Cougars' hard-nosed Alfred stays positive, keeps battling

By Howie Stalwick | For The Olympian • Published September 26, 2008

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PULLMAN – Paul Wulff says the Washington State football program needs an influx of players with more talent, passion and character.

In other words, Wulff says, the Cougars need more Kenny Alfreds.

"He's an excellent leader," Wulff said of WSU's junior center out of Gig Harbor High School. "He's very tough-minded and tough physically.

"He's got a great football IQ. He's a very intelligent kid. He's clearly one of the better football players in our program."

Wulff's appreciation for Alfred might be enhanced by the fact that Wulff was a center at WSU during his playing days two decades ago. Wulff was known for his gritty, unselfish playing style, and Alfred's attitude seems perfect for the anonymity that usually comes with playing on the offensive line.

"I like it," the 6-foot-2, 300-pound Alfred said. "It's kind of nice.

"I like what I'm doing. There's no other position where you can be vicious and angry and have fun."

Alfred and his teammates certainly did not have fun when they were outscored 150-33 in losing their first three games this season.

"You hear people talking on campus," Alfred said. "But those are all things that come with sports. We're playing to entertain people. When you're seeing a team you love and care about isn't positively entertaining, it's hard.

"But it is a great feeling to see the faithful fans, especially during the Cal game (a 66-3 loss to California on Sept. 6). We were playing at home, and things weren't looking good. We still had a great group of fans sticking it out until the end of the game. That's something I admire and appreciate."

Wulff has admired and appreciated Alfred since the coach tried to recruit Alfred at Eastern Washington. Wulff was able to coax older brother Matt Alfred into playing for the Eagles, but Kenny was more highly sought and chose WSU over Washington, Oregon State and Northwestern.

The Alfreds' parents usually had to go their separate ways to watch their sons in years past. However, Matt finished at Eastern last year during Wulff's final season with the Eagles, so David (a former Western Washington football player) and Claudia plan to watch Kenny every game this season.