Top 10 Most Compelling Husky Plays of the Season: No. 10

Alphonzo Tuputala's 76-yard mad dash to the end zone was most notable because it should have been a yard longer.

Alphonzo Tuputala starts at inside linebacker for the Sugar Bowl-bound University of Washington football team because he's so reliable. He's seldom out of position, rarely make a big mistake.

With Carson Bruener and Ralen Goforth relegated to back-up roles this season by Edefuan Ulofoshio and Tuputala, you know those first-team Husky linebackers have to be good.

So it was with great surprise when Tuputala came up with a real heads-up turnover against Utah only to give the ball back before the play was over.

In a season full of heroic, heart-felt and sometimes weird moments, we count down in reverse order the 10 most memorable plays for Kalen DeBoer's 13-0 UW team.

At No. 10 is Tuputala's 76-yard interception return against the Utes that should have gone into the record books as a 77-yarder in the Huskies' 35-28 victory. 

For those who didn't see the play, Tuputala ran into the West end zone, but the ball did not go with him. Thinking he'd scored, the junior dropped it on the 1, where it settled immediately and a Utes offensive lineman alertly recovered it.

"I one hundred percent own it," Tuputala said later. "Lack of awareness on my part."

Washington Huskies’ Alphonzo Tuputala’s fumble at the goal line should be nominated for @shaqtin this week.#ShaqtinaFool #USvsUS #NBATwitter pic.twitter.com/a7bwV4W125

— Landon Buford (@LandonBuford) November 11, 2023

With the Huskies leading 33-28, the third quarter winding down and Utah driving for a go-ahead score, Utes quarterback Bryson Barnes tried to sidearm one over the middle to tight end Noah Bennee, who had delayed coming off the line.

However, Barnes threw the ball off of his teammates' outstretched hand, it deflected into the air and Tuputala snatched it.

The hard part came next: Tuputala and UW edge rusher Zion Tupuola-Fetui just missed colliding head-on before the linebacker took off up the sideline, running past Husky coaches and players intently watching him.

He did OK until he got a step from the goal line and casually let the ball go with his left hand. A pick-6 would have put the Huskies ahead 40-28. Instead they picked up a safety on the following play but still had to hold on in a one-score game to the end.

"Unfortunately, you get excited and it's a great lesson to learn from," DeBoer said.

As it stands, Tuputala comes out of this ordeal tied with former cornerback Dashon Goldson for the 15th-longest interception return in Husky history. With one more yard, he'd be alone at No. 14.

On that list, former Husky safety Brandon Beaver went 96 yards with the school's longest interception without scoring in 2015 and safety Tommie Smith covered 86 yards without reaching the end zone, with these guys either getting shoved out of bounds or running out of gas.

Curiously, Tuputala, after starting every game of the DeBoer era, sat out the very next game at Oregon State. The coach was asked if the linebacker's absence had anything to do with the pass theft turned fumble. He said no.

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UW TOP 10 PLAYS OF THE SEASON

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10. Alphonzo Tuputala's 76-yard interception return

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