Luke Falk Heading to Tennessee
Luke Falk is off to Nashville. The Tennessee Titans draft the most decorated quarterback in Washington State and PAC-12 history in the sixth round and No. 199 overall.
The 199th selection in the NFL Draft is very notable because that's when the New England Patriots selected Tom Brady out of Michigan in 2000. Falk idolizes Brady, swo this is quite the coincidence.
Falk is the ninth quarterback drafted in 2018 and will, presumably, play behind Marcus Mariota in the NFL.
The Logan, Utah native is part of one of the most successful stints in WSU football history logging 28 wins and 15 losses during his tenure. Falk was shoved into duty after Connor Halliday's injury his freshman year and never relinquished the starting job. His most notable victory probably came back in 2015 when the Cougs beat Miami in the Sun Bowl en route to Falk's MVP award for that game.
Falk's numbers under Mike Leach's 'Air Raid' offense are outstanding. During his time in Pullman, Falk completed 1,403 passes for 14,486 yards with 119 passing touchdowns. All three of those statistics are PAC-12 records.
Falk also played most of his senior season with a broken left wrist. He had surgery on the wrist, which is why he did not play in the 2017 Holiday Bowl in San Diego.
Falk is the 10th quarterback drafted in program history and the first one since Alex Brink in 2008.
Cole Madison off to Titletown USA
The Green Bay Packers select former Washington State tackle Cole Madison in the 5th round and 102 overall.
Madison came to Pullman from Burien, Washington and was a three-time All-Pac-12 selection. Madison started 47 games in a Cougars uniform, which is tied for second in program history.
Madison is the second offensive lineman drafted during Mike Leach's tenure and the second OL drafted in three years. Joe Dahl went to the Detroit Lions back in 2016.
Undrafted Free Agents
To the surprise of many, Hercules Mata'afa was not selected in the 2018 NFL Draft, but his heading to Minnesota to play for the Vikings.
Mata'afa was an impact player since day one in Pullman and despite his smaller stature at 6 feet 2 inches tall and 252 pounds, Mata'afa logged 22.5 career sacks (4th most in program history) with 47 tackles for a loss (2nd most in program history). The Hawaiian put forth his best effort during his junior season logging 10.5 sacks and 22.5 tackles for a loss en route to his Polynesian Player of the Year award and consensus All-America nod.
The biggest question surrounding Mata'afa is what position he'll play in the NFL. He played all over the defensive line during his time at Washington State, but the assumption is that he would be moved to defensive end or linebacker at the next level.
As for some other Cougs who are also on the move:
- DL Daniel Ekuale (Cleveland Browns)
- LB Frankie Luvu (New York Jets)
- RB Gerard Wicks (New Orleans Saints)
- RB Jamal Morrow (Tampa Bay Buccaneers)
- LB Dylan Hanser (Atlanta Falcons)
- OG Cody O'Connell (?)
- K Erik Powell (?)