3 Washington State Football Players Named To Shriners Children’s East-West Bowl Watch List For 2026-2027

Tony Freeman headlines the list of presumed difference makers ahead of Kirby Moore's first season leading Washington State football.

Nov 1, 2025; Corvallis, Oregon, USA; Washington State Cougars wide receiver Tony Freeman (0) runs the ball during the fourth quarter against the Oregon State Beavers at Reser Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Craig Strobeck-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Organizers of the Shriners Children's East-West Bowl have released their annual preseason watch list of 1000 college football prospects to watch in the coming season.

Three members of Washington State's 2026 team were included: defensive end Linus Zunk, offensive tackle Ashton Tripp, and wide receiver Tony Freeman.

Zunk, a German-born Vanderbilt transfer, enters his first season with the Cougars in 2026. The past two seasons at Vandy, Zunk was a rotational player, appearing in 26 games. As a redshirt junior in 2025, Zunk made 15 tackles with 3.5 for a loss, and three sacks.

Entering his redshirt junior season, Tripp has already made an impact in his first three seasons in Pullman. Last season, the 6'7" 308-pounder started all 13 games at left tackle and allowed just one sack on 490 pass-blocking snaps.

Freeman will likely be an impact player on offense and on special teams for the Cougs once again in 2026. Last season, Freeman caught 54 passes for 590 yards and three touchdowns. Freeman also returned 24 punts for 415 yards, setting a WSU record with an average of 17.3 yards per punt. For his efforts in that phase, Freeman was recognized as the 2025 Pac-12 Conference Top Special Teams Performer.

Zunk, Tripp, and Freeman were three of the 26 Pac-12 players highlighted on the list, along with two from Oregon State.

"Putting together this list was extremely challenging for our team, as we scouted players from all four levels of football and consulted with NFL and college personnel to ensure the selection of the best 1000 players for the NFL level," bowl game staff noted in a press release distributed on their website.

The Shriners Children's East-West Bowl will take place at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas on February 4, 2027. Players who accept invites will have the opportunity to play in one of the country's premier all-star games while receiving instruction from NFL coaches, with hopes of improving the NFL Draft stock. The full watch list can be found here.

Head coach Kirby Moore enters his first season as the Cougars' head coach, replacing Jimmy Rogers, who left for the open job at Iowa State after one year in Pullman.

Washington State will open their 2026 campaign on Sunday, September 6 in the latest chapter of the Apple Cup rivalry. The Cougars and University of Washington Huskies will meet at UW's Husky Stadium in Seattle with kickoff scheduled for 1 p.m. pacific time.