Huskies' Ale Now in Competition with 2 Players for his Starting Job

The biggest player on the team now must fend off both Nate Kalepo and Julius Buelow.

Of the top position battles for the University of Washington football team, players continue to shuffle in and out at the No. 1 safeties and in the starting outside linebacker spot opposite Ryan Bowman.

Yet the most intriguing competition battle all of a sudden might be at offensive left guard. The potential exists for breaking up an O-line that returned all five starters. 

Ulumoo Ale, the 6-foot-6 and now 355-pound sophomore from Tacoma, started each of the four games held last year during the pandemic season.

During the spring, however, Ale found himself pushed for his job and sharing time with 6-foot-6, 330-pound redshirt freshman Nate Kalepo from Renton, Washington. While he can absolutely overwhelm his opponent, Ale appears to lack consistency in his play. 

On Sunday, as a cool breeze wafted through the UW practice field, 6-foot-8, 330-pound redshirt freshman Julius Buelow from Kapolei, Hawaii, and Kalepo alternated as the No. 1 left guard.

Ale ran with the second unit, not as a left guard but on the right side.

While competition for playing time is ongoing, this is noteworthy because Ale, even down 10 pounds, is the heaviest player on the team and was part of the heaviest Husky offensive line in school history and the first to return totally intact in 61 seasons.  

The grades from Saturday's full-pads scrimmage no doubt shifted the order of these players, but this is more radical than before. It's two guys pushing Ale for the first-team spot now. He needs to respond. 

"You look at a guy like him and it makes sense," offensive-line coach Scott Huff said earlier in the week of Ale. "You weigh 365 pounds and you're athletic for your size. Yeah, that's kind of the standard."

Buelow, who has appeared in just one Husky game in two seasons on the roster, has been said to be making great strides lately and become more of a reliable player. As the tallest player on the team, the Hawaiian makes the front line look even more intimidating when he's in there, especially standing next to 6-foot-7 left offensive tackle Jaxson Kirkland. 

While the two-hour practice played out on Sunday morning, Kalepo and Buelow often hung out together on the sideline, sharing conversation and demonstrating moves, likely appreciating the opportunity to unseat the left guard incumbent. 

Ale could be seen often alone on the sideline, with arms crossed or hands on his hips, probably not in the best of moods, as he waited his next snap.

The returning starter has two weeks left to reclaim his spot before the Huskies head into game-week preparation for the season opener against Montana at home. Nobody said it was going to be easy, especially his line coach.

"We're pushing all the guys," Huff said. "Every single one of the guys. If we rest on what we did, I think all of those guys, if you interviewed them, everyone of them would say we're not good enough."

Missing in Action 

Noticeable in their practice absence for the past couple of days are sophomore safety Asa Turner and redshirt freshman wide receiver Sawyer Racanelli. They could have been out due to injuries, personal issues or pandemic issues. The UW doesn't comment on players unless they leave the team. Redshirt freshman cornerback James Smith hasn't participated in fall camp, but remains on the roster. Redshirt freshman offensive tackle Sam Peacock is sidelined, along with sophomore outside linebacker Zion Tupuola-Fetui, the latter recovering from surgery. Freshman defensive backs Davon Banks and Dyson McCutcheon also are idled by camp injuries. 

First on the Field

While sophomore defensive tackle Tuki Taimani often is the first player to come out for practice, or the occasional walk-on such as freshman outside linebacker Jake Jennings, freshman quarterback Sam Huard arrived before all the others on Sunday. He immediately started working on his footwork.

Safety First 

Junior Alex Cook and sophomore Dominique Hampton opened Sunday's practice as the No. 1 safeties in a competition that seriously involves six players for the two slots. Secondary coach Will Harris said the others bidding for the top jobs are Cam Williams, back after a couple days on the sideline; Julius Irvin, who drew some work at cornerback on Sunday; redshirt freshman Kamren Fabiculanan, who's also in competition for the starting nickely back job; and the absent Turner.

Head Cook  

Cook, who started three games at safety last season, remains in the mix to reclaim his job. Nothing is easy for him. He began his career as a wide receiver and started one game at that position — the Rose Bowl. He missed nearly all of this past spring football practice with a back injury, but he feels good now. He's learned to handle all obstacles thrown at him. "I never ever thought about transferring," he said. "There were rumors. I love this program. I will never leave these guys." 

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