Alamo Bowl Truly Was Bralen Trice's Coming-Out Party
SAN ANTONIO, Texas — The University of Washington football team is like this traveling circus, coming to a city near you, setting up the big tents and putting on a show for everyone to see.
There's Michael Penix Jr., the main event with all of his Houdini moves at quarterback, and he brings all of those daring wide receivers with him, guys who collectively represent a high-wire act, with Rome Odunze sometimes turning into this amazing juggler.
Yet at the Alamo Bowl, the rest of the country got to see the Huskies' caged lion unleashed. They learned from all of this that the men from Montlake actually can play a little defense to go with all of those offensive heroics, and can do it well.
In Thursday night's 27-20 victory over Texas, this game served as the moment that UW edge rusher Bralen Trice officially began his consensus All-America campaign for 2023. He's a player who speaks sort of quietly, but everything else about him is very loud. He knows his teammates are listening, too.
"Personally going into every series, mentally I'm telling myself I've just got to give everything I can and empty the tank every single time," Trice said of his approach. "I know it kind of reflects on the rest of the defense because I know those guys can feel my energy."
UW edge rusher Bralen Trice chases down Texas tight end Ja'Tavion Sanders.
Daniel Dunn/USA TODAY Sports
More than anyone against the Longhorns, the 6-foot-4, 269-pound sophomore from Phoenix, Arizona, delivered a message that there is high-end NFL talent on Kalen DeBoer's Husky roster — beginning with him. He did this with exclamation marks.
Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers felt him, too, at each end of this postseason game.
On the Longhorns' second offensive play, Trice sacked him for a 6-yard loss. Most impressively, he dropped Ewers from behind, showing off his strength and quickness. The quarterback never saw him coming at any time.
Think Ewers wasn't looking over his shoulder the rest of the night for No. 8?
"We just live by coming out and busting our opponent in the mouth the first series," Trice said. "That's what we did. It sets the tone for the rest of the game."
Three plays from the end of this bowl outing, Trice did it again, sacking the highly regarded Texas quarterback for another 6-yard loss.
Game over.
The Alamo Bowl capped an amazing season for Trice, who began the fall by beating out junior Zion Tupuola-Fetui for the starting job. The same ZTF who was a first-team, All-Pac-12 selection and a third-team AP All-America choice in 2020.
Trice earned first-team, All-Pac-12 honors, same as the Huskies' other edge rusher in Jeremiah Martin, with ZTF not forgotten and even receiving honorable-mention accolades himself. Sometimes, the Huskies had all three of these guys on the field at once trying for a total terrorizing pass rush.
Trice finished with 6 tackles and his pair of sacks against Texas, giving him 39 and 10 for the year, respectively, in his first full season as a UW starter.
He rightfully walked away clutching the Alamo Bowl defensive player of the game trophy.
How the Huskies ever talked him out of entering the NFL draft early, more than any of the other half-dozen UW players who considered it, was incredible persuasion. He looks like a pro football player right now.
Yet Trice will give the college game one more season and he'll try to elevate his draft status and win a whole bunch of games and more individual honors.
"All this work has finally paid off, not just for me but for my teammates," he said, standing in the Alamodome, holding onto his trophy. "I'm insanely grateful for this moment."
No, insane is the fact that Bralen Trice still is a Husky football player for 12 more months.
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