ZTF Puts on Practice Pads; Game Return Could Be Soon

Zion Tupuola-Fetui recently participated in his first full-padded practice, moving the All-Pac-12 edge rusher another step closer to playing again for the University of Washington football team.

On Monday, Husky coach Jimmy Lake said the affable one known as ZTF — who ruptured an Achilles tendon and underwent surgery seven months ago — still remains "week to week" as the UW (2-3 overall, 1-1 Pac-12) prepares for a game against UCLA (4-2, 2-1) on Saturday at Husky Stadium. 

Which means he could play in any game now. 

Yet if the 6-foot-4, 260-pound sophomore defender from Pearl City, Hawaii, was able to get on the field against the Bruins, he likely would be used sparingly as in order to rebuild stamina and regain playing speed.

Lake described Tupuola-Fetui's return to practice as an uplifting moment for the slow-starting Huskies, who have dearly missed his playmaking ability over the first five games.

"He looked great," the UW coach said. "We're all excited for him. He definitely gave a boost of energy to our team."

In 2020, Tupuola-Fetui was a newly installed UW defensive starter who became one of the nation's most disruptive players at his position, accumulating 7 sacks in 4 games, including 3 strip sacks.  

He tore his left Achilles tendon midway through April's spring practice in a non-contact drill. Hopping off the field on his own power, he crashed down on a training table before being carted inside. 

Headed for immediate surgery, Tupuola-Fetui informed Lake that he was recovering far sooner than the UW medical personnel projected for an injury that often can require up to 10 months of rehab time.

"You could just see it in his eyes that he was determined to come back quicker than the experts thought," Lake said, "and that's still the case."

In his absence, freshman Cooper McDonald from Haslet, Texas, has started all 5 games at ZTF's outside linebacker spot and accumulated a lone sack among 9 tackles. 

Working through his rehabilitation, Tupuola-Fetui also purposely dropped 10-15 pounds from last year's playing weight to become more explosive. He drew inspiration for this from former UW edge rusher Joe Tryon-Shoyinka, whose similar body-changing efforts have served him well as an NFL rookie with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. 

The only question that remains is when will we see him? 

"There's going to be those butterflies on that first play that he plays," Lake said. "Whenever that is."

At his briefing, Lake also addressed sophomore kicker Tim Horn's decision to leave the program. According to the Husky coach, he and his staff had no plans to redshirt Horn, who handled kickoff duties and backed up junior Peyton Henry on field-goal and extra-point chores.

Yet once reaching his 4-game limit on preserving eligibility, Horn first asked the coaches to be redshirted and in having further discussion decided to enter the transfer portal. 

"He wanted to be the starting place-kicker," Lake said, "and right now he was our backup."