Washington Huskies Return Dominating Secondary in 2021
Once again the Washington Huskies have a fantastic group of defensive backs. It won’t be easy for opponents to gain ground through the air.
A casual fan might think that after losing Elijah Molden and Keith Taylor to the NFL, the Washington Huskies’ secondary would be short on talent. Not so fast, my friend. UW returns a talented and deep group of defensive backs. Life will still be difficult for opposing Pac-12 receivers.
Safety
Dominique Hampton and Asa Turner lead a group of safeties who are skilled and experienced. Combined, the junior duo (Hampton is a redshirt) has 22 games under their belts. In four games last season, Turner had one pick and 17 tackles.
Backing up is another pair of juniors Cameron Williams and Alex Cook. Both will get plenty of playing time as well. Williams started the first six games of his Washington Huskies career. It’s not hard to imagine either of them cracking the first team.
Cornerback
The man who will make Pac-12 receivers miserable is Trent McDuffie. The junior played in every game while at Washington, including starting all but two. McDuffie should build on his great 2020 when he was a Second-Team All-Pac-12 selection.
Opposite McDuffie is another quality corner, Kyler Gordon. The redshirt junior played in 21 games for UW, with five starts. Gordon was an All-Conference Honorable Mention in each of the last two seasons even without stating many games. He’s also versatile with the ability to play any position in the secondary.
Washington likes to use five defensive backs. Sliding into the nickel back position is transfer Brendan Ridley Hiles. He’s very experienced with 37 games under his belt with the Oklahoma Sooners. That experience will come in handy as he replaces Molden.
Depth might be an issue among the Washington Huskies cornerbacks. Their top three subs are a pair of redshirt freshmen Elijah Jackson and James Smith and a redshirt sophomore Mishael Powell. All three are talented but haven’t seen much game action with the defense. Expect them to see more time on special teams as they work their way into the lineup.
How do you feel about the Washington Huskies 2021 secondary? Let us know in the comments section below.