Turning the Corner: UW Needs to Find 2 More Lockdown Guys
Trent McDuffie and Kyler Gordon were so good as University of Washington cornerbacks, they graded out as a tandem higher than everyone else who played the position nationwide.
These defensive backs were so highly proficient at what they did, the Husky secondary just went an entire season without getting flagged for pass interference. For all the mistakes the UW made this past season, drawing a penalty while dropping back in pass coverage never happened. Not once in 317 opposing pass attempts.
While McDuffie and Gordon presumably will put their names in the NFL draft, hire agents and convince the scouts they, indeed, are worthy of being first-round picks, the Huskies need to find replacements.
The new Kalen DeBoer staff can't expect to unearth players with the same prodigious talent. Instead, anyone who remotely matches their ability at slapping away passes and open-field tackling will be most welcome.
A lot can happen between now and the Sept. 3 season opener against Kent State, but if the Huskies took the field right now, based on player reputation alone, they'd open with sophomore Jacobe Covington and UC Davis transfer Jordan Perryman.
Add to them another half-dozen candidates, headed up by sophomore walk-on Mishael Powell, who fancies himself as another Myles Bryant — a persistent UW defensive back who showed up without a scholarship fully convinced he deserves one.
We break down the cornerback candidates who have a lot to live up to as the DeBoer era unwinds.
Jacobe Covington
This guy came to Washington much like defensive backs Budda Baker, Byron Murphy and McDuffie, as a 4-star recruit who everyone wanted. In Covington's case, he turned down Oklahoma, Texas A&M, USC, Michigan and Penn State to play in Montlake. Long and mean, he appeared in all 12 games as a reserve this past season, gradually rotating in on more scrimmage snaps besides regularly playing special teams. Waiting for McDuffie and Gordon to move on, he should be ready to go, though boasting a modest career stat line of 5 tackles and a sack. For sure, he holds big expectations for the coming season, having already cut a merchandise deal to promote himself through the name, image and likeness allowances. The 6-foot-2, 195-pound sophomore from Chandler, Arizona, arrived from the same Saguaro High School that sent Murphy to the UW.
Jordan Perryman
Needing at least one fully experienced cornerback to build around, the Huskies will add the UC Davis newcomer, who was so proficient this past season he received first-team All-Big Sky and third-team FCS All-America honors. Perryman will arrive in Seattle in January as a sixth-year senior having started 34 of the 42 games he played at a school that once had Chris Petersen as its quarterback. At 6-foot and 201 pounds, Perryman is physical enough. With 4.43-second 40-yard speed, he's fast enough. He brings a fairly active Big Sky career stat line of 140 tackles, 3.5 tackles for lost yards, 4 interceptions, 19 pass breakups, 2 forced fumbles and 2 fumble recoveries. This past season, he was part of an 8-4 team that qualified for the FCS playoffs, so he knows success. Little-known fact: Perryman hails from the same Hanford High School in California's San Joaquin Valley that supplied 1979 All-Pac-10 cornerback and future NFL player Mark Lee as part of Don James' second recruiting class.
Jordan Perryman (23) left UC Davis for Washington.
UC Davis
Mishael Powell
The 6-foot-1, 200-pound sophomore doesn't have a scholarship, but he has something that no one else does on the roster: Husky starting assignments at cornerback, three this past season. He opened against California, Stanford and Washington State when McDuffie was injured or the Huskies needed an extra defensive back. Powell started, not Covington. He had 6 tackles and a forced fumble against Cal, handling himself well in his first start. Nearly double that, and you have his career stats.
Mishael Powell is a walk-on who has started three times at corner.
UW Athletics
Davon Banks
From the most recent class of Husky cornerbacks, the 5-foot-11, 185-pound redshirt freshman from San Jacinto, California, is the only one who's played on game day. Banks appeared against Arkansas State, Arizona State, Washington State and Oregon while preserving his redshirt status. He has 1 tackle to his name. He wasn't heavily recruited after tearing up a knee as a San Jacinto High junior and having the pandemic delay his senior season. Last April, however, Banks showed in a pandemic-delayed high school game that he was fully recovered with touchdown catches of 39 and 85 yards, a 92-yard kickoff runback for a score and a 99-yard interception return that was nullified by a penalty.
Elijah Jackson
This speedy player arrived two years ago as part of a four-DB recruiting bundle that included Makell Esteen, James Smith and Covington. Smith, a corner, left the program and Esteen, a safety, hasn't played in a game yet. A redshirt freshman from Carson, California, the 6-foot-1, 195-pound Jackson drew game appearances against Arkansas State, Arizona and Colorado, but he hasn't become a serious candidate for a starting job yet. Jimmy Lake said Jackson reminded him of a young Sidney Jones, a former Husky corner now with the Seahawks. Jackson needs to make a move this season.
Zakhari Spears
The 6-foot-1, 195-pound cornerback from Los Angeles stayed healthy, unlike his fellow freshman corners Davon Banks and Dyson McCutcheon, who pulled muscles and were on exercise bikes most of fall camp, and paid his dues as a newcomer. Known as a physical player, he hasn't played in a game yet. He'll start all over with DeBoer's staff.
Dyson McCutcheon
The son and grandson of former NFL players, McCutcheon likewise appeared to pull a hamstring muscle once he arrived as a true freshman cornerback and he spent a lot of down time on an exercise bike trying to get healthy. He has no game experience to this point. The 5-foot-10, 170-pound cornerback from Claremont, California, will need to audition for the new coaches, as well.
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