As two lopsided victories will show, Kalen DeBoer has done a nice job of using the University of Washington football players he inherited and teaming them with ones he brought in to supplement them.
Yet part of the challenge for the new coach in taking over a Husky football program badly in need of a reboot was gaining the services of three prominent players who would not readily be available to him — offensive tackle Jaxson Kirkland, linebacker Edefuan Ulofoshio and running back Richard Newton.
To open the fourth quarter, DeBoer finally got a chance to take the wraps off Newton, who was coming off a knee injury, and send him out on the field on Saturday afternoon during the UW's 52-6 victory over Portland State.
It went well.
Newton gained 2 yards on his first carry and drew applause as the remaining fans realized the veteran back was in the game.
Going without a huddle, the Huskies fed him the ball again and this time the 6-foot, 212-pound junior from Lancaster, California, went over the right side, ran into people and gained 16 yards— and the former UW starter was back.
"The smile on his face was worth a million bucks," DeBoer said. "He's really a cool kid."
On the next series, Newton popped a 21-yard gainer going through over left side. When he was done, the hard-running back had accumulated 59 yards rushing on 10 carries in just three series of action. His output marked his seventh-highest running total in his college career.
While in the UW program for five seasons, he played in just the 17th college game while dealing with assorted injuries and coaching decisions.
Newton drew his only three career starts last season before getting banged up. In the sixth game against UCLA, he came in for one play, caught a pass a 9-yard gain, tore up his knee and his season was over just like that.
"He's just really so well liked by the team and his teammates," DeBoer said. "He's just been grinding through this of getting healthy and getting a chance to be out there."
For now, Virginia transfer Wayne Taulapapa is the Husky starter at running back, backed up by sophomore returnee Cam Davis and supported by Nebraska transfer Will Nixon.
All three of them rushed for touchdowns against Portland State, with Davis picking up a pair.
No doubt Newton will be given a chance to share more of the load with them if not supplant his teammates and become the starter again.
For now, DeBoer will tell you it's just good to have him back. He hopes to have Kirkland return for next weekend's Michigan State game and Ulofoshio on the field in the second half of the season. Newton was a start.
"Seeing him out there, he was not going to avoid people there early in his opportunity," the coach said of the running back. "He was going to have contact and be physical. It was fun to see that."
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