PULLMAN — Some final reinforcements from the transfer portal are headed Washington State’s way.
On Friday, the Cougars picked up two more commitments, one from West Georgia wide receiver Jordan Dees and one from Eastern Washington transfer Jirah Leaupepetele.
Then on Saturday, WSU picked up two more players, both cornerbacks: junior college transfer Elmo Wartson and Texas State transfer Khamari Terrell, good for their new team’s 28th and 29th additions via the portal this offseason.
In that group, Dees makes the fifth receiver and Leaupepetele makes the fifth defensive tackle, underscoring the importance head coach Kirby Moore and assistants placed on replenishing two of the position groups where the Cougars lost the most in the portal.
For his part, Dees started his career in 2024 at West Georgia, the same year the program made the jump from Division II to Division I, joining the FCS ranks. Dees redshirted and played in four games as a true freshman that year, but last season, he broke out, totaling 36 receptions for 508 yards and three touchdowns.
Listed at 6-foot-4 and 200 pounds, Dees profiles as an outside receiver for WSU, joining Oregon State transfer Darrius Clemons in that cohort. Both have good size — Clemons is listed at 6-foot-3 — and even junior college transfer wideout Ryan McKendry has a 6-foot-2 frame, giving the Cougs a few options for outside receivers next fall.
In the receiver corps, the Cougs have also landed commitments from Florida transfer Tank Hawkins and Missouri transfer Daniel Blood, both of whom profile as speedy slot receivers. With veteran Tony Freeman back in the fold for the Cougars, they’ll have all kinds of options at that position.
A native of Mobile, Ala., Dees was a three-star prospect in the class of 2024 out of Saraland High, earning offers from Arkansas State, Liberty, UAB, Alabama A&M and North Alabama at that time.
Moore didn’t have to look as far to earn a pledge from Leaupepetele. Listed at a massive 6-3 and 322 pounds, Leaupepetele spent three seasons at Eastern Washington, posting 18 tackles, 11/2 for loss and half a sack, plus one pass breakup last season. He played in seven games as a true freshman, four as a sophomore and all 12 last season, giving him 23 games of experience as he heads to WSU.
A native of the Southern California town of Apple Valley, Leaupepetele didn’t start any of those games, but he piled up 574 total snaps in that span, an extensive foundation of experience for his first year of FBS ball.
Plus, the Cougars weren’t the only team after Leaupepetele. After entering the portal on Jan. 12, he fielded offers from UMass, Hawaiʻi, UTEP and North Texas, but he chose the Cougars.
On the defensive line, he’ll compete for snaps with Cal transfer Ike Okafor, Marshall transfer Paul Hutson III, junior college transfer Akio Martinson and FCS Saint Francis transfer Balaam Miller, which is the group that will try to replace key outgoing transfers Bryson Lamb and Max Baloun, both of whom followed former coach Jimmy Rogers to Iowa State.
The Cyclones also signed former WSU defensive ends Isaac Terrell and Malaki Ta’ase, making new Cougar transfers DJ Warner (SMU), Eduka Okundaye (Arizona), Linus Zunk (Vanderbilt) and Matyus McLain (Idaho) even more important.
On Saturday, the Cougars also landed a commitment from Wartson, according to a report from 247 Sports, good for their 28th addition out of the transfer portal this offseason. Listed at 6-foot-3 and 185 pounds, Wartson is the fifth cornerback the Cougs have added, while Terrell is the sixth.
Wartson chose WSU over offers from Baylor, Mississippi State, Boise State, Fresno State, UConn, Cal Poly and others. He took visits to WSU, Boise State and Fresno State.
A native of Modesto, Calif., Wartson played the last two seasons at Modesto College, where he totaled 36 tackles and six pass breakups in 10 games last season. He recorded as many as three pass breakups, which came in a win over College of the Sequoias, and he posted another two in a victory over Reedley.
Meanwhile, Terrell spent the first three years of his career at Oregon, where he totaled 14 tackles and one pass breakup in that span. Then he transferred to future Pac-12 member Texas State, where he registered 36 tackles, three pass breakups and one interception last season, helping the Bobcats go 7-6 with a bowl game win over Rice.
Listed at 6-foot-1 and 195 pounds, Terrell came off the bench for the first four games of last season, then started each of the final eight contests. He also picked up one quarterback pressure, a hurry against Louisiana-Monroe. On the season, he allowed 24 catches on 38 targets, a decent catch rate of 63%.
Coming out of high school in Killeen, Texas, Terrell was a four-star prospect in the class of 2022. He picked up offers from LSU, Florida, Clemson, Mississippi State, Baylor, Missouri and USC, eventually choosing Oregon.
Can Wartson and Terrell push for meaningful roles next season? They’ll likely be competing with the other cornerbacks WSU has signed out of the portal, including Oregon State transfer Jalil Tucker, San Jose State transfer Jaylen Thomas, Cal Poly transfer CJ Solis-Lumar and Arizona transfer Jshawn Frausto-Ramos.