Friday, March 10th, the Washington Huskies were back on the field for the 3rd practice this winter.  From here the Huskies will have a break until April 3rd when it will actually be Spring.  The offense was in purple jerseys and the defense in white.

Location: Dempsey Indoor Arena

Uniforms:  Shoulder pads and shorts

Weather: Overcast, cool, but no rain.  Inside Dempsy didn’t matter, but a very Seattle day this time of the year.

Recruits: I did not recognize the recruits.

2023 Signees: As has been the case for the first two practices, Landen Hatchett watched in street clothes

General Observations and Notes:

It was classic Seattle-weather so the decision was made to go in indoors to the Dempsey center. The Coaches have created a high-energy, high-focus, high-execution culture that is lifting this team to new heights. Coach DeBoer brings confidence, maturity, and determination that helps players perform at their best every play, every rep, every drill, and every practice.

The emotional leaders on the coaching staff are Jamarcus Shepherd and William Inge.  They bring a lot of enthusiasm that the players feed off.  Michael Penix looks like an NFL player, playing college football, which is exactly what he is.  Having only two scholarship quarterbacks in practice right now is a bit scary, but the upside is that they are getting all of the reps, and more importantly, the backups are getting the reps with Penix and Morris.

Germie Bernard has everything he needs to be a dominant wide receiver. The one thing he will have to fight for in 2023 is opportunity.  His build and play-making ability is reminiscent of Puka Nacua in that he clearly has the tools, build, strength, and athleticism to make all the plays–all tools necessary to climb Washington’s receiver depth chart.

Thaddeus Dixon and Jabbar Muhammad should be fully up to speed by the end of Spring Football.  It’s not a stretch for them to be starters come April 22’s Spring Game.  Dixon has the physical stature to be an All-Conference DB when he’s done in Seattle.

Landen Hatchett was on hand but on the sideline in street clothes.  He has been here at all but is unable to participate in these first three practices as he will enroll after the Winter period ends.

This team exudes confidence and they seem to be far more unified than at any point in the past few years.   For each drill, the team knows immediately where to go and get started with individual drills for each squad. Well-oiled machine.

There’s going to be a fun battle to watch between Zach Durfee and Sav’ell Smalls about how Jeremiah Martin’s reps will be split.  Durfee has the size and athleticism to show he belongs and Smalls has gotten much thicker and his chest and midsection.

Flashback Friday:  Half the team had their jerseys rolled up 2/3 of their abdomen was reminiscent of Shane Pahukoa made famous in the state back in the late 80s up in Marysville (Mike Martin will have a story on this)

Coach Shepard got the whole team and sideline hyped up and they went straight into live drills.

Individual player notes:

• Quentin Moore looks big, strong, and fast.
• Edefuan Ulofoshio looks fully recovered and in the shape of his life.  He’s clearly in command of the defense and seems to be ready to go after Michael Jackson’s team record for tackles in a season.  (Mike Martin will have the full story on this)
• The separation between Morris and Penix is not as evident as it was last year– Morris’ growth is obvious.
• Denzel Boston really looks like he belongs with the top tier of wide receivers.
• Only four quarterbacks practicing on the field today. Morris and Penix +2 Walk-ons.
• Quentin Moore looks big, strong, and fast.  He’s the biggest skill position player.
• Rome Odunze keeping the mood light with a little dancing before his drill, makes the catch.

Play-by-play and drills

• Michael Penix at QB goes deep to TE Devin Culp.  The deep shot should soften up the defense for completions to other playmakers.
• Elijah Jackson on Denzel Boston. Handoff to Cam Davis up the middle for a nice game.
• Jack Westover is out as a receiver. Penix passes wobbly to Taj Davis which falls incomplete.  A fair amount of pressure led to the incompletion.
• Dylan Morris at quarterback. A quick pass to completed to Ja’Lynn Polk goes for a modest gain.
• Handoff to Will Nixon broke free for a long run up the middle.
• Morris threw a rocket to Polk who goes 3 feet off the ground to snag it and bring it down.  Play of the Day Candidate
• Quentin Moore got bandaged and went off for a couple of plays.
• Quarterbacks working on a drill where they are running forward and then throwing the ball into a very tight target.
• Inge was often working with the safeties to improve their tracking and tackling.

• Safeties and linebackers working on tackling. This could be the greatest area of improvement this off-season.
• Running backs doing a drill where they have to pick a hole and get down underneath a PVC pipe Square.
• Running backs doing a drill with a weighted football.
• Rome Odunze kept the mood light with a little dancing before his drill, and make a nice catch.

• Denzel Boston really looks like he belongs with the top tier of wide receivers
• Running backs, worked on blocking with their hands tied together by rubber strips.  This is meant to prevent holding penalties through muscle memory.
• Starting the offensive line as expected from left to right:  Troy Fautanu, Nate Kalepo, Matteo Mele, Julius Buelow, Roger Rosengarten
• Cam Davis is the number 1 running back right now.
• Included with his role as team hype man, JaMarcus Shepard is continuing to push the receivers to become better in everything.
• While talking with Husky play-by-play announcer Tony Castricone, Penix heaved the ball some 70-yards.  Play of the Day Candidate
• Penix on the run looked like he was going to throw the ball away, but instead completed downfield for 30+ yards to either Odunze or McMillan
• Dylan Morris continued to work on his speed and footwork over the last year. Looks quick and agile.
• Morris came up limping a little bit after a scramble but was back full go a few minutes later.
• Tybo Rogers took a couple of carries but doesn’t gain much yardage.  Credit the defense.
• Penix threw a deep pass that should have been intercepted but dropped by Thaddeus Dixon.
• Penix, back in, completed a pass up the middle to Jalen McMillan, good for 13 yards.