When Washington State opens fall camp next Thursday, the linebacker room will be one of the more interesting spots on the roster. The Cougars have a clear top three in Nylan Brown, DJ Warne and Keith Brown, but the question hanging over the group is simple: what comes after that?
That’s why Isaiah Hung matters so much.
Hung turned in what looked like a breakout spring, and by the time he stepped in front of reporters in late April, he had already flashed enough to make himself part of the conversation. After redshirting his true freshman season, he spent the spring showing more speed, more physicality and more confidence in the middle of the defense. He was finding gaps quickly and finishing plays with authority, the kind of progress that can change a position group’s outlook fast.
“Honestly, I feel like I’ve gotten a lot better at taking care of my body and doing the little things outside of practice and in the weight room and in the training room,” Hung said in April. “I’d just say it helped me get a feel for the game more and be able to play more confident and just get more reps.
I think I have around 400 reps this spring, so it’s great. I’m getting experience.”
That experience could end up being crucial. Defensive coordinator Trent Bray’s 4-2-5 setup does offer some relief for linebackers, but it still doesn’t erase the need for dependable depth. WSU can’t expect its top three to handle 70 snaps a game, and if Hung is ready by the Sept. 6 opener at Washington, the Cougars will feel a lot better about where they stand.
Hung, listed at 6-foot-2 and 217 pounds, came to Pullman from the Kansas City area after being recruited by former coach Jimmy Rogers. Rogers is now at Iowa State, but Hung remains with the Cougars, and his development has become more important than anyone probably expected a year ago.
The concern is not with the top end of the room. Brown and Warne both bring real promise, and Keith Brown adds veteran presence after missing last season with an injury. The issue is how much proven production sits behind them.
Brown’s college journey has taken him from Oregon in 2021 and 2022 to Louisville for a redshirt year in 2023 before landing at WSU ahead of the 2024 season. Even with that longer path through the college game, he still hasn’t logged a huge amount of defensive work. His career total sits at 518 snaps, with 190 of those coming last season for the Cougars.
Warne, meanwhile, arrived from SMU after playing his first college season at Kansas. He appeared in all 12 games for SMU last fall and finished with two sacks on 18 quarterback pressures.
At 6-foot-4 and 231 pounds, he has spent much of his career as more of an edge player than a traditional linebacker, and this year has been about learning the finer points of the new spot. Coverage has been the toughest adjustment so far.
“It’s definitely coming naturally, I feel like,” Warne said after one spring practice in April. “Before I moved to the position, I kinda knew that this position would fit me more.
I’d say the space is definitely the biggest difference. I don’t have to take on every lineman with every pound in my body now.
I could make them miss, which is what I would rather do. So probably the space.
But that’s definitely the thing that excites me the most about it.”
Brown should bring a physical edge after starting one of 11 games last season at Kent State, where he finished with 58 tackles and three tackles for loss. In spring ball, he looked like the kind of linebacker who can deliver punishment at the point of attack.
That leaves WSU with a promising top three, but not much margin for error beyond them. If Hung keeps building on what he showed in the spring, the Cougars’ linebacker group could look a lot sturdier by the time the season starts.
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