If Done, Huskies Have Lot to Look Forward to Next September

The UW football team could begin next season with 18 of 22 starters returning, creating a groundswell of optimism.

Elijah Molden held court with the Husky football media on Tuesday morning, discussing the Washington-Oregon game and himself.

It was sort of a melancholy exchange for the Oregon native and son of a legendary Ducks player who took a moment to consider that the end was near for him as a college football player.

"Deep down, yeah, I feel like this is my last season," Molden said. "I feel I've proved enough, put enough plays on tape and need to take the next step."

The irony is, little did the senior defensive back know that the question-and-answer session might have been it for him as a Husky.

The pandemic erased Saturday's game in Eugene in an instant, with active COVID-19 test results popping up with Lake's guys. With quarantine and recovery, the UW probably can't regroup health-wise and play another conference game on the Dec. 18-19 weekend set aside for championship and crossover outings. The bowl games are muddled, as well.

With no game this weekend, and maybe not until next September 4 — when the Huskies host Montana, a week before playing at Michigan — it seems like a good time to take stock of Jimmy Lake's collection of UW talent.

As he indicated, Molden will be pursuing pro football by then, as will senior cornerback Keith Taylor, with both accepting Senior Bowl invitations for that late January game. 

Center Luke Wattenberg, another senior and a well-used, fifth-year lineman, seems like another good bet to move on, though every UW player will have the opportunity to call this COVID-19 season a wash and return without loss of eligibility. 

Senior tailback Sean McGrew, who held the starting job when things shut down, retains the option to come back, too, and recently said he was undecided.

Those four upperclassmen are the only potential losses among the first-teamers. The Huskies stand to have a seasoned, well-stocked lineup ready to go next fall when college football in Montlake restarts.

Let's review the UW football starters and how they fit into the future. 

Quarterback — The most pleasant surprise for the Huskies was the play of redshirt freshman Dylan Morris behind center. He won the four-player competition. He completed 60 percent of his passes. He gave the UW a chance to win all four of its games, standing cool in the pocket at all times. He led the Huskies on a last-minute, game-winning drive to beat Utah. He could play another three or four UW seasons if he can fend off redshirt freshman Ethan Garbers, incoming 5-star recruit Sam Huard and backup sophomore Jacob Sirmon.

Tailback — Sophomore Richard Newton earned a spot on the Doak Walker watch list for the nation's top rushers and broke a 54-yard touchdown run against Arizona. He inexplicably disappeared for the last two games amid performance transgressions or something else not totally spelled out. Unless seniors Kamari Pleasant and/or McGrew return for more, look for Newton and dependable redshirt freshman Cam Davis to line up 1-2 at tailback next fall with a lot of young backs joining the mix. All should be forgiven with Newton by then.

Tight end — The Huskies easily could have the top player in the nation manning this position in senior Cade Otton. While he could leave early for the NFL, Otton, by nature, is a conservative guy who seems less likely to reach for the bright lights until he's used up all of his eligibility. He was sensational over four games, catching 18 passes for 258 yards and 3 touchdowns, all team bests. If he chooses to leave early, the position is in decent shape with sophomores Devin Culp and Jack Westover used repeatedly this season and true freshman Mark Redman drawing special-teams duty and eagerly waiting his turn.

Left tackle — Jaxson Kirkland, the Huskies' top lineman, likely returns for his senior season to make himself a high NFL draft pick. He's already a tempting player for the pros at 6-foot-7 and 305 pounds. But he could use more experience on top of four starts at pro football's money position to really elevate his stock. If he's done with college ball, the Huskies will see what promising redshirt freshman Troy Fautanu can do.

Left guard — Ulumoo Ale is destined to be a big-time player. A huge player. A big deal. At 6-6 and 355 pounds, the monstrous sophomore was hard to handle in his four outings as a starter. Look for him to draw all-conference honors when he gets a full Husky season under his belt. He was just getting started.

Center — The UW delayed the passing of the torch to sophomore Matteo Mele this season because it had the older and versatile Wattenberg available to help break in a new quarterback. With the job reopening, the 6-5, 300-pound Mele, just a sophomore, finally should have it all to himself. He's not a total rookie, having started at Arizona as a redshirt freshman in 2019. 

Right guard — Henry Bainivalu, at 6-6 and 335 pounds, proved to be another handful for opponents at times, with the junior using his ample size to help build an impenetrable pocket for Morris to occupy. 

Right tackle — The most athletic of the big boys up front, the 6-3, 330-pound Victor Curne showed he could pull and get out and run for a Husky offensive line that didn't permit a sack on Morris.

Wide receivers — The triumvirate of Puka Nacua, Terrell Bynum and Ty Jones gave the Huskies something they haven't had in a while: A bunch of playmakers. All of them had their moments in the pandemic-shortened season before the virus sidelined a couple of them. Nacua went 65 yards to score against Arizona. Jones had the catch of the season, a one-handed 42-yarder against Stanford. Bynum was effective catching and running the ball. Bynum and Jones will be seniors next fall. Add to them promising true freshmen Rome Odunze and Jalen McMillan, who each started against Stanford out of necessity. 

Down linemen — The  weakness of this UW team was its defensive front wall. Once the Huskies get all of their personnel back and sorted out, it might be a boon. Senior defensive tackle Levi Onwuzurike, an All-American candidate, opted out, initially lowering the talent level up front. Sophomore Tuli Letuligasenoa, Levi's replacement, became injured, missed a pair of games, was used for just two plays in another and didn't start until the fourth outing against Stanford; he looked decidedly rusty or out of shape, or both. Sophomore Taki Taimani, the third choice for this particular position, stepped in for Letuligasenoa as the starter and moved over and bumped senior Josiah Bronson out of the starting lineup once Tuli returned. Yet Taimani struggled to get off blocks, one of the reasons the Huskies gave up far too many rushing yards. Redshirt freshman Faatui Tuitele drew a start, but he struggled, as well. The Huskies believe the answer going forward is a healthy and technically sound Tuli and Taki.

Outside linebackers — Joe Tryon and Ryan Bowman were second-team All-Pac-12 selections in 2019 and returning starters, but had to be replaced this season. Tryon opted out and Bowman became injured or ill and played in only two of four games. Sophomore Laiatu Latu was pegged as Tryon's replacement, but became injured and never got on the field. So that particular position went to the third guy in line, sophomore Zion Tupuola-Fetui. ZTF turned out to be the biggest defensive surprise with 7 sacks, a couple of forced fumbles and a fumble runback, and has star power written all over him. When Bowman went out, true freshman Sav'ell Smalls eventually moved into the lineup. The Huskies will get a chance to start over with ZTF, Latu and Smalls, picking two of them to lean on, not a bad situation to have.

Inside linebackers — Edefuan Ulofoshio, just a sophomore, took his game up another notch this past season, playing like an all-conference performer. He was all over the field in every game, coming up with a season-high 18 tackles against Stanford, 47 in all. He's not unlike Ben Burr-Kirven, an unheralded Husky player who wanted to be successful so much the coaches couldn't keep him off the field. Fellow starter Jackson Sirmon, another sophomore, needs to take his game up another level and create turnovers.

Cornerbacks — Trent McDuffie and Kyler Gordon, both just sophomores, were ready playmakers, forcing interceptions or fumbles and covering a lot of ground. Gordon's ascension made him a starter at the end of the short season and he's likely not coming out of the lineup again. With Taylor moving on, look for either sophomore Julius Irvin or junior Dominique Hampton to step up and play regularly in that vacated spot with little or no drop off, or move aside for true freshman Jacobe Covington.

Safeties — Molden started at free safety in the Stanford game with the Huskies looking for more big-play potential from the back row and replacing junior Alex Cook, who received three starts. Sophomore Asa Turner, a four-game starter at strong safety, played to mixed reviews. He has to decide if he wants to be merely an average player or become much more physical and be great. He hasn't shown it yet. He's backed up by sophomore Cam Williams, who was a seven-game starter in 2019 and could jump back in at any time. The Huskies need a big hitter here -- see Jimmy Rodgers' Michigan YouTube game tape from 1983 in Ann Arbor.

Kickers — Peyton Henry will enter his fourth and senior season as the starting placekicker once more, providing a reliable leg while he's backed up by sophomore Tim Horn. Look for senior Race Porter, with his 42-yard punting average, to come back for a sixth season with the Huskies and punt some more. 

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