It wasn't exactly clear skies and 90 degrees in Seattle today, but the heat was sufficiently turned on at Husky Stadium, where the Washington football team gathered for their first practice of fall camp.
The first practice is always the one that will generate the most hot takes and overreactions, and this year was no different. The guys from Dawgman.com - Kim Grinolds, Chris Fetters, Scott Eklund, and new intern Josh Wodka - put all their thoughts out there after watching the Huskies run around for a couple of hours and hearing UW Head Coach Kalen DeBoer break down the day and also take questions from the media.
Of course the discussion started around the quarterbacks and the battle between Michael Penix, Jr., Dylan Morris, and Sam Huard. At least one of the Dawgman guys thinks the job is already Penix's to lose, but will he stay around longer than a year if he gets done what he came to Seattle to do?
The talk then moved to two of the more interesting players out there on the offensive side of the ball, starting with receiver Giles Jackson. Jackson and Morris had some telepathy going on the field, as the former Michigan transfer was catching passes all over the field.
And the offensive coaches wasted no time in trying to get the new running backs up to speed. Wayne Taulapapa was the first running back out there, followed closely by Will Nixon. Nixon is listed as a running back/receiver on the official roster, but he played just running back today and looked the part.
After a quick break, the talk turned to the offensive line, and there was plenty to talk about with that group. Jaxson Kirkland is the biggest storyline, literally, while Roger Rosengarten got all the first-team reps at right tackle. Victor Curne has moved back out to right tackle, while Matteo Mele was the player getting reps behind center Corey Luciano, and Geirean Hatchett was back at right guard behind Henry Bainivalu.
So how much of that movement on the right side of the line was due to an improvement in Bainivalu's health? How much of it was recognizing Curne should be back outside? How much of it was determining Rosengarten was the one that really won the right tackle job out of spring instead of Mele?
As I said, it's easy to jump to conclusions and overreact after Day One, but a lot of questions still need to get answered when it comes to Washington's offensive line.
Switching lines, we talk about Ulumoo Ale's day, and not just inside at defensive tackle. He's also being used as the main guard in the shield on punt coverage, which is interesting. Before hitting another quick break, the guys talk about what they saw with the EDGE players and defensive backs, and whether or not they think Asa Turner is a shoo-in at safety.
Back from break, they finish off the recap podcast talking about today's featured post-practice speaker, former UW linebacker Keishawn Bierria, and Scott provides a quick recruiting recap on a prospect that may or may not commit to Washington at some point here. Jordan Sanford was supposed to announce his verbal commitment today but hasn't so far. Is he having second thoughts? We talk about it.
And then we finish up with final thoughts and a reminder to all that we're running a fantastic promotion to go along with the start of fall camp; FIFTY percent off a yearly subscription and monthly users can use this promotion to upgrade if they want to!
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