Washington State: 3 position battles to watch in fall camp

New Washington State coach Mike Leach will have some big decisions to make in fall camp, here are three of the toughest.

Running back: Rickey Galvin vs. Carl Winston

Galvin led the team in rushing yards (602) and rushing touchdowns last season (5), while Winston led the team in carries (123). The thing about Galvin is that if he doesn't win the starting running back job, he'll most likely still be on the field. He's one of the Cougars' top athletes and in Mike Leach's Air Raid offense, there's always room for talented skill guys on the field. Galvin may win the starting running back job, but if he doesn't don't be surprised if you see him in the slot. Galvin was tied for fourth on the team in receptions last season and fifth in receiving yards. Winston's more of a power guy, so when he's on the field this season, it will most likely be as a running back.

Right tackle: Rico Forbes vs. Jake Rodgers vs. the field

For the sake of simplicity, we're listing right tackle as a position battle to watch, but this could turn into a battle for every spot on the O-line. In Leach's offense, the linemen need to be in great shape and they need to know how to pass block (obviously). Forbes started at right tackle in the WSU spring game, while Rogers got one start at right tackle during the 2011 season. The old right tackle -- redshirt senior Dan Spitz -- is expected to play guard this season. What you should take out of that is that Leach is willing to put any linemen anywhere if it helps the team. What you should also take out of this is that the first team O-line in practice on Aug. 7 may not be the first team O-line when WSU takes the field against BYU on Aug. 30.

Punter: Michael Bowlin vs. Tyler McNannay
Kicker: Bowlin vs. Andrew Furney

With the graduation of last year's starting punter Dan Wagner, the position will be wide open this season. The edge currently has to go to Bowlin, who has a booming leg. Bowlin will also most likely handle kickoffs. Bowlin's a big-time talent, he signed with Oregon out of high school, spent a year with the Ducks as a redshirt, before transferring to a junior college. He transferred to WSU expecting to eventually start.

As for placekicking, Andrew Furney held the Cougars starting job last year and finished the season as the second most accurate kicker in the Pac-12 (14 of 16, 87.5 percent). However, Bowlin, who was Scout.com's No. 3 ranked kicker in the country coming out of high school, will give Furney everything he can handle. Furney might keep his job, but Bowlin will spend fall camp breathing down his neck.

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