Last year, on December 25 it didn’t feel a whole lot like Christmas in the Sumner, Washington house that Tristan Dunn grew up in. Outside, it was a balmy 53 degrees.
Under the family Christmas tree, the Dunn’s presents went unopened which is odd because one of the reasons the Washington defensive back chose to stay home and play for the Huskies was that he would be able to be close to his family.
He originally had been committed to Arizona State, but flipped to Washington just before signing day in 2022.
“Family is really important to me. It’s a blessing to play in front of them,” he said at the time.
It almost wasn’t so, however, given his then, academic standing.
“I didn’t take my academics seriously enough early on,” he said. “I had to work hard to get them in order to qualify for the University of Washington.”
Along the way, over the last bit of his time in the 2021-2022 winter academic period at Sumner High School, Dunn received a lot of support from Washington’s new staff. The staff assured him that if he could come through in the classroom, there’d be a spot for him in the 2022 recruiting class.
“The new staff was amazing,” he recalled. “They kept in touch with me, encouraging me to keep going on my grades.”
He remained committed to the Sun Devils, but the but both schools were understanding of his situation.
“When I got my report card, I let the Huskies know that I was going to be a Dawg,” he said.
At 6-foot-4 and 189 pounds, Dunn is an intriguing defensive player who can line up in several spots, especially in Washington’s defensive scheme that utilizes player’s versatility.
The 4-star had high hopes of playing early on at Washington. In the run up to when he enrolled on campus, he continued his daily trek to Ford Sports Performance in Bellevue with his future Husky teammate, Denzel Boston.
“In those long rides to FSP, Denzel and I would talk about being able to play for the Huskies and in front of our families,” he recalled.
When he stepped onto campus, he was in the best shape of his life. The Huskies rewarded him with playing time at Arizona State, where he recorded his only tackle of the season. As a true freshman, he saw the field in four games, including the Alamo Bowl in San Antonio, Texas.
As the Huskies finished with an 11-2 record, they were awarded a trip to the Alamo Bowl on December 29th and the whole team went. The bowl game was a present–but the tight-knit Dunn family’s traditional Christmas festivities would be put on hold.
“We decided to wait until we could all be together,” he said.
Christmas 2022 came and went. So did New Years. And so did 103 other days since December 25th. There in the Dunn’s living room of his childhood house sat his presents, still unopened.
Easter became Christmas for the Dunns.
“We waited until the whole family could be together, and that included my grand parents.”
They would create and celebrate a new Dunn family tradition: “Chreaster” or “Eastmas”.
“We all went to church Sunday morning,” he said.
There was also a family feast. After all, what’s a few more hours of wondering what’s beneath the bow that was under the mini Christmas tree they made Eastmas?
“Then we opened presents,” he smiled. “It was a blessing to be with my whole family.”
Just like becoming a Husky, some things are worth the wait.
