Husky Roster Review: At the Drop of a Hat, Memmelaar Should Be Ready to Play

The offensive guard missed all of last season with a knee injury.

Gaard Memmelaar, while injured, made a memorable CFP title game arrival. / Skylar Lin Visuals

For last January's CFP national championship game in Texas, Gaard Memmelaar showed up fashionably dressed, outfitted in a black cowboy hat as he strode into Houston's NRG Stadium with style.

Unfortunately for him, the University of Washington offensive guard wasn't able to replace it with a shiny gold helmet against Michigan and knock heads, with a knee injury wiping out his entire season and making him a spectator that night.

By now, Memmelaar must be real tired of simply dressing well and looking good rather than getting down and dirty and mixing it up on game day.

Entering his fifth year in the program, the 6-foot-4, 299-pound junior from Caldwell, Idaho, has appeared in just four career UW games -- making him the guy who's played the least of those who have put in the most time in the program.

If only Memmelaar can get healthy, he's starting material, especially since the entire UW offensive line will be completely swapped out from last season to the next.

Gaard Memmelaar was limited in spring ball while recovering from a knee injury. / Skylar Lin Visuals

This is one in a series of articles -- going from 0 to 99 on the Husky roster -- examining what each scholarship player and leading walk-on did this past spring and what to expect from them going forward.

For the championship game, Memmelaar appeared to have a newly acquired cowboy hat, but it wasn't necessarily a unique look for him. He grew up on a ranch on the outskirts of Boise, going to work as early as 3:30 in the morning, which has helped mold him as a football player. Think the Dutton or Yellowstone spread in Montana, only one state over.

"He came out and he was really athletic," said Scott Huff, former Husky offensive-line coach now with the Seattle Seahawks. "You could tell he was an Idaho country boy, man. He's super strong, baling hay and building fence all the time."

Since coming to the UW, Memmelaar remains the strongest player on the football team, bench-pressing just north of 415 pounds. He's also one of the team leaders in a zany sort of way, coming out for the first spring practice in a limited involvement yet sending an expletive-laced taunt to the defensive linemen that echoed throughout Husky Stadium.

He's the last vestige of the UW's five-man 2020 offensive-line recruiting class, which included offensive tackle Roger Rosengarten, recently a second-round draft pick for the Baltimore Ravens; offensive guard Geirean Hatchett, who now plays for Oklahoma; offensive tackle Myles Murao, who transferred to San Diego State and became a starter last season; and offensive tackle Samuel Peacock, who retired following last season.

Football also runs deep in his family. He has four great uncles who played college football for Wyoming, including Dale "Big Mammo" Memmelaar, who was a 6-foot-2, 247-pound lineman who took his talents to the NFL and played for five teams in a nine-year career.

Memmelaar has all of the ingredients to be an effective player himself. He certainly has a wardrobe worthy of someone who could be special. Now he needs time on the field and be able to model a purple and gold uniform.

UW offensive lineman Gaard Memmelaar (64) arrives for the College Football Playoff national championship game against Michigan. / Maria Lysaker-USA TODAY Sports

GAARD MEMMELAAR FILE

What he's done: Memmelaar redshirted his first year during the COVID season, didn't get on the field during his second year in 2021 and drew his first game snaps against Kent State, Portland State, Stanford and Colorado in 2022. He was injured last August during fall camp, sat out another season, just as he appeared to be making a move for playing time, and was restricted from having contact during recent spring football. He should be ready to play a lot this fall.

Starter or not: Based on his strength alone, the Huskies could use Memmelaar up front where most players are freshmen or redshirt freshmen in development. Considering the youth involved, expect the Idahoan to work his way into the starting lineup at times, if not grab one of the first-team guard slots right away and hang onto it. He might be one of the reasons the UW wasn't more aggressive securing linemen in the transfer portal.

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