Inside The Huskies

For Reynolds, It's a Wrap -- Husky Speedster Enters Transfer Portal

The redshirt freshman leaves after scoring a winning touchdown against USC.

Dan Raley

Keith Reynolds runs back a kickoff against WSU in the Apple Cup.
Keith Reynolds runs back a kickoff against WSU in the Apple Cup. / Skylar Lin Visuals

It seemed as if speedster Keith Reynolds always had the capability on the football field of getting out and running away from everyone.

Unfortunately for the University of Washington football team, the redshirt freshman kick returner and wide receiver did just that, only on Thursday he took off and headed straight for the transfer portal.

Reynolds' sudden departure was a little unexpected considering the Huskies will need to replace two of their three starting receivers next season in departing seniors Giles Jackson and Jeremiah Hunter, and he was considered a strong candidate.

Instead, he will exit Montlake with career stats of 14 kickoff returns for 207 yards, 5 catches for 35 yards and a lone rush on a jet sweep that resulted in a 4-yard game-winning touchdown that decided the UW's 26-21 victory over USC.

By the latest unofficial count, with things changing by the minute, the 5-foot-9, 180-pound Reynolds is the 19th UW player to enter the transfer portal since it opened 11 days ago.

Reynolds was one of those hidden gems that Kalen DeBoer's coaching staff unearthed in Adelanto, California, which sits at an elevation of 2,800 feet in the high desert east of Los Angeles.

He was so elusive as a football player he was named All-Desert Sky League Offensive Player of the Year while playing for a 1-9 Adelanto High team as a senior and alternating at quarterback, running back and wide receiver.

Typical of his ability was a 2022 game against Granite Hills in which Reynolds rushed for 225 yards and 3 scores and, as a left-hander winging it, passed for 319 yards and 4 scores in a 68-56 defeat.

While appearing in all 12 games for the UW this season, Reynolds had his shining moment against USC, the closest major school to his hometown. He came up with his longest kickoff return of the season at 50 yards and his touchdown run early in the fourth quarter provided the Huskies with the go-ahead points against the Trojans.

"The jet sweep, he made a great play there, really putting the jets on and did a nice job of getting around the edge," Fisch said at the time.

Now Reynolds has scooted into the transfer portal, looking for room to run in finding another team.

For the latest UW football and basketball news, go to si.com/college/washington

Published |Modified
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.

Home/Football