Breaking Down 11 Projected Husky Defensive Starters

Of the 11 first-team players we've singled out, three are Arizona transfers, with the potential for two more to join them at some point in injured linebacker Jacob Manu and edge rusher Isaiah Ward once they get healthy. Six of the 11 are seniors.

The Husky secondary has the potential to be sensational, and we're not just speaking about the starters here. Consider freshman safety Rylon "Batman" Dillard-Allen, redshirt freshman nickelback Rahshawn Clark and freshman cornerback Dylan Robinson each are on the cusp of playing immediately and making stuff happen.

Or did you miss Dillard-Allen's pair of pick-6 returns in the Spring Game and recent mock game?

With starters officially unveiled on Monday, we don't anticipate any big surprises, though you never know. The following are our first defensive 11:

ER Zach Durfee -- Entering his third season in Montlake, Durfee has appeared in really just two full games while drawing a defensive series here and there in seven outings overall and starting on just three occasions. An NCAA transfer ruling in 2023 and those gnarly turf toes have kept him hidden from view. Time to pull the wraps all the way off this physical playmaker. If all goes well for him, he'll be in the NFL a year from now, bypassing a possible extra year of UW eligibility.

DL Anterio Thompson -- The coaching staff has put a lot of responsibility for reshaping the Husky defensive front in the hands of this Western Michigan transfer and 12-game starter, and an Iowa reserve player before that. At 6-foot-3 and 304 pounds, he seems like a physical specimen. The true test will come on Sept. 27, for him and a lot of guys, when Ohio State visits Husky Stadium. Thompson faced the Buckeyes a year ago, with his MAC team getting paddled 56-0.

DL Ta'ita'i Uiagalelei -- This 6-foot-4, 280-pound Arizona transfer started 13 games at edge rusher for the Wildcats last season and now he's a down lineman, maybe a little undersized for this chore in a four-man front. His coaches will tell you this senior is a little of both positions, sort of a wild card, especially in a five-man front while trying to deal with Big Ten rushing attacks.

ER Jacob Lane -- The 6-foot-5, 260-pound Lane is what college football used to be -- a player carefully developed at one school to be a productive player, though by two coaching staffs. He appeared in 9 games as a freshman and 12 more as a sophomore, all in a reserve role. He's been the one veteran Husky edge rusher who hasn't been injured in a year's time. He should be solid as a first-time starter.

LB Buddah Al-Uqdah -- The Huskies finally had their long-time linebackers and team captains in Carson Bruener and Tuputala use up their eligibility. They brought in the aforementioned Manu to recover from a knee injury suffered in Tucson and the one-time All-Pac-12 selection is not ready yet to jump in. Luckily, the UW found the 6-foot, 232-pound Al-Uqdah, formerly of Washington State, to take over the middle. The staff knew he was good in advance, but maybe the coaches have been a bit surprised by his ability to be the leader on the second row. A 17-game starter in the Palouse, he's on the Butkus Award watch list. The Huskies have him for two years.

LB Deven Bryant -- Similar to Lane, the UW patiently has brought the 5-foot-11, 234-pound Bryant through the process to become a first-time starter. Now in his third season, he's smart and instinctual enough the coaches feel they can count on him to always be where he should be. People forget he was considered the top 2022 high school defensive player in all of Los Angeles, which is a very fertile recruiting territory.

NB Leroy Bryant -- The Huskies were going to find a spot for this guy no matter what. He's yet a third player developed to succeed on the defense along with the other Bryant and Lane. He played in seven games as a freshmen, including three postseason outings, and amazingly preserved his eligibility. This 6-foot, 185-pound Bryant came back from an injury to appear in six games last season as a redshirt freshman and start the Sun Bowl instead of Thaddeus Dixon. He'll be a starting cornerback in 2026.

CB Tacario Davis -- He has some of the most impressive FBS credentials of anyone on defense, with second-team All-Big 12 and All-Pac-12 accolades as a 22-game starter at Arizona. At 6-foot-4 and 200 pounds, he is primed to be an NFL player, maybe a high draft pick. In 2023, he led the Pac-12 with 15 pass break-ups, including 5 against Utah to earn conference defensive player of the week accolades. What he doesn't have are many career interceptions to his name -- just one coming against WSU and Al-Uqdah in 2023. That's something he can rectify.

CB Ephesians Prysock -- He's the lone returning full-time starter from the 2024 Husky defense, a 29-game starter counting his overall career at the UW and Arizona. He's been reunited with Tacario Davis after they started together in 2023, which seems to be a great source of comfort for him. He was an All-Pac-12 honorable mention selection that year. Similar to Davis, he has just one career interception -- coming in that same Cougars game in 2023 against Al-Uqdah -- and will be looking for more.

FS Makell Esteen -- The UW seemingly brought in a lot of guys to try and replace Esteen this offseason, in multiple talented freshmen and Florida International transfer CJ Christian, and couldn't do it. Instead, he's a sixth-year senior with seven career starts who will play centerfield for the Huskies. He has three career interceptions. The staff trusts him back there. Think of Kam Fabiculanan and Alex Cook getting their shots at safety as sixth-year seniors. Same thing.

SS Alex McLaughlin -- The Northern Arizona transfer spent much of spring ball running with the No. 2 defense and became an exclusive starter once fall camp began. He was under orders to put on weight, and he went from 187 pounds to 200, and the promotion resulted. He's a fearless player who earned both first- and second-team All-Big Sky honors and started all 23 games in which he appeared. He plays with a reckless style reminiscent of previous UW safeties on the order of Jimmy Rodgers, Tim Peoples, Lawyer Milloy and Taylor Rapp. The Huskies have him for two years, too.

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