Inside The Huskies

Husky Defense Might Be Better Than People Think

Going through the UW starting lineup, past and present, let's take stock of the talent levels.

Dan Raley

UW linebacker Carson Bruener lets out his emotions in the CFP title game.
UW linebacker Carson Bruener lets out his emotions in the CFP title game. / Thomas Shea/USA TODAY Sports

All anyone on the outside seems to remember about the University of Washington defense is it gave up 303 yards rushing in a 34-13 defeat to Michigan in the CFP national championship game and then lost nine of the 11 starters in any number of ways -- to the NFL, Florida, Miami, Oregon and eligibility expiration.

So it's probably no surprise that when college prognosticators recently slapped labels on the next Husky stop unit, they ranged from "decent" to "bad."

Yet it should be noted when these forecasters hand out their grades, they typically don't know or don't figure in the talent waiting in the wings.

In fact, the next UW defense might be fairly solid, maybe better in some areas than the group it will replace this fall, one that tended to bend a lot but not break until that title game letdown against Michigan.

Let us count the ways.

In charge is Steve Belichick, the new defensive coordinator who brings 11 years of NFL experience, including the last four calling plays for the New England Patriots defense. The players seem to swear by this guy who's a little unconventional with his long stringy hair and unbuttoned-down style and will coach with a lot of emotion on game day.

Player-wise at edge rusher, the Huskies likely will replace Atlanta Falcons' third-round draft pick Bralen Trice and journeyman Zion Tupuola-Fetui with 6-foot-5, 255-pound junior Zach Durfee and 6-foot-5, 227-pound sophomore Isaiah Ward.

Durfee and Ward, a 2023 Sioux Falls transfer and an offseason Arizona newcomer, respectively, could be stars in the making. Together, they might become as effective as their Husky predecessors because ZTF played hurt all last season, which maybe was the big reason he didn't get drafted or signed as a free agent. As a pair, the new guys are taller, possibly even faster and should be healthy after each suffered a spring-ending injury.

Durfee has been pegged by two UW coaching staffs as having high-level playmaking potential, specifically a unique blend of speed and power. Ward was an 11-game starter in 2023 who relied on his quickness to be disruptive and enjoyed his best game against Oklahoma in the Alamo Bowl.

Moving inside, the Huskies will replace departed and well-worn defensive tackles Tuli Letuligaseno and Faatui Tuitele likely with 6-foot-4, 305-pound Montana State transfer Sebastian Valdez and returning 6-foot-3, 297-pound junior Jayvon Parker. This will be the most pivotal spot for this defense, which has lacked a game-changing presence going on a half-dozen years now. The Huskies need a dominant player coming out of a stance inside. The Husky hope is Valdez might be that guy in some respects.

The two-time All-Big Sky player, both first and second, is considered either the UW's strongest or second-strongest player with his 400-plus bench press and should provide more pushback against the physical teams. Parker, as one of a set of twins from Detroit, has played regular minutes in a reserve role since arriving as a freshman in 2022 and could be ready for a breakthrough season once handed more responsibility.

In the second row, Alphonzo Tuputala reclaims his starting linebacker spot for the third consecutive season as a sixth-year senior and as a 2022 All-Pac-12 honorable-mention selection. Last year, he played next to Edefuan Ulofoshio, a first-team All-Pac-12 pick and a fifth-round Buffalo Bills draft pick, someone whose performance won't be easy to replace.

This season, Tuputala will team up with fifth-year senior Carson Bruener, who comes off an All-Pac-12 honorable-mention season, and both will show themselves to be overly physical players. While neither one has Ulofoshio's speed, Tuputala and Bruener make a lot of tackles, don't make many mistakes and they have 76- and 50-yard interception returns in their respective careers that didn't end up in the end zone, though one of them should have.

Providing a linebacker boost, San Jose State transfer Bryun Parham might be a little speedier than each of those guys and was an All-Mountain West honorable-mention choice last season.

In career college tackles, Bruener currently totals 202, Parham 199 and Tuputala 153.

Into the secondary, junior Elijah Jackson returns as a 15-game starter at cornerback and will team with Arizona transfer Ephesians Prysock, who pulled 13 starts for the Wildcats in 2023. Jackson saved the Sugar Bowl against Texas with a last-play end zone pass break-up, while Prysock played hurt and wouldn't come out against Oklahoma until a 38-24 Arizona victory was secure in the Alamo Bowl. They're gamers.

In swapping out Jabbar Muhammad for Prysock, the Huskies will replace a second-team All-Pac-12 cornerback with an All-Pac-12 honorable-mention choice. Yet with the 6-foot-4 Prysock, the UW has picked up six inches on Muhammad, now at Oregon., which could make the taller guy a more desirable NFL draft pick.

At the safties, the Huskies went all spring with sixth-year senior Kam Fabiculanan and junior Makell Esteen, part-time starters in the past, as the No. 1 guys. They will replace Dom Hampton and Asa Turner, now in the NFL and at Florida, respectively, who the remaining guys played behind last season. It's not readily clear what kind of tradeoff this will be.

Hampton was an All-Pac-12 honorable-mention selection in 2023, Turner the year before. What might even up this talent swap a bit is the addition of Oklahoma transfer Justin Harrington, a Sooners starter last season until going down with a knee injury and someone who will be allowed to play as a seventh-year senior.

Hampton and Turner left town with a combined 8 career interceptions, while Fabiculanan and Esteen have 5 so far.

At nickelback, the UW saw last year's starter Mishael Powell -- forever remembered for his 89-yard interception return for a touchdown to beat Arizona State -- transfer to Miami and junior Dyson McCutcheon take over this spring, looking to make his first career start. McCutcheon, grandson of legendary NFL running back Lawrence McCutcheon, had a productive spring and looked ready to play.

Some Husky defensive spots hold a lot of promise, while others might be a step behind last year in judging overall talent. As for going from bad to good as a total unit in terms of outside perception, the Husky defense again needs to get more out the tackles up front and see what happens.

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

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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.

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