An Up Close And Personal Look at Zaydrius Rainey-Sale

The UW linebacker speaks softly and moves with grace, which belies his violent approach to football.

Zaydrius Rainey-Sale, shown here against Illinois, presents an imposing figure on the football field. / Dave Sizer photo

Entering the University of Washington team meeting room on Tuesday, Zaydrius Rainey-Sale moves with a certain amount of grace and fluidity to a waiting seat

While other teammates might lumber or shuffle into this football theater, the freshman linebacker sort of glides inside. Each step confirms there's something special about him.

"When he walks in the door, he looks the part," UW defensive coordinator Ryan Walters said. "He looks like a Big Ten linebacker."

The other thing is the 6-foot-3, 225-pound Rainey-Sale speaks ever so softly, which belies the physical nature of who he is on the football field. You have to strain forward to catch every word. You have to keep looking over your shoulder to see if he's coming.

Yet that's part of his appeal of this elite first-year player -- he's a silent assassin in pads and a helmet. You don't necessarily know where he is. Such was the case for Illinois wide receiver Hank Beatty a week and a half ago at Husky Stadium.

Twenty-five yards downfield, which is a long way for a linebacker to go, Rainey-Sale caught up to Beatty and with perfect timing thumped him in the chest with his helmet, causing the ball to bounce off and be intercepted by UW cornerback Tacario Davis.

The amazing thing is Rainey-Sale never once looked up to see when the ball would arrive, but knew exactly what needed to be done.

No, he didn't have eyes in the back of his head. He had something much more mystical about him. He shared his secret.

"When you see their eyes get big, that's how you know how the ball's coming," Rainey-Sale said. "I just saw him jump and hit him in the air."

In his first meeting with media members who cover his team, the highly regarded freshman almost sounded like a shaman as he spoke about his recovery from a high school knee injury and other football particulars.

Zaydrius Rainey-Sale moves as a play unfolds in his college debut against Rutgers. / Dave Sizer phot

Rainey-Sale was injured in his final Bethel High School game against Curtis, a 24-20 loss, matching two Tacoma-area teams on November 1 of last season. Eleven months later, he was playing again at a much higher level.

He thought he would play for the firt time in the UW-Ohio State game, but had to wait a few more weeks before getting cleared and going up against Rutgers, followed by Michigan and Illinois.

"I knew I wasn't meant to be on the sideline," Raine-Sale said. "So I was eager, hungry to come back."

He initially committed to Kalen DeBoer's UW coaching staff on the day of the Sugar Bowl and the Huskies' CFP semifinal game against Texas.

Zaydrius Rainey-Sale has appeared in three UW games so far. / Dave Sizer photo

He recommitted following the coaching change to Jedd Fisch for two reasons: strength and conditioning coach Tyler Owens presented a detailed plan for him to return to good health, and Fisch had propensity to play freshmen right away.

"That's what really got me here -- I wanted to play early," the 4-star linebacker said. "It was a big factor, for sure."

So with those three games under his football belt now, Rainey-Sale has fit right in as a playmaking defender, increasing his game snaps with each outing, totaling 27 against Illinois.

He understands the preparation part of it, that if he's in the right spot, good things will happen. If he knew his assignments, the game would slow down for him.

Yet tantamount to his skill set, college football hasn't been too big for him at all.

"It wasn't as fast as I thought it would be," he said, not bragging, just stating fact.

And with that, Rainey-Sale got up and glided out of the team room, which was impressive in itself.

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