Who Will Be the Bowman Bookend and ZTF Replacement?

Three players are in competition for the Huskies' vacant starting job at edge rusher.

Ryan Bowman really has to wonder: Is it him?

He's like the jet fighter pilot who can't keep a wing man.

Batman fighting super villains without Robin.

Thelma driving without Louise.

A year ago, the University of Washington senior outside linebacker was all set to play opposite Joe Tryon for a second consecutive season when the latter opted out because of the pandemic, choosing to prepare for the NFL draft.

No sooner did Bowman get comfortable with Tryon's replacement, Laiatu Latu, the other guy suffered what would be career-ending neck injury before the 2020 pandemic season began.

For two games once the Huskies got going, the 6-foot-1, 280-pound Bowman from Bellevue, Washington, paired up with Zion Tupuola-Fetui, a promising Hawaiian player who would have been the Husky third-teamer at the position had there been no personnel turnover, and he was sensational. 

However, this combo went south when Bowman encountered COVID-19 issues and missed the final two games.

Returning for his NCAA-approved bonus sixth season, a fully recovered Bowman was ready to make up for lost time with ZTF but the wondrous Initial Man suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon midway through spring practice and had surgery.

Bowman now awaits his fourth partner at edge rusher in a year. With so much turnover at this haunted house of a position, one might think the pickings are thin in finding yet another guy to pair with Ryan, who was a 2019 second-team All-Pac-12 selection, an honor he shared with Tryon.

While Bowman mans the left side, candidates competing for the opposite spot are second-year freshmen Cooper McDonald, Sav'ell Smalls and Bralen Trice.

They come highly regarded in Bowman's eyes, and he's a straightforward guy usually not prone for hyperbole.  

"Those three dudes are super-hard workers and they've improved every year they've been here," he said. "Coach [Ikaika] Malloe really wants to see them all throughout camp and see what they put on film, how good their technique is, how good they acclimate to coaching."

While ZTF is on the fast track to recovery but won't return until the season is in full swing, we size up the candidates and their chances of teaming up with Bowman as a first-teamer.

"All three of those dudes are really good," Bowman said, "and they get better every day." 

Cooper McDonald

The 6-foot-3, 245-pound Texan has thighs as big as Bowman's massive arms. He appeared in three games last season, actually spelling Bowman at times in the first two outings. 

The Huskies are extremely high on him, but he's likely the third guy in line for this job because of the shortage of inside linebackers following the loss of second-year freshman Miki Ah You and incoming recruit Will Latu to personal issues. The versatile McDonald likely will play a lot by filling in at both inside and outside linebacker positions.

Bralen Trice (8) and Cooper McDonald (41) are vying for injured Zion Tupuola-Fetui's starting job.  / UW Athletics

Bralen Trice

Trice is the wild card in this competition. Redshirting one season and opting out last year because of COVID-19, he hasn't played a snap for the Huskies on game day. 

However, Brice rebuilt his physique and now measures a very solid 6-foot-4 and 260 pounds. Malloe boldly suggested that this Phoenix product someday will grade out higher than the departed Tryon, who became a first-round NFL pick for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Promise is one thing, but experience is another. Trice began the spring as the No. 1 guy in the early practices. While he should play a bunch this season, the Arizonan probably is the second player in the position competition.

Sav'ell Smalls started in place of Ryan Bowman once in 2020. He's now trying play opposite him.  / UW Athletics

Sav'ell Smalls

The former 5-star recruit from Seattle played in four outings in 2020 and actually was Bowman's replacement for the second of the two games Ryan missed. He took the field as the starter for the season-ender against Stanford. 

Rather than thinking he had it made, Smalls went after his offseason conditioning like a mad man and he showed up with a sharply cut 6-foot-3, 250-pound frame. It would surprise no one at all if he wins this job outright for the season opener against Montana. 

Of course, whoever gets the job will be faced with the prospect of sharing it with or giving it back to ZTF, an All-America candidate, once the man with the orange hair returns somewhere around midseason. 

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