Dawgman Radio: A Washington Huskies athletics podcast

It wasn't much of a surprise to those who have been keeping track of such things, but on Friday, Washington head coach Chris Petersen named junior signal-caller Jacob Eason the start for the Huskies as they continue to prepare for Eastern Washington. 

Why did Petersen wind up naming him the starter?

During his comments to the media following practice Friday, Petersen said sometimes it comes down a gut feeling.

"It's not going to be any 'one' thing," Petersen noted. "I think a lot of this comes down to a gut feeling. You have to let a guy go and play and let him grow in games and all those types of things. That's why Jake Haener's going to play some. He doesn't have legitimate game time himself, so that's important."

After listening to what Petersen had to say, Dawgman's Scott Eklund and Kim Grinolds gave their opinions on the announcement and what it means for the future...

The guys from Dawgman.com - Chris Fetters and Scott Eklund - talked with Offensive Coordinator Bush Hamdan, Offensive Line Coach Scott Huff, Running Backs Coach Keith Bhonapha, Tight Ends Coach Scott Huff, as well as junior left guard Luke Wattenberg and junior running back Sean McGrew. 

All the coaches and players gave their thoughts on fall camp, as well as progress that's been made and details that need to get cleaned up as the Huskies finish up fall camp. 

The media will have one more chance at coach and player availability on Friday, and then that's it. Fall camp will be done. And then come Monday, UW Head Coach Chris Petersen will have his weekly press conference and game week has begun!

Just because it is a dead period on the recruiting trail, that does not mean that things are not happening and in less than a week, the Washington Huskies have grabbed their third commitment of the month as three-star Lawndale (Calif.) Elijah Jackson became the 19th commitment for the 2020 recruiting class.

Dawgman's Kim Grinolds and Scott Eklund got together for an Emergency Podcast to discuss what Jackson brings to the table, what makes him so special and how he fits once he arrives next year. They also took a bit of a deep dive into how his commitment impacts the class as Washington plans to take just four defensive backs.

Jackson joined Lawndale teammate Makell Esteen, Saguaro (Scottsdale, Az.) DB Jacobe Covingtonand St. John Bosco DB James Smith as the fourth defensive back committed to the Huskies. So what does that mean with players like Ayden Hector also in the mix with the Dawgs? Are Jimmy Lake and Will Harris done with the defensive back class for 2020?

At nearly 6-foot-3 and weighing in at 180 pounds, Jackson is long and lean with a great wingspan. Since they arrived in 2014, the Husky coaches have made a concerted effort to get longer across the entire lineup, but specifically outside at corner where big frames and long arms can make things very hard on quarterbacks and receivers as they try to complete passes. Look no further than players like Keith Taylor and redshirt freshman Dominique Hampton, two players taller than 6-feet-2.

The Husky coaches also like players with an aggressive style of play outside. Players who are super-confident and love to come up and be physical with receivers. Jackson is exactly that player and he looks like he will be an outstanding fit in Washington's coverage scheme able to play off-man and in soft zones where he can read the quarterback and then turn and run with the receiver.

It was a bit of a circuitous route for Josiah Bronson - from Kent to Philadelphia to Seattle - but the senior defensive tackle is back home and happy to be a Washington Husky. 

On Monday, Dawgman.com's Chris Fetters talked to him about his journey back east to Temple out of high school, what brought him back, and his reaction when his running mate, senior John Clark, went down with a season-ending knee injury. 

Fetters also talked to Joe Tryon, who is a man of few words. He clearly lets does his talking out on the football field. 

Kim Grinolds spoke with two of Washington's defensive backs who will play pivotal roles for the Huskies this fall - Keith Taylor and Elijah Molden, and also talked a little bit with sophomore outside linebacker Ariel Ngata about putting on weight, as well as his big football family. 

After a really busy Saturday scrimmage - one where UW Head Coach Chris Petersen said the Huskies ran 90 live scrimmage plays, plus another 50 productive turns after that - the media had one more chance to ask him if he was going to name a starting quarterback. 

He didn't bite. And in fact, he went a step further, saying he'd play multiple quarterbacks if that gave the Huskies their best chance to win. So the speculation continues...

Petersen also had some difficult news to report, as freshman linebacker Josh Calvert and senior defensive lineman John Clark, are both done for the year with knee injuries. Clark is a fifth-year senior, so the odds of him getting a sixth year would be slim - although he did miss the entire 2017 season with an injury, so it's possible. 

Dawgman.com's Kim Grinolds and Chris Fetters were there Sunday post-practice, where they also spoke with senior center Nick Harris, who joked that he's become the starting quarterback stand-in for the media. They also talked with Offensive Coordinator Bush Hamdan, who gave praise to all the quarterbacks in the competition, and also to first-year receivers coach Junior Adams, who went in great detail about his relationship with Chico McClatcher and also how important it was for him to build a connection with the seniors in the receivers room before anything else could get accomplished. 

One of the top defensive backs remaining on Washington's board, Lawndale (Ca.) DB Makell Esteen, committed to the Husky coaching staff on Sunday, making it three defensive back commitments for the 2020 recruiting class.

What does Esteen bring to the table?

He's a versatile athlete with a ton of upside. He's played almost exclusively at corner, so he has a lot of experience covering receivers, but when it comes to playing for the Dawgs, Esteen projects as a safety or nickel who can roam the middle of the secondary and make plays on the ball.

"I had a good season and I just love to compete," Esteen told Dawgman.com back in the summer. "I will play wherever I'm needed. I just love to play football and go out there and compete, but coach (Jimmy) Lake is a great coach and if he thinks I fit better at one spot, then I will do whatever he thinks I can do to help my team the most."

With Esteen's commitment, as noted above, the Huskies now have three defensive backs committed in the class and they will likely take just one more, so spots are at a premium.

James Smith, a corner from St. John Bosco in Bellflower, California, committed to the Huskies back in late July while Saguaro (Scottsdale, Az.) DB Jacobe Covington, a four-star prospect, committed just yesterday.

With the recent news, Dawgman's Kim Grinolds and Scott Eklund sit down and discuss what makes Esteen so good, why the Huskies coveted his talents so much and where he fits once he arrives. They also take a look at the remaining two defensive backs on their board -- Ayden Hector and Elijah Jackson -- and when each may make their decision and where they believe they will end up.

The guys from Dawgman.com - Chris Fetters and Scott Eklund - dropped everything they were doing the minute Jacobe Covington verbally committed to Washington via his Twitter account so they could record this emergency podcast. 

So what does Covington's commitment mean for the Huskies? The 6-foot-1, 193-pound defensive back from Saguaro High School in Scottsdale, Ariz. may not be as highly-rated and ranked as teammate Kelee Ringo, but the four-star prospect had plenty of suitors in his own right when he picked Washington over an official visit to Oklahoma and scholarship offers from a host of big-time schools like Texas A&M, LSU, Michigan, Nebraska, Oregon, Tennessee, USC, and many others. 

Eklund goes in-depth as to how UW Defensive Coordinator Jimmy Lake may use Covington when he gets to Montlake next year. It sure sounds like Covington's position versatility, combined with his athleticism and aggressiveness, will keep him in good stead from the moment he steps on campus. 

And with two defensive backs now in the fold (Covington joins St. John Bosco DB James Smith), what does this mean for the other 2020 prospects looking hard at Washington? Are there enough spots? Could it end up turning into a recruiting game of musical chairs? 

Eklund breaks down what Covington's commitment may mean in that regard. One of those targets, Lawndale (Calif.) DB Elijah Jackson, may make his verbal commitment known as early as tonight. Jackson's teammate, Makell Esteen, is looking hard at UW, as is Eastside Catholic star Ayden Hector. Does Covington's commitment mean timetables are going to be moved up? Could this be the first of a couple dominoes that fall quickly in Washington's favor?

The Husky defense has some attrition to overcome from last season.

Mainstays like Greg Gaines and Jaylen Johnson along the defensive line as well as the linebackers and the secondary, which lost five full-time starters between both groups, has seen plenty of turnover, but due to versatility and some talented underclassmen, the Huskies like where they're at as they are just two weeks from the kickoff of the season.

On Friday, the guys from Dawgman.com got the chance to check in with two players and a coach to see how strongly they feel about how things are coming along.

Pete Kwiatkowski feels like he has a good group of players who have really improved and the feeling is that even though most people tend to focus on double-digit sacks, he's more worried about getting consistent pressure on the quarterback, getting him to move off of his spot and forcing things since the sacks will come. He said he wouldn't be showing up every day if he didn't think this group could get it done.

Giving Kwiatkowski some sense of comfort is the presence of Benning Potoa'e who has moved inside.

Potoa'e says he's working on getting his recognition down and that he's making progress on reading things, but Kwiatkowski said moving inside has allowed him to play freer where he doesn't have to worry about contain anymore like he did when he was playing on the edge.

Senior defensive back Myles Bryant, the defacto leader of the deep patrol, likes where things are at and feels like he's been coached well enough since he arrived to be able to play either safety or nickel and he would be ready to go, but he also says he doesn't mind where he lines up as long he can compete. He also gave his thoughts on freshman Cameron Williams and what makes him so good at what he does even though he's still very young.

The guys from Dawgman.com - Kim Grinolds and Chris Fetters - spoke to a bunch of players from Washington's offense and special teams after Tuesday's Day 11 practice. The focus for Tuesday was the tight ends room, so we went in-depth with UW Tight Ends Coach Jordan Paopao and sophomore Cade Otton. They talked about the 'next man up' approach and 'carrying the flag' for Jacob Kizer. Kizer is currently out injured, but Paopao said the Huskies definitely expect him back for the season.

Fetters also spoke with junior running back Salvon Ahmed, who, when he's not busy practicing with the team, lifting, eating, sleeping, or in the team room, is busy pitching his brand new EP release called 'A Safehouse Summer', a collaboration with his friend Zay Wonder. He talked a lot about his passion for music, and also the things that make him similar to Myles Gaskin, but also a little different too. He doesn't want to be known as the next Myles Gaskin, especially when he can be known for his own play on the field.

Grinolds spent time talking with two-thirds of the kicking battery - Peyton Henry and A.J. Carty. Henry showed off a special part of his helmet - the inside. It was a personalized touch, complete with his signature - something unique for the Huskies this year. And you could certainly claim that Carty, the fourth-year snapper from Santa Ana, Calif. is the most anonymous player on the team. In fact, he wondered why he was even being called in for an interview!

The fact of the matter is, he doesn't want to be known. Because if he's known, that usually means a bad snap. And even though none immediately spring to mind, Carty did mention one or two that he feels he's had so far in his UW career. And if it's only one of two during a career that might see him officially snap the ball a few hundred times - that's a remarkable thing.

The Washington Huskies added another gem to their 2020 recruiting class with the commitment of four-star wide receiver Rome Odunze from Bishop Gorman High School in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Dawgman's Kim Grinolds and Scott Eklund sat down and gave their thoughts on this latest pledge and took a deep dive into what it means for the rest of the recruiting class, whether or not the Huskies are now done at receiver and how Odunze's commitment fills out what is already one of the best wide receiver classes in program history.

At nearly 6-foot-3 and weighing in at 200 pounds, Odunze is a big wide receiver, but with a sub-10.7 in the 100 meters, even with that size, he can still run right past defensive backs and take the top off of the defense.

The Huskies have done very well on the recruiting front the past couple of recruiting class, pulling in four-star wideouts like Marquis Spiker, Austin Osborne, and Puka Nacua and they have added other playmakers like Trey Lowe and Taj Davis to the mix as well. Now, with the additions of Odunze, Jalen McMillan and Sawyer Racanelli, the potential is there for Washington to feature one of the top receiver corps in the country and they are being led by Junior Adams who has already proven himself to be an outstanding receiving coach as well as a force to be reckoned with on the recruiting trail