McCree Overcame Rough Start in First UW Start

The University of Washington coaching staff didn't try to sugarcoat anything. Left offensive tackle Max McCree got beat bad against Northwestern in his Husky starting debut, falling victim to an inside rush move that led to quarterback Will Rogers getting sacked and going down hard on the first series.

However, those same coaches were quick to remind everyone the 6-foot-6, 295-pound McCree was playing in just his fifth FBS game, after a 24-month layoff entering the season, as someone scrambling to make up for lost time.

"He's getting there," said Brennan Carroll, UW offensive coordinator and offensive-line coach. "He's made some great improvement. He was coming off not playing for a year. I would assume there's more development there, there's more potential there -- just getting back to a college program where there's a weight room and a meal plan and the whole thing."

McCree, a junior who previously played two seasons for Iowa Central Community College and a pair of games for Maryland, replaced redshirt freshman Soane Faasolo in the lineup last weekend after the latter was injured and considered questionable for the Big Ten opener. The Missouri native got banged up himself late in the game and had to be helped off the field in the Huskies' 24-5 victory.

Faasolo, who started the first three games, and McCree will continue to compete against each other and deal with their assorted injuries to fill the left tackle spot. Both should be available for Friday night's game at Rutgers.

For McCree, it's been a crash course after he left Maryland and went home in 2022 to help support his family after both of his parents came down with health issues. Even now, he's listed at 23 pounds heavier than when he arrived in Montlake this past summer, having taken full advantage of the UW training facilities.

"I think he's going to be a huge benefit of all that," Carroll said. "We're glad we got him for a couple more years. We'll keep developing our guys, who are all young. We like the potential going forward, even Drew [Azzoparid] on the right side is young; it's his second year. Going forward, obviously, right now is most important -- but we'll keep pushing."