They Booed Jaxson Kirkland at Oregon — For His Public Service Announcement

As his Husky career winds down, the offensive guard has the last laugh.

Dan Raley | Nov 18, 2022

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Washington Huskies

Jaxson Kirkland will finally say good bye to Husky Stadium on Saturday night against Colorado, playing in his final home outing as his University of Washington football career — one that seems as if it has lasted a decade — begins to wind down.

A sixth-year player, the 6-foot-7, 340-pound, highly decorated offensive guard from Vancouver, Washington, acknowledged he no doubt will be feeling overly sentimental about the whole thing come pregame Senior Day ceremonies.

"I definitely will, for sure," Kirkland said, bringing some humor to this personal milestone. "Knowing this time, for sure, I have no eligibility left. My time is up. I need to get out of here. I've had a long run, for sure."

Combine his time with that of his father Dean, a first-team All-Pac-10 offensive guard who spent five seasons in Montlake from 1986 to 1990, and the Kirklands together have logged 11 Husky seasons.

For Jaxson, a two-time, first-team All-Pac-12 selection as an offensive tackle, he's had a meandering UW football journey that's largely been successful and should lead to an NFL career.

He's started all 46 games he's appeared in, beginning as a redshirt freshman in 2018 when the Huskies advanced to the Rose Bowl against Ohio State. He's one of just three starters remaining from that New Year's Day game, joined by safety Alex Cook (who was a wide receiver) and place-kicker Peyton Henry.

Kirkland next started 11 games in 2019 before getting hurt at Colorado and sitting out the final two outings, missing the Las Vegas Bowl against Boise State.

He switched to offensive tackle in 2020 and 2021, but the pandemic abruptly ended the first of those seasons and a serious ankle injury severely limited his play and forced him to sit out two games a year ago.

Kirkland went through the offseason ordeal of meeting a new coach in Kalen DeBoer, having surgery and turning to a concentrated rehab program before petitioning the NCAA to return for a sixth season after declaring for the NFL draft. Once back, DeBoer's staff convinced him he should be a guard rather than a tackle, too.

"It couldn't be more worth it at all," he said. "I said I wanted to come back and finish on my own terms, and with the help of the amazing players on this team and the amazing staff, it's happening."

Jaxson Kirkland shared this photo of the private weight room set up in the family home in the Vancouver, Washington, area. He and his dad, former Husky Dean Kirkland, often have worked out together.

Jaxson Kirkland carries the family name with him wherever he goes, as seen on his right forearm. His six-year Husky career is now winding down.

KIRKLAND PROTECTION SERVICES :: Jayne Kamin-Oncea/USA TODAY Sport

Building the pocket, Jaxson Kirkland keeps quarterback Michael Penix Jr. well protected from onrushing UCLA players, including former UW teammate Laiatu Latu (15).

Jaxson Kirkland always has been one of the hardest-working Huskies, continually experimenting with his playing weight but never shortchanging his fitness.

As Kalen DeBoer frames his exit, Jaxson Kirkland attended practices early on but didn't pad up until he was completely healthy from ankle surgery.

Jaxson Kirkland is shown taking part in summer workouts at Husky Stadium before fall camp began. He was just coming back from ankle surgery at the time.

Jaxson Kirkland wore a protective boot as he watched and didn't participate in Kalen DeBoer's first spring practice as the Husky head coach.

NO FRESHMAN LIMITS :: Jennifer Buchanan/USA TODAY Sports

Jaxson Kirkland started 14 games as a redshirt freshman offensive guard in a season that ended up at the Rose Bowl against Ohio State.

Quarterback Dylan Morris and Jaxson Kirkland chest bump at a game in an empty Husky Stadium, where the COVID pandemic kept fans from coming out.

Jaxson Kirkland wore No. 51 in his time at the UW, a number his father Dean slipped on during his Husky career. The school won't retire it, but it should.

No matter what happens in his final three or four games, it will be tough to top what took place in Eugene last weekend when the Huskies pushed Oregon all the way to the end and left town with a 37-34 victory.

For Kirkland, it was a satisfying outcome for so many reasons. The rivalry. Previous missed opportunities. His state-line address. He called it a program-changer.

"How many times were we in those close games against top teams, not even Oregon, just other top Pac-12 teams, and we just couldn't finish in the fourth quarter?" Kirkland said. "We were always right there. Always after the game, it was coulda. woulda, shoulda. To finally finish the way we did and prove to the underclassmen and the people who came before us and to set that standard, that's why I think it was program-changing. Because we finally made it happen and I think it finally ignited a switch and see it changing the direction of the program."

There was one more thing. During the game, Autzen Stadium operators put up a public-service announcement on mental health on the jumbotron that featured Kirkland and other Pac-12 athletes speaking on behalf of preventive care options.

The Oregon fans booed lustily when Kirkland, who went to high school in Portland and weirdly is considered a defector for playing for the UW, had his face appear on the screen.

He considers a victory over the Ducks his No. 1 moment at the UW. They made it personal. That made it better.

"I love that stuff, I love playing in that atmosphere," the big lineman said. "To win in the fashion we did, like when they're booing you like that, and to have the crowd be dead silent, and have the air just out of the stadium, what better picture could you ask for?"

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Published Nov 18, 2022

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.