Husky Roster Review: Kepnang Keeps Coming Back

Franck Kepnang is like that well-worn Volvo, the one coming up on 300,000 miles with the dented fenders, scratches in the paint job and chips in the windshield.

The University of Washington basketball center is probably going to play until his engine quits running for good.

He's had plenty of stops and starts, with his knees turning into flat tires.

By all indications, the 6-foot-11, 250-pound center from Cameroon will agree to play a seventh college basketball season that's available to him. and see how far he can go.

"He does have another year," UW coach Danny Sprinkle said before the regular season ended. "Now it's just kind of the wear and tear and getting him through a season. That's been the hardest thing for Franck."

Franck Kepnang winds up to slam one against Ohio State. | Dave Sizer photo

This is one in a series of articles -- going from 0 to 16 on the Husky basketball roster -- examining what each scholarship and walk-on player did this past winter and whether he lived up to expectations.

After four seasons at Washington and two at Oregon, Kepnang has played 1,923 minutes over 111 games, scored 629 points, grabbed 479 rebounds and blocked 164 shots.

He's made 252 of 469 shot attempts. He's taken and missed two 3-point attempts in his career.

Franck Kepnang lets his emotions out against Oregon, his old team. | Dave Sizer photo

Kepnang didn't finish this recently completed season, sitting out the final six games with leg soreness, but it was considered a positive experience for him.

He played in 27 outings, starting 25. It was the most games he'd played in four seasons, since Oregon used him 35 times in 2022.

It was the most games he'd started in any season, more than triple his previous high of eight in 2025.

Franck Kenpnang can be a fearsome presence around the basket on defense. | Dave Sizer photo

By now, there's no mystery to Kepnang's game. Even with his battered knees, he remains a fearsome shot-blocker, finishing with 55 this season, which ranked him third in the Big Ten.

He averaged 6.2 points and 6.3 rebounds a game this time around, scoring a season-high 15 against Nevada and pulling down a season-best 14 caroms against Oregon. He blocked a career-high 6 shots against Southern, Utah and Northwestern.

It just remains a continual struggle for Kepnang to find a healthy place for long.

"It's hard, the poor kid has had three surgeries in three years," Sprinkle said. "Even if it's healthy and everything's showing it, it's a mental block that you have to get through."

If there's a drawback to big Franck, besides his continually mended hinges, he's not a guy the Huskies continually feed inside like a Hannes Steinbach because his hands aren't great.

Yet his presence and enthusiasm are enough plusses for the UW to welcome him back as many times as he wants to pull on a purple shirt.

"We'll see how this goes," Kepnang said this past season. "We're going to play as far as we can."