If Rome Odunze enjoyed the best spring performance of any University of Washington football player, fellow wide receiver Denzel Boston ran a similar route.
The 6-foot-4, 185-pound redshirt freshman from Puyallup, Washington, showed everyone around him, if not chasing after him, that he was ready for a much bigger role in the DeBoer/Grubb offense.
In the final spring scrimmage, Boston zipped through the Huskies' reserve secondary, raced under a deep ball lobbed his way from quarterback Dylan Morris and crossed the goal line with a 43-yard touchdown catch and no one anywhere near him.
Three series before that, Boston ran in motion from left to right at the opposing 6, took a direct snap from freshman center Landen Hatchett that maybe wasn't drawn up that way and followed fellow receiver Germie Bernard into the end zone.
"He's a guy who can definitely change the game," starting quarterback Michael Penix Jr. told the media afterward.
It was a Boston TD party.
Going down the roster from No. 0 to 99, Boston, who wears No. 12 on offense, is next up in a series of profiles about each of the Huskies' scholarship players and assorted walk-ons, summing up their spring football performances and surmising what might come next for them.
Boston was good throughout spring ball, showing up a lot of corners along the way. Midway through the 15 practices, he beat sophomore Jaivion Green on a 50-yard scoring play, running away from him. Earlier in the spring, Boston caught a ball while he took a hit from walk-on Jakson Berman, kept his feet and turned in another long gainer.
Boston checks a lot of boxes for the Huskies. They used him in just four 2022 games to preserve his four years of college eligibility, yet played him in crunch time, even sending him out for the opening drive against Oregon and into the Alamo Bowl against Texas.
He came to UW spring football practice determined to take the next step in his career, and that's get into the regular rotation and continue to make a difference. Even the guy who had the best spring in Montlake noticed the player who was trying to match his effort.
"I love that guy," Odunze said. "I love his game since he got in here. He's a real dawg."
DENZEL BOSTON FILE
Service: Boston appeared in Husky games against Portland State, Oregon, Colorado and Texas in the Alamo Bowl. His coaches made sure to insert him into some of the biggest games of the season, but also held him back to preserve his four years of college eligibility.
Stats: In his college debut against Portland State, Boston caught a 10-yard pass from the departed Sam Huard and finished off the drive by taking a handoff from Huard and scoring on a 2-yard run on a fly sweep. Against Colorado, Boston hauled in a 5-yard pass from Dylan Morris.
Role: Boston likely has to wait another season before he becomes a UW starter, but he looks capable of handling any assignment the Huskies throw at him. With Taj Davis transferring to California, look for Boston to get his fair share of receptions and play in crunch time.
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