Washington Huskies Football: Early 2023 Recruiting – Defense

2023 football recruiting is in full swing. We look at some defensive prospects the Washington Huskies made offers to so far.

This is the time of the year when all the Washington Huskies sports are recruiting for 2023. This is especially true for football. Saturday, we reviewed offensive players that Washington made offers to. Today, we move to the other side of the ball.

Before jumping into the 2023 recruiting update, a quick word about this year. The Washington Huskies football team still has room to add players to this year’s team from the transfer portal.

Recently cornerback Jacobe Covington and running back Caleb Berry, who redshirted last year, transferred out. Those departures leave six player scholarship spots available this year. Don’t be surprised by a few late additions to the roster.

Overview

There are several defensive positions of need. With Covington leaving, defensive back depth is a must. Also among the priority spots are the defensive line, edge rusher, and inside linebacker. Based on the number of scholarships offered to defensive players, new Huskies Head Coach Kalen DeBoer is putting a premium on defense.

We now look at each defensive position for the 2023 recruiting class. How many recruits the Huskies will sign won’t be known until later this year or early next.

Edge Rusher

One of the best edge rushers in this class is local product Jayden Wayne from Lincoln High School in Tacoma. He is a five-star recruit, so all the major schools are after to get him. As of now, the University of Miami is at the top of his list, but It would be great if the Washington Huskies could find a way to keep him home.

Outside of Wayne, Washington’s top choice is Brady Nassar from Pleasanton, California. A third player is Anthony James, who committed to Texas A & M. However, he was in attendance at the Huskies’ spring game, so there is a chance he could flip, though the chances of that are small.