SEATTLE – When talking to members of the UW Huskies defensive coaching staff, there is no better way to deflect a question than with the premise that any given player has secured a spot in the starting lineup.
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Not even 6-foot-4 junior cornerback Ephesians Prysock, who started every game for Arizona last season and moved with the new team and position coach John Richardson.
There’s certainly some stiff competition for the cornerback spot…between Elijah Jackson, who started 15 games, and Thaddeus Dixon, who also played a lot for the Huskies last season. Right? Certainly Prysock, one of the presumed stars of coach Jedd Fisch’s first Washington team, has the other spot secured.
“Who said 7 was a sure thing? I miss that,” Richardson said with a smile after practice Thursday. “Everyone picked the 1s, so it’s going to be a competition until the first game. That’s how it should be with competitive guys who can all play football at the college level. They’re growing, they’re maturing and they’re going to compete every day.”
He later added: “Everyone is versatile on the backend. You’ll probably see a lot of people playing. So there will be a lot of different roles.”
While his assessment of Prysock’s status sounds more like coach-speak than a serious assessment, it is at least true that little seems resolved between Jackson and Dixon. And Richardson is right that UW will pair one of those players with Prysock during first-team practices or the two of them will pair up with Prysock on the sidelines.
“I feel like we all make each other better,” Dixon said. “There’s no bad blood between us. We’re just out there working hard and competing with each other every day. We see what someone else is doing, grab their move and put it in our pocket. We just evolve together as a room.”
“The competition is tough,” Dixon added, “but look at the stats.”
The senior from Los Angeles recorded six pass defenses and one interception in 361 defensive snaps last season, according to Pro Football Focus. He’s not afraid to claim a starting spot – or to taunt his offensive teammates during practice games – but admits, “We all play a role on the team. Whatever role we play on the team, we’re going to fill it to the best of our ability.”
Here are 11 more things to know about Thursday’s practice, which featured plenty of 11-on-11 action.
1. Dixon is one of UW’s bigger personalities and explained, as only he can, why he likes to verbally engage with the receivers: “If you were here a couple of practices ago, you know I started talking a little bit. But the offense always responds well, especially when there’s real competition on defense. They always respond well, so here we go. I start talking, the offense hits one, we hit one, we just go back and forth.”
2. I mentioned on Wednesday that UW’s cornerbacks wore boxing gloves during certain drills. The goal is simple, Richardson said: “No penalties.”
“We just try to make sure we’re making plays with our feet,” he said. “That’s something we have to do as DBs. Your hands are a byproduct of using your feet as a DB. We just try to emphasize that and hopefully it makes us better on game day.”
3. We continue to see different O-line combinations, although the No. 1 and No. 2 groups have remained the same during recent practice periods. The first group looked the same as it has during most of training camp: Soane Faasolo at left tackle, Gaard Memmelaar at left guard, D’Angalo Titialii at center, Enokk Vimahi at right guard and Drew Azzopardi at right tackle. The second group consisted of Maximus McCree at left tackle, Paki Finau at left guard, Landen Hatchett at center, Zach Henning at right guard and Kahlee Tafai at right tackle.
4. Still, experimentation was done early in practice as the offense worked on predetermined down-and-distance situations (second-and-12, third-and-8, etc.). Tafai and McCree each got time at left tackle on the otherwise first-team offensive line. Vimahi moved to the No. 2 offense for one possession as right tackle, with Faasolo at left tackle, Finau at left guard, Henning at center, and Tafai at right guard. Finau also moved to the No. 2 offense for a few snaps as right guard, with Hatchett at left guard and Henning at center.
5. In my estimation, Azzopardi, Memmelaar and Vimahi are more or less certain to start on the offensive line, but the left tackle and center positions are still up for grabs. Some of that will certainly depend on Hatchett’s health and availability; he has only been fully fit for a few practices. Faasolo is probably still the top candidate for left tackle, but that position is probably the most uncertain.
6. Practice has been up and down for two of Washington’s best freshmen: quarterback Demond Williams Jr. and receiver Audric Harris. Both could play a role this year and maybe even star in the future given their performance in camp so far, and both made plays Thursday that prove that trend. Williams throws really nice long balls and threw a 45-yard run to Harris on 7-on-7 plays between two defensive backs. He also found walk-on receiver Luke Luchini for a 55-yard gain (and maybe a touchdown?) during a situational play and threw a perfect throw to Rashid Williams for a 28-yard touchdown.
Williams also missed a few open receivers and threw two interceptions during the final period of the game (appropriately dubbed the “Sandstorm”) — one to Dyson McCutcheon on a tip from Caleb Presley and another to Darren Barkins on a pass intended for Camden Sirmon. Williams capped off the period with a short touchdown pass to Rashid Williams.
7. One of Williams’ best throws of the day slipped through Harris’ hands in the end zone, costing the offense a 55-yard touchdown. The drop was notable because Harris otherwise had an excellent day, getting free downfield and catching several passes for big yards, including a 22-yard pass from Williams during a rough patch. Harris also jumped a few plays after his drop before the snap count. In other words, quarterback and receiver both had the typical day of talented young players in their first training camp. Ups and downs.
8. The right side of the O-line did a good job of opening up a big gap for Jonah Coleman to run through. He gained maybe 30 yards before the play was called off. Adam Mohammed also broke free and seemingly managed to gain 50 yards down the right sideline, shaking off a tackle attempt by safety Vincent Holmes. Mohammed also had a couple of other difficult runs where he dropped his shoulder to gain yards when he was tackled. He looks like he’s going to be a real challenge.
9. Will Rogers threw some spectacular balls with Jeremiah Hunter and Quentin Moore. The first was a 23-yard throw to Hunter, who was surrounded by cornerback Elijah Jackson, but Hunter managed to catch the ball with one hand, which drew great cheers. On Rogers’ next series, he threw a 19-yard touchdown to Moore, who also caught the ball in a great play.
10. Grady Gross made a 50-yard field goal to cap off a situation, but later in practice missed two kicks from about 41 yards. From what I saw, those may have been his first two misses of training camp.
11. Thursday’s practice apparently marked the end of the training camp portion of UW’s preseason, and coaches celebrated the occasion by bringing in a Sugar + Spoon truck to serve their signature cookie dough creations. The company’s founders are both UW graduates.
UW will hold a shorter practice on Friday morning before Saturday’s tryout.
This article was originally published on OnMontlake.com, the homepage of Christian Caple‘s complete coverage of UW Huskies football. Subscribe to On Montlake for complete access to in-depth UW coverage.
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