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No Time to Bury Hatchetts, Rather UW Will Use Them to Its Advantage

Originally posted on Washington Huskies on SI
By Dan Raley  |  Last updated Jun 6, 2025 4:24 PM ET

As we traipse through the dog days of summer, the Hatchett brothers continuously remind people in subtle ways why the University of Washington football team is supposed to be markedly different this season.

While others take the month off to go home, see their families and work out in private, which is their right, Landen and Geirean Hatchett are local guys entrenched in Montlake who send out social-media messages that suggest UW football will be significantly upgraded.

"It's how much better can we get each other and obviously we're excited to be playing side by side," Landen Hatchett said of his brother this spring, which gives coach Jedd Fisch much greater comfort in his line play.

At Husky Stadium, these siblings are just 95 miles from the Hatchett estate in Ferndale, Washington, which sits in the shadows of the Canadian border. That's only 90 minutes from a home-cooked meal, much faster if you know where all the Interstate 5 speed traps are -- i.e., ease up coming down the hill into Mount Vernon.

A year ago at this time, Landen Hatchett was six months out of surgery to repair his torn-up right knee and still in a concentrated recovery while older brother Geirean had moved to the University of Oklahoma to spread his Ferndale Eagles wings a little, to see if the Sooners suited him more than a UW rebuild.

Without the Hatchetts all in, it showed in the Husky offensive-line play to begin this past season.

There were no Hatchetts in the UW starting lineup for the first six games of 2024, not until the 6-foot-2, 310-pound Landen drew his first career start at left offensive guard at Iowa -- pretty much a wasted outing for everyone except for finally getting him into the opening lineup.

Meantime, the 6-foot-4, 306-pound Geirean appeared in just two games at Oklahoma, starting at left offensive guard in a 16-12 victory over Houston, before suffering a season-ending biceps injury that required surgery.

He was 2,000 miles from home, without anyone to console him, without his brother around, with nothing familiar in his world.

Now the Hatchetts are together again with Geirean transferring back to the UW, often inseparable, and dedicated to the cause.

"It kind of came out of nowhere for me, but I know he's excited to be back," Landen said, almost in a teasing fashion.

The Husky offensive line was panned early and often last season, partly because of the lack of two healthy Hatchetts.

In Athlon Magazine's recently released preview magazine, an anonymous coach summed up last season this way, "Their biggest problem was the offensive line; that situation is how a coaching change and heavy portal can break bad on you. That group was truly bad last year.”

It was a patched-up quilt filled with guys who couldn't start elsewhere, who had played at a lower level or who had never appeared in a major college game before and, quite frankly, many of them were never going to get a sniff from the NFL.

The Hatchetts since have been reunited, spending much of spring ball starting at center and right guard, and they appear confident and above all mended.

They're basically farm-boy strong, which one local Husky writer randomly and ignorantly questioned as a real thing. Shake their hands and you'll know what that means.

Both were 4-star recruits coming out of Ferndale High three years apart. There's nothing to suggest their talent levels still don't match those earlier assessments. Their confidence level, as shown online, seems to verify that.

IN CASED YOU MISSED IT:

Husky Roster Review: All Eyes Were on Alabama Import This Spring

Hoping for Hall of Famer, Huskies Offer Kid Named Canton

Fisch Rates Middle of Pack in Big Ten Coaches Ranking


This article first appeared on Washington Huskies on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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