooks back from a three-game suspension, which means senior end Dexter Davis can move back to the weak side, where he has a better chance to get to the quarterback. On the downside, the struggling offensive line has issues. The top two centers, Garth Gerhart (toe) and Thomas Altieri (knee) are banged up, as are guards Jon Hargis (shoulder), Zach Schlink (knee) and Matt Hustad (knee). Hustad is doubtful for Oregon State's visit, while the others are questionable. Also, tight end Jovon Williams (knee) is questionable.

Oregon
Oregon cornerback Walter Thurmond is likely out for a few games with a knee injury. Coach Chip Kelly may provide more specifics during his news conference today, but he typically calls every player "day-to-day" and forces reporters to read between the lines. Kelly did say Saturday that he didn't believe Thurmond would be done for the season. Safety T.J. Ward (ankle) and receiver Rory Cavaille (shoulder) are both questionable.

Oregon State
Receiver Darrell Catchings, who just came back from a wrist injury, is now out for 2-3 weeks with an ankle sprain. Also, linebacker Keaton Kristick suffered a stinger against Arizona and probably won't practice much this week.

Stanford
Backup tailback Jeremy Stewart hurt is right knee against Washington. It's unclear how serious the injury is.

USC
Defensive tackle Hebron Fangupo (broken leg) and end Marshall Jones (neck) suffered season-ending injuries against Washington State. Linebackers Jordan Campbell and Nick Garratt sprained their ankles and are questionable for the Cal game as is linebacker Malcolm Smith (ankle), who sat out against the Cougars.

Washington
The Huskies might get receiver Devin Aguilar back for the visit to Notre Dame. Aguilar sat out the Stanford game with a sprained knee.

Washington State
The Cougars can't stay healthy. They probably lost a starting offensive and defensive lineman against USC: Steven Ayers (ankle) and defensive tackle Josh Luapo (knee). Starting guards B. J. Guerra (knee) and Zack Williams (ankle) aren't expected to be ready to play at Oregon. Defensive end Kevin Kooyman (knee) missed the USC game but might be ready for the trip to Eugene.

Posted by ESPN.com's Ted Miller

Washington State posted a gutty, comeback win in overtime against SMU on Saturday, but it seems like there is generally a "but" after something positive happens with the Cougars these days.

That's the case again.

Junior running back James Montgomery is out for the season after undergoing surgery Sunday morning for acute compartment syndrome in his left leg.

“I feel terrible for James,” coach Paul Wulff said in a statement. “He has worked so hard since the minute he stepped on campus and is the complete package in terms of a student-athlete. He will be missed this season but knowing James he will continue to make a great impact on our program.”

Through the first three games, Montgomery is the Cougars leading rusher, including an 118-yard effort against Hawaii.

Montgomery, a transfer from California, had six carries for 10 yards against SMU. His bothersome knee and some injury woes on the line largely explain why the Cougars only rushed for 37 yards against the Mustangs.

The Cougars now will face USC on Saturday without Montgomery and their top three guards. B.J. Guerra sprained his knee against SMU and will be out four to six weeks, while Zack Williams is still out with a high ankle sprain. In the preseason, returning starter Andrew Roxas was lost to a liver infection.

Freshman Tyson Pencer will start at left tackle, displacing Steven Ayers, who moves inside to left guard. Junior Brian Danaher, a former walk on, will step in at right guard.

Asked if things were thin on the line, Wulff said, "Really thin."

Maybe not as thin as last year when USC obliterated WSU 69-0. The Trojans outgained the Cougars 625 yards to 116. The Cougars only had four first downs vs. 28 for USC.

Wulff isn't planning to play the redemption card to motivate his team this week.

"We haven't and we don't plan on it," he said. "We're a lot different team and they're a lot different team."

Wulff's primary focus at present is getting his out-manned squad to play hard for all four quarters, which it often didn't do last year. Part of that, he said, is "not getting caught up in the score." That might make some cringe, but the Cougs didn't let a 17-0 first-half deficit vs. SMU keep them from fighting back and finding creative ways to win -- such as returning two interception for long TDs.

Washington State was outgained 504-276. But it still won.

Further along those lines, Wulff also sees reason for optimism in two overtime victories in the last five games.

"I think we're starting to make some headway, and our players are starting to feel good about our improvement," he said.

If the Cougs could just stay healthy, they might show more improvement.