About a week after losing wide receiver Tre Shackelford to the transfer portal, Washington State has found a replacement. Talented wide receiver announced on social media that he’s committed to the Cougars. Noga spent three seasons with the Beavers, posting 23 catches for 266 yards last season, and he has one year of eligibility remaining with WSU.
Standing at 6-foot-2 and 187 pounds, Noga played in all 12 games last season, making at least one catch in 11 of them. His best performance came in a loss to Nevada, where he recorded six catches for 94 yards. He also had four catches for 47 yards against San Jose State.
Noga’s arrival helps WSU fill the void left by Shackelford, who entered the portal last weekend and quickly committed to Tulane. Shackelford had been a regular first-team participant in the Cougars’ spring practices, signaling he could have been a starter. He would have been a returner, after joining WSU in 2023.
The Cougars, however, are getting a more experienced receiver in Noga. After redshirting his freshman year in 2021, he played a key role in OSU’s receiver rotation for three seasons. In 2022, he had two catches for 25 yards, and in 2023, he added eight catches for 113 yards and a touchdown, which came in a win over San Jose State. Over his career with the Beavers, Noga totaled 33 catches for 404 yards and one touchdown.
Interestingly, Noga also made an important play in Oregon State’s win over WSU last season, catching a crucial 15-yard pass on fourth down late in the game to set up the Beavers’ game-tying touchdown.
Noga is the eighth transfer to join WSU this spring under head coach Jimmy Rogers, and he’s the first offensive skill player to do so. This shows that Rogers and his staff have focused heavily on bolstering the Cougars’ offensive and defensive lines, which have each added three new players.
Noga’s addition is especially important for WSU’s receiving corps, which is short on experience following Shackelford’s departure. The Cougars do have two likely starters in junior college transfer Devin Ellison and veteran Josh Meredith, both of whom earned first-team reps during spring practices, but only Meredith has experience at the Division I level.
Even Meredith’s experience is limited, as he’s made just 43 catches for 530 yards and three touchdowns over three seasons. WSU may also consider elevating Tony Freeman, another former junior college transfer, or senior Leon Neal, who impressed during spring ball and earned a scholarship. However, Neal has yet to play significant snaps, which likely played into the decision to recruit Noga.
Overall, Noga brings much-needed experience and depth to the Cougars’ receiver group as they look to replace Shackelford and improve their passing game for the upcoming season.
On Saturday, Washington State added long snapper Colton Peoples via the transfer portal, according to a report from 247Sports.com.
A native of Kentucky, Peoples began his career at Ohio’s Notre Dame College, a junior college, before transferring to UT Martin, where he played in both the 2023 and 2024 seasons. Last fall, he appeared in all 12 games for the Skyhawks and earned second-team all-conference honors at long snapper.
Peoples will replace Colson Brunner, WSU’s previous long snapper, who was one of the 25 Cougars to enter the transfer portal this spring. Many of those players were walk-ons or individuals who weren’t expected to see much playing time this fall, part of the Cougars’ strategy to manage their roster under the incoming limit of 105 players.
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