Inside The Huskies

The Husky Road to Super Bowl LVI

Five former UW football players will share in football's biggest stage.

Dan Raley

The last time these five University of Washington football teammates were together was 2017, facing Penn State in the Fiesta Bowl.

That was undoubtedly a big game for Greg Gaines, Taylor Rapp, Coleman Shelton, Drew Sample and Jake Browning, but nothing quite like what awaits them on Sunday.

They'll take sides for either the Los Angeles Rams or Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl LVI at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, in arguably the biggest sporting event held in the U.S. each year.

Gaines, Rapp and Shelton will be in uniform as a defensive tackle, safety and center, respectively, for the NFC champion Rams, while Sample suits up at tight end for the AFC titlist Bengals and Browning joins him as an inactive quarterback.  

The Super Bowl is a first-time experience for all of them.

Coming out of a stance on the Rams' D-line, Gaines is the only surefire starter among this Husky football fivesome after solidly establishing himself as a first-team player in his third season in the NFL.

Meeting with the media virtually during the week, the 6-foot-1, 312-pound, heavily bearded Gaines gave credit to his UW football roots and former Husky coach Chris Petersen for preparing him for the big moment. 

"At the University of Washington, we did pretty well when I was there so I was used to playing in big games," Gaines said. "The way we trained there and the way we practiced, all of that kind of stuff just helped me get to where I am today. I really appreciate the University of Washington and everything they did for me. Those were some of the best years of my life."

Gaines, from nearby La Habra, California, and welcoming the Super Bowl to his backyard, has started 13 of 17 games this past season after exclusively coming off the bench his first two years in the NFL.

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In his third NFL season, Rapp shared in the Rams' big year as a starting safety but he's missed all of the postseason so far while dealing with a concussion and the resulting protocols necessary to get him back on the field. 

Rapp appears to be active for the game, but likely won't unseat his fill-in, Eric Weddle, who came out of retirement to provide emergency assistance. 

The Bellingham, Washington, product started all 17 games he appeared in this past season, and 32 of 41 in his career. 

Unless something changes, Shelton likely will pull a handful of snaps as a Rams' special-teams players and be ready to pull scrimmage time if needed as a backup center. He's a fourth-year NFL vet. 

Shelton, from nearby Pasadena and playing in the Super Bowl in his backyard, started two of 17 games he appeared in this season, and has played in 43 in his career.

For the Bengals, Drew Sample is normally a backup tight end, but he could be pressed into starting duty. Normal first-teamer C.J. Uzomah is questionable after suffering a sprained knee MCL against the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC championship game. 

Sample, who's caught just 11 passes for 81 yards and no scores this season, is a third-year pro ready for anything. The Bellevue, Washington, product started 8 of 17 games he appeared in this past fall, and 23 of 42 in his NFL career. 

“You prepare every week like you’re playing every snap and [TE coach James Casey] does a great job of making sure everyone’s prepared," the former Husky said. "It's just no different than a normal game; you're just maybe a little more tired, out there [with fewer] rotations, things like that."

Browning won't play, saddled to the practice squad. He was part of the Minnesota Vikings organization until this past exhibition season, when he got his chance to get on the field but ended up getting waived. He signed on with the Bengals, not knowing it would take him to the Super Bowl. He's still awaiting his first regular-season game.

On Sunday, it's the Rams against the Bengals, with a decidedly UW bent to it. Husky preparation will carry all of these guys through their big moment.

"I feel like it goes back to my U-Dub days," Gaines said. "I remember coach Pete would always have these meetings with us and one of the things that really stuck with me was if you think about the people that you look up to, that are your mentors, your idols and you think about how they carry themselves every day. He always put it as like 'leaders have no bad days' so I kinda took that to heart."

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Dan Raley
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.

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