Washington Huskies: Revamped receiver group leads to cautious optimism
Herb Nightengale
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Holdovers
Terrell Bynum, a senior, is the only returning starting receiver from last season. As a junior in 2020, Bynum started three of the Huskies four games. A late injury against Utah in Game 3 ended his season. Up until then, he had 8 catches for 130 yards.
Aside from Bynum, only two other players who caught passes for the Huskies last season are back, redshirt freshmen Rome Odunze and Jalen McMillan. Both saw some valuable playing time last season.
Odunze started the final game against Stanford in place of Bynum. He had five of his six catches in the game with 69 receiving yards. That was a great way for the coaching staff to get a good look at his abilities.
McMillan played three of the four games, starting against Stanford as well. His lone catch of the season was against Stanford for 16 yards. Their experience in the Huskies’ offense could give them a leg up.
One player who took advantage of his opportunity this spring was Taj Davis. He didn’t get on the field last year, so he came in hungry. Davis stayed with McMillan through most of camp and put himself in contention to be part of the 2021 receiver rotation.
McMillan, for his part, wasn’t bad, though. In the Purple and Gold game, he did a nice job of getting open. Redshirt freshman Sawyer Racanelli also played well and showed he’s not afraid to make catches over the middle.