Inside The Huskies

Fautanu Lets Senior Bowl Announce His Husky Football Exit

His pending all-star game appearance will wrap up his college career.

Dan Raley

In this story:

Troy Fautanu, to no surprise, won't be using his final season of University of Washington football eligibility.

He didn't say that — the Senior Bowl did.

On Friday, the college football all-star game, which annually showcases top players in front of a large contingent of NFL scouts, announced Fautanu had accepted an invitation to its week-long activities in Mobile, Alabama, culminating with a game on Feb. 2. 

There it is, Fautanu's official farewell notification. Short and simple, and from someone else.

This comes at the end of a highly productive week for the 6-foot-4, 317-pound junior from Las Vegas. Fautanu dominated throughout the Huskies' 34-31 victory over the Oregon Ducks in the Pac-12 championship game in his hometown, earned first-team All-Pac-12 honors and turned up in the first round of more than one NFL mock draft.

Once the UW is done with its CFP run of one or two more games, it definitely will be time for Fatuanu to move on.

His game is on the upswing as much as anyone on the UW roster. 

"Troy is really a coachable kid," UW offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb said. "When NFL scouts ask about him, I tell them I think he's just scratching the tip of the iceberg right now."

Fautanu redshirted in 2019, played in all four games of the COVID season in reserve and drew three starts in nine games in 2021, two as an injury replacement for Jaxson Kirkland.

Once Kalen DeBoer's staff took over last year, Fautanu became a major player for the Huskies. The new coaches insisted he was their new left tackle, forcing the well-established Kirkland to move to guard. 

"Troy brings a little more of a guard-type body to the tackle position just in his leverage and physicality," Grubb said.

In the Pac-12 title game, Fautanu pancaked Oregon defenders on more than one occasion, prompting well-positioned ABC-TV cameras to replay his powerful manner over and over. He led the blocking on two short touchdown runs and left Allegiant Stadium knowing he had conquered everyone who got in his way.

In his fifth season of college football, Fautanu has stayed relatively healthy. No notable injuries, no surgeries, no outward wear and tear, which is real attractive to the NFL scouts.

The CFP awaits him, as does the Senior Bowl and then the NFL draft. It's all falling into place for him.

"I think the best part of his consistency is his improvement," Grubb said. "I still feel Troy thinks he can get better."

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Dan Raley
DAN RALEY

Dan Raley has worked for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, as well as for MSN.com and Boeing, the latter as a global aerospace writer. His sportswriting career spans four decades and he's covered University of Washington football and basketball during much of that time. In a working capacity, he's been to the Super Bowl, the NBA Finals, the MLB playoffs, the Masters, the U.S. Open, the PGA Championship and countless Final Fours and bowl games.

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