Midseason Report: Husky Tight End Has Been a Matter of Survival

The manpower at this position has been ultra thin because of injuries.

Huskies tight end Keleki Latu (85) heads upfield as Iowa defensive back Quinn Schulte (30) tries to make the tackle. / Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

The first sign of trouble for the University of Washington tight ends came midway during spring ball when sophomore Ryan Otton, all filled out and ready to compete for a meaningful role, came off the practice field and began flexing his shoulder, as if trying to loosen it up. The announcement didn't come right away, not until early this week in fact, but Otton, the second-generation Husky, was lost for the season.

Near the end of fall camp, freshman Charlie Crowell was next. he was taken away following a knee injury, had surgery and was ruled out for the season.

In the opener, senior Quentin Moore caught his first pass of the season and maybe his only pass, a 14-yarder, but suffered his own knee injury when a Weber State player, suddenly realizing he should have been in the game, came off the sideline and blindsided Moore. Whether or not the veteran UW player can return this season is uncertain.

Similarly, walk-on tight ends Owen Coutts and Wilson Schwartz have been put on the Big Ten questionable list entering recent games while dealing with assorted ailments.

Would the last UW tight end in Seattle please turn out the lights?

What's left are senior Keleki Latu, the Nevada transfer and younger brother of former UW edge rusher Laiatu Latu, and ready-to-play freshman Decker DeGraaf, plus redshirt freshman offensive guard Zach Henning, who has pulled tight-end blocking duty in every game and even started once in a certain formation required for his moonlighting position.

If that wasn't bad enough, Vander Ploog, the UW's 4-star tight-end commit and Class of 2025 recruit from Southern California and someone who recently turned in a 12-catch game, has had a rush of schools such as Alabama and Oregon try to pry him away from the Huskies in recent weeks and get him to flip.

For this continual assault on the good health and future stability of the Husky tight-end position, we give it a B- grade strictly for having to go into a survival mode and deal with low numbers of available players.

UW commits Dash Beierly, Vander Ploog and Dylan Robinson hang out together on game day in Montlake. / UW Athletics

The 6-foot-7, 244-pound Latu is a rent-a-player for one year, who's started the six games that Moore has missed, and turned into a reliable receiver with 24 catches for 215 yards, ranking third on the team in catches.

"Definitely just trying to step up as a tight end," Latu said. "With Q like recovering from his injury, like I just want to be the one to step up in the blocking game and the passing game, to be able to be hybrid."

He's still working on his blocking skills, leaving one to wonder if the Huskies might have won the Apple Cup if Moore, proven at the point of attack, had been healthy to lead the option run at the goal line that backfired.

Highly dependable since he first joined the program is the 6-foot-3, 240-pound DeGraaf, who made a big splash with touchdown catches in each of first two college games, including on his very first Husky play. He'll become a starter at some point fairly early in his UW career.

Decker DeGraaf celebrates his 33-yard touchdown catch on his first UW play. / Skylar Lin Visuals

Coutts, a 6-foot-4, 230-pound senior, is a big and fast athlete who's had his football career work out probably better than he could have imagined. Originally a UW student only for a year, he walked on to Kalen DeBoer's first Husky team and was destined to remain buried in the wide receiver depth chart before Fisch's staff converted him into a tight end during spring ball. He's played in all seven games either taking TE snaps or on special teams, though he's dealt with nagging injuries.

Moore could end up redshirting this season and returning in 2025 to complete with DeGraaf, Crowell, Otton and a couple of highly rated recruits in Baron Naone and, if he rejects all of those late suitors, Ploog, which would create a tight-end competition worth watching.

Until then, it's probably hang-on time for the Huskies, who simply can't afford to have another one of their tight ends get injured.

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