Fisch Has Readymade Husky O-Line — It's Just a Few Years Out

The 2023 players up front stayed together during the roster shuffle.

Once the football season ended and Kalen DeBoer bolted for Alabama, University of Washington position group after group flooded the Montlake exits like people leaving a first-run movie.

They graduated, followed DeBoer to his Southern coaching dream job or chose an entirely different college football option.

Position remnants were left strewn across the roster, with the Husky offensive line hit the hardest after losing eight scholarship players with eligibility remaining, plus veteran line coach Scott Huff.

Yet this embattled position area also showed some serious cohesion — the Husky O-line of the future somehow survived intact, with the five members from the Class of 2023 each choosing to stay put.

If you lined them up today as starters, it would look something like this: 

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UW'S FUTURE FRONT LINE

LT — Soane Faasolo, 6-foot-8, 290 pounds, redshirt freshman, East Palo Alto, California. 

LG — Kahlee Tafai, 6-5, 327, redshirt freshman, Los Angeles.

C — Landen Hatchett, 6-2, 310, sophomore, Ferndale, Washington.

RG — Zach Henning, 6-5, 292, redshirt freshman, Centennial, Colorado.

RT— Elishah Jackett, 6-7, 259, redshirt freshman, Orange, California.

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Hatchett and Henning came physically ready to play and were the only ones who saw game time last season. The long-haired snapper pulled nine game appearances and burned his redshirt status before suffering a season-ending knee injury, while Henning saw action against Michigan State and California.

As UW coach Jedd Fisch and new offensive coordinator and line coach Brennan Carroll get to know them, they'll find that Hatchett, when healthy, is one of their best players besides having long locks that rival those of new defensive coordinator Steve Belichick. Hatchett tested the transfer portal before backtracking and choosing to become the leader of this reconfigured front wall, which was a promising sign.

"Stuff happens in football," Hatchett said of his December injury. "It was just one of those crazy things."

Landen Hatchett saw action in 9 games as a freshman center and guard / Skylar Lin Visuals

Unlike his four line mates, Henning ran with the No. 2 offense for the entire 2023 season. While slotted in a guard spot, he says he also could play tackle and is so versatile he might even be asked to move to center should Hackett's rehab take longer than expected.

"I feel prepared, I'm confident," Henning said at the Sugar Bowl. "I'll just keep preparing for when the moment comes."

Zach Henning appeared in two games as a UW freshman / Dan Raley

The other three, Tafai, Faasolo and Jackett, each are still remaking their bodies, with seemingly a lot pounds to go. However, each of these redshirt freshmen has to be encouraged hearing Fisch say he's not afraid to play first- or second-year freshmen.

Tafai was recruited as a tackle, but took his freshman snaps at guard, spending part of the season with the second-team Husky offense when injuries elsewhere elevated him. At 327, he's the heaviest player on the roster by five pounds. He said the previous coaching staff wanted him lighter, at 315 or less. A sleeker Tafai might could ready to play soon.

"It was a good transition for me," Tafai said. "The older guys took me in and showed me the ropes."

Kahlee Tafai carries 327 pounds, the most on the UW roster.  / UW

The new tackles are still packing on bulk and gaining strength. DeBoer's staff wanted Faasolo at 310-320 pounds and Jackett, which is a French name that's pronounced Jack-ette, at 295-300 pounds. 

Faasolo, whose first name is pronounced Swan-ee and tops out among the tallest Huskies on the roster similar to the departed Julius Buelow, who insisted he was 6-foot-9 and is now at Mississippi. Faasolo seems comfortable with his  developmental pace.

"It's been great," he said at the Sugar Bowl. "I've seen a lot of improvement since I got here. I've been learning a lot."

Soane Faasolo stands 6-foot-8 and could top out at 320 pounds / Dan Raley

Jackett came to Montlake as a 4-star prospect, same as Hatchett, while each of the others were rated as 3-star players by the various recruiting sites.

He fielded 15 offers during his recruitment, among them coming from Kansas, Mississippi, Nebraska, Texas, Texas A&M, UCLA and USC, which was one fewer than Hatchett's total.

While highly rated with plenty of upside, the outwardly upbeat Jackett might have the farthest to go — he still needs to pack on 35-40 pounds before he's considered a finished product. 

"It's a grind, but it's expected," he said. "I've played football my whole life and this is the next step that needs to be taken."

Elishah Jackett has a big frame to fill out for the Huskies.  / Skylar Lin Visuals

Fisch should find these five linemen from the same class a manpower bonus, of which there have been few for him with an inherited and dismantled UW roster, if not intriguing by their different shapes and sizes. 

The new Husky coach's job, and that of his staff, will be to see how quickly he can get them on the field, maybe all five at once someday.  

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