Caple: UW Huskies position battles to watch in spring football

As the UW Huskies count down the days until their April 1 spring practice opener, it’s time to start thinking about which positions will be most competitive.

Former UW Huskies DB gets 3-year extension with Chargers

A few roles are solidified. Demond Williams Jr. will start at quarterback. Jonah Coleman will lead the rushing attack at tailback. Denzel Boston should be the top target in the passing game, and new transfers should slide into starting roles on the defensive line and at linebacker.

Elsewhere, competition throughout the spring and summer will dictate who takes the field first come Aug. 30 against Colorado State. Here’s a look at five position battles to watch this April.

UW Huskies position battles

Safety

The Huskies seemingly have three viable candidates here: sixth-year senior Makell Esteen and a pair of incoming transfers, Northern Arizona’s Alex McLaughlin and FIU’s CJ Christian. New coordinator Ryan Walters’ defensive scheme also regularly relies on a nickel, which could be a landing spot for one of the safety competitors. Esteen was among UW’s steadiest defensive players last season, even as a part-time starter. McLaughlin was an uber-productive, all-conference player in the Big Sky the past two seasons, and Christian is a senior playing at his third school. Don’t forget about third-year sophomore Vincent Holmes, either.

Offensive tackle — one of them, anyway

You can probably pencil in Kansas State transfer Carver Willis as one of the starting tackles, and the best early guess is that he’ll land on the left side, though he mostly played right tackle at KSU. The top candidates to start opposite Willis are fourth-year sophomore Drew Azzopardi, who started every game at right tackle last season; sixth-year senior Maximus McCree, who started five games at left tackle last season; and third-year sophomore Soane Faasolo, who began last season as the starting left tackle before McCree beat him out.

Offensive guard — one of them, anyway

Senior Oklahoma transfer Geirean Hatchett, who played at UW from 2020-23, is back in Seattle and presumably will have the inside track to one starting guard position. Regardless, redshirt freshman Paki Finau and third-year sophomore Zach Henning will at least compete for the other starting guard spot, and all three could see a lot of reps this spring; in fact, Hatchett might still be recovering from September biceps surgery, so Finau and Henning could see even more reps than they might have otherwise. Redshirt freshman Michael Levelle Watkins could also get involved, and don’t forget about four-star freshman Champ Taulealea.

Receiver — likely WR3

Denzel Boston is pretty obviously the Huskies’ WR1, and former Arizona transfer Kevin Green Jr., who missed last season due to injury, is a strong candidate to start in the slot. And while Penn State transfer Omari Evans likely has the best chance of starting at the outside receiver spot opposite Boston, it’s going to be a big spring for third-year sophomore Rashid Williams and sophomore Audric Harris to try to make a move, too. They were the Huskies Nos. 4 and 5 receivers last season, respectively, but their roles didn’t yield much production. Will that be the case again in 2025, with Evans taking the vast majority of the snaps? Or will Williams and Harris — or another young receiver — force coaches to go a bit deeper in their receiver rotation?

Edge rusher

The Huskies lost their top pass rusher at this position, Voi Tunuufi. Two other promising players, Zach Durfee and Russell Davis II, are coming off season-ending injuries of varying degrees. Isaiah Ward returns after starting six games last year. Ta’ita’i Uiagalelei, an Arizona transfer, should push for playing time, too, as could junior Jacob Lane and senior Deshawn Lynch. With Durfee limited and Davis possibly limited, too, the competition will look different in spring than it likely will in training camp. Either way, the Huskies need to find two edge rushers who can push the pocket better than this group did in 2024, when the Huskies totaled just 20 sacks, tied for 98th in FBS.

This column from UW Huskies football insider Christian Caple is exclusive to Seattle Sports. Subscribe to OnMontlake.com for full access to Caple’s in-depth Husky coverage.

More on UW Huskies football

• Caple’s Stability Rankings: Which UW Huskies positions are strongest?
• Five games that could determine UW Huskies’ 2025 ceiling
• Notebook: Why the UW Huskies hired an agent as a salary cap guy
• UW, WSU and local players who received NFL combine invites
• Former Seahawks reserve QB joins UW Huskies coaching staff

Related

Court halts extra year of NCAA eligibility for 2022 H.S. gradsFormer UW star, O’Dea alum Myles Gaskin retires from NFLWhat To Know: Changes for the 2026 college football seasonFormer UW star Vita Vea agrees to new deal with Buccaneers, ending hold-inAnalyst: UW Huskies could be ‘ultimate chaos agent’ this fallJim Mora takes on another rebuild as Colorado State joins revamped Pac-12