UW Roster Review, No. 0-99: Memmelaar Keeps Family Football Name Visible
Gaard Memmelaar comes from an extended family of many layers that grew up working on farms and ranches from New York to Oregon, mending fences and milking cows, beginning at 3:30 a.m.
A 6-foot-4, 310-pound freshman from Middleton, Idaho, this University of Washington backup offensive guard fits the mold perfectly as a hard-working, no-nonsense Memmelaar. He doesn't even have a Twitter account.
Memmelaar attended LSU's spring football game, but otherwise he took his only official visit to the UW. He committed to then-Husky coach Chris Petersen, who, as the former Boise State leader, knew better than to pass up someone such as this.
"We knew about him for a long time through the recruiting process, with our ties to Boise State," UW offensive-line coach Scott Huff said. "We got him committed right away and everyone was certainly on him, but he didn't waver."
Those who take a deeper dive into Gaard Memmelaar's ancestral background — which shows him to be a determined and serious-minded Dutchman — will find a deep-rooted football thread that runs through it.
Gaard had nine great uncles who were raised on a New York farm and four of them branched out and played football for the University of Wyoming on scholarship, one right after the other.
Sherman, Herman, Fred and Dale.
Known as "Big Mammo," Dale Memmelaar was a 6-foot-2, 247-pounder who captained Wyoming as a senior in 1958 and played in the Sun Bowl against Hardin-Simmons. Originally drafted by the Chicago Cardinals, this Memmelaar spent nine seasons in the NFL for five teams.
Dale Memmelaar played nine seasons for five NFL teams.
Publicity
Dale helped the Cleveland Browns win the 1964 league championship as a pulling guard for legendary running back Jim Brown. He was one of the guys responsible for protecting Baltimore Colts quarterback Johnny Unitas. He hit Detroit Lions defensive lineman Alex Karras so hard he collapsed the front of his helmet but played on. Dale died in 2009 at 72.
Going down the roster in numerical order, this is another of our post-spring assessments of all of the Husky talent at hand, gleaned from a month of observations, as a way to keep everyone engaged during the offseason.
This next-generation Memmelaar wears No. 64, which he shares with no one else on the roster. While waiting to appear in his first Husky game, he's already established himself as the strongest player in the bench press by hoisting 415 pounds, 10 more than his nearest teammate.
The Huskies got a chance to see Memmelaar in their football camp and offered him a scholarship right away. He canceled out of recruiting visits to nearby Boise State, Washington State, Utah State and Utah to became the UW's first commit for the class of 2020.
He's part of the Huskies' five-man group of offensive linemen that year who include tackles Roger Rosengarten and Sam Peacock, center Geirean Hatchett and the other guard Myles Murao. All may end up playing together someday. Most may have a shot at the NFL.
"He came out and he was really athletic," line coach Scott Huff said of Memmelaar. "You could tell he was an Idaho country boy, man. He's super strong, baling hay and building fence all the time."
While he comes from those small-town roots outside of Boise, Memmelaar has emerged as one of the first UW players to take advantage of the NCAA's new name, image and likeness agreement enabling players to market themselves.
Maybe it's time to revive that name Big Mammo and start putting it on kinds of apparel and benefit from it.
Money shouldn't be made by milking cows alone.
Memmelaar's 2021 Outlook: Projected reserve offensive guard
UW Service Time: None
Stats: None
Individual Honors: Not yet
Pro prospects: 2025 NFL second-day draft pick
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