Hatchett Stays Vigilant In Returning to Peak Form

The Husky center is pushing to get medically cleared for the season opener.

Landen Hatchett attended the Sugar Bowl on crutches after suffering a knee injury and having surgery. / Skylar Lin Visuals

As his University of Washington teammates move from drill to drill, Landen Hatchett stands alone at the end of the East practice field. He fastens a belt around his waist, which is connected to a retractable cord.

For the next half hour, he takes off running over and over as the line tightens, providing resistance for his surgically repaired knee. He takes a long pause between each repetition, gatheringmotivation to keep going.

Throughout spring footall ball and into five fall practices, the 6-foot-2, 310-pound Hackett has gone through the painstaking process of trying to make himself whole again, as well as restore himself physically as one of the Huskies' most revered players, after getting injured in a Sugar Bowl practice in late December.

While he is attempting to get ready for the Aug. 31 season opener against Weber State, the sophomore from Ferndale, Washington, can't make any guarantees about his return. He knows better than to make any firm promises when dealing with shredded ligaments.

“I don’t want to put a date on it," he said, "but I would love to be out there.”

Hatchett is just seven months removed from an ACL tear and subsequent surgery that typically is a 12-month recovery Junior offensive guard Gaard Memmelaar damaged his knee in a similar manner, but he did it last August, which has allowed him to make a full recovery in time for fall camp to begin.

A healthy Hatchett would go a long way to solidifying a worrisome offensive line that has al new starters. Once he receives medical clearance, he'll no doubt be regarded as one of the Huskies' top three players up front, along with sophomore right tackle Drew Azzopardi, the promising transfer from San Diego State, and Memmelaar, considered one of the UW's strongest players if not the strongest.

Redshirt freshman Soane Faasolo, who hasn't appeared in a Husky game, is penciled in at left tackle and Ohio State transfer, Enokk Vimahi, who started just two outings for the Buckeyes, could fill out the rest of the line.

For Hatchett, he's reached the stage where he's still trying to deal with discomfort while building confidence the knee will hold up under the ultimate stress test.

"A lot of it is really how I'm feeling that day," he said. "Sometimes I'll come up and I'll be real sore and they'll actually push me because it's a good type of sore and that's what you need to continue to grow."

Hatchett has seen progress in running sprint times even faster than before his knee mishap. Resuming his prior weight-lifting levels has been another positive step.

Landen Hatchett does resistance exercises while rehabbing his injured knee. / Skylar Lin Visuals

"The next big step from there is getting back into cutting and changing direction, and after that, you’re pretty much full go," he said.

Hatchett has potential star quality after earning a 4-star rating as a recruit and picking the Huskies over Michigan, Oregon, Texas A&M and USC, then appearing in nine games as a true freshman in 2023.

"I'd like to be out there contributing more, but I was dealt the cards that I was dealt and have to go with what I have and make the most of it," he said.

Hatchett presses on, pulling against the resistance line off to the side, riding an exercise bike and getting various levels of treatment on his knee.

"So far it's good," he said. "They've got me pretty dialed in to a tee. Everything is being tracked. I question it where I can and dial it back when I need to. I'm just trusting the guys and the trainers and everything. ... For me, it's not real challenging because I want to be out there so bad."

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