5 Unassuming Huskies Who Could Find Game Time on Special Teams

These players might be deep on the depth chart, but they're ready for action.

Anthony Ward will play UW special teams this fall. / Skylar Lin Visuals

No matter who the University of Washington football coach is, players can find game-day snaps hard to come by if they don't have a scholarship or if they have a financial-aid package but still find themselves buried at a stacked position.

However, some guys simply don't give in to any of those depth-chart obstacles and they resourcefully find other ways to get on the field on Saturdays and log some time, blowout or no blowout.

While things could change between now and the season opener against Weber State, five somewhat unassuming Huskies who appear headed for steady special-teams duty are the following: Maurice Heims, Milton Hopkins Jr., Cam Sirmon, Anthony Ward and Tristan Warner.

Each recently took the field for a walk-through with assignments in hand on kickoff, punt or extra-point teams.

The 6-foot-5, 263-pound Heims, a junior edge rusher from Hamburg, Germany, has appeared in 21 career games for the UW, including 14 of 15 during last season's playoff run, mostly as a special-teamer. During fall camp, he typically has bounced between the third and fourth units in a very deep defensive position group.

While he might be behind others in terms of technique as a late comer to American football, Heims still is a big hitter and there is a place for him on game day. He stands to play once more on the UW kickoff coverage team.

Milton Hopkins Jr. stands to play on special teams for the Huskies. / Skylar LIn Visuals

Hopkins likewise is an edge rusher well down the depth as a 6-foot-4, 232-pound junior and a walk-on player. He appeared in five games in 2023, including against Arizona and coach Jedd Fisch in a close encounter on the road. He stands to be used on a kick-block unit.

The 6-foot, 196-pound Sirmon might be one of the most determined and toughest players on the UW football roster, but the junior walk-on wide receiver probably runs with the third unit behind most of the scholarship pass-catchers. Previously he spent time as a reserve quarterback and a running back for the Huskies.

This season, the Huskies appear ready to use Sirmon on their kickoff coverage team. He's played in 10 career UW games over the past two years.

Tristan Warner appears to have earned a special-teams assignment for the Huskies. / Skylar Lin Visuals

Ward, the younger brother of starting Husky edge rusher Isaiah Ward and nephew for former Seattle Seahawks linebacker Bobby Wagner, is a junior linebacker who's back for his second stint with the UW football program. He didn't receive any game time for Jimmy Lake's Huskies in 2020 and 2021 before transferring to Arizona and reuniting with his sibling.

This 6-foot, 223-pound Ward, while rotating between the UW third and fourth units at linebacker, is a proven special-teamer from Arizona after blocking a Utah punt and returning it for a score last season while playing in all 13 games. Fisch's staff appears ready to use him again on punt and kickoff coverage.

Finally, Tristan Warner is another walk-on player who won't go away and fully expects to play on Saturdays. A 6-foot-1, 206-pound sophomore safety, he appeared in four games in 2023. The new staff appears ready to use him on its kickoff-return team.

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