After injuries to two QBs, WSU turns to freshman

PULLMAN — Marshall Lobbestael's father advises that the Washington State media-guide reference to his son majoring in mechanical engineering is outdated.

"I think he's in that 'undecided' phase," Ric Lobbestael says.

This week, change that major to college quarterbacking, with minors in blitz pickup, protection shifts and hot reads.

Might today signal the start of a new era in WSU football? The Cougars (1-3), who lost two quarterbacks last week against Portland State, turn to Lobbestael for Oregon's (3-1) visit to Martin Stadium.

"I'm sure he's nervous," Lobbestael's father said. "I don't think any human wouldn't be. But he's always been able to put that down."

If the 6-foot-3, 200-pound freshman is largely a mystery to WSU fans, that's OK. He's pretty much an unknown to the coaches, too, having until this week taken precious few repetitions with the first or second unit.

Asked Thursday what he now knows about Lobbestael, WSU coach Paul Wulff said, "He's taken it very seriously. When he's out there, we seem to be fairly efficient. That's been a real positive for us and for him.

"Like I said before, he's got a nice presence about him. He's still green around the ears, but he does some nice things, some innate things."

So here's the book on WSU's third starting quarterback in five games, following senior Gary Rogers and junior Kevin Lopina:

Marshall is the second of Ric and Dessa Lobbestael's (pronounced LOW-buh-stall) two sons. The couple were Navy Corpsmen stationed on Whidbey Island, and, except for a year when they moved back closer to family members in Michigan in the 1980s, they've lived on the island.

The name Lobbestael — giving rise, naturally, to one of Marshall's nicknames, "Lobster" — is Belgian. His mother's ancestors were primarily German.

Marshall played three sports at Oak Harbor High School, and in 2006, the Wildcats won the state 4A football championship. In the quarterfinals against Skyview of Vancouver, he completed 21 of 32 passes for 332 yards. In the semifinals, he was 20 of 25 against Gonzaga Prep.

"We knew of him," said Wulff, referring to his tenure as coach at Eastern Washington. "By the time we were even serious, Washington State had already offered him a scholarship, and he pretty much committed on the spot, is my understanding."

Along the way, Lobbestael apparently didn't make a lot of enemies. Says Jim Waller, retired baseball coach at Oak Harbor, for whom Lobbestael was a pitcher and shortstop, "The thing I always appreciated about Marshall was, he had every reason to be the snobby, jerk athlete. But he was always down-to-earth and all the other kids really liked him.

"I coached for 30 years, and he and one other kid were the best all-around 'persons,' for athletic ability, work ethic and integrity. He's a very special kid, the kind you want your daughter to marry."

Lobbestael redshirted in 2007, and, says Wulff, he's still a pup physically.

"He's nowhere near physically where he's going to be," said Wulff. "He's got a lot of weight-room growth ahead of him. He's going to get a lot bigger and stronger.

"There's a lot of potential in Marshall that's far from being tapped."

There they were last Saturday, Lobbestael's parents, sitting at home watching the Portland State game, seeing both Lopina and Rogers go down with fractures of the back.

"Oh, holy cow," Ric Lobbestael remembers thinking. "The camera cut over to him, warming up. We started getting nervous. We thought they'd just have him hand the ball off."

Wisely, they didn't. Lobbestael began lobbing, his first two throws went for touchdowns, and he finished 9 of 12 for 149 yards. He may be doing that for a while; Rogers is apparently done, while Lopina is out 2 to 6 weeks.

The speculation sizzles. Is he ready for this?

Today, Lobbestael's ride begins in earnest, as Oregon's defense is a big step up in class from Portland State. "Undecided" may be OK as a major, but it won't cut it at the line of scrimmage.