UW Roster Review, No. 2-99: Turner Has Been Good, Needs to Be Better

The strong safety missed most of spring practice, when he really needed the work.

Asa Turner has all the size and experience at strong safety to be a great college football player. It's time for him to show it.

After two seasons at the University of Washington, the 6-foot-3, 210-pounder started half a season as a true freshman and the short four-game pandemic schedule as a sophomore. 

However, Turner seems to have hit a bit of a lull in his career progression, one made worse by an apparent foot injury that kept him out of three-fourths of Husky spring football practice. 

Yet even before he was relegated to the sideline, Turner seemed somewhat disinterested in the proceedings and ran with the second unit more than the first, and it was noticeable.

"Everything's great," Huskies defensive-backs coach Will Harris said when asked about Turner early on. "We're getting reps for younger guys. We know what Asa can do."

Going down the roster in numerical order, this is another of our post-spring assessments of all of the Husky talent at hand, gleaned from a month of observations, as a way to keep everyone engaged during the offseason.

In his time in the program, Turner, who wears No. 20, has proved to be an enigma to the former UW safeties who watch him closely.

While he has a pair of interceptions and three pass defenses to his credit, his Husky predecessors criticize him for taking angles when coming up to hit an opposing runner or engage with an enemy blocker rather than hitting full on.

They want him much more aggressive, though understanding the game has changed some since they played and were given considerably more leeway to make the classic open-field hit.

With his exceptional size and ample recruiting reputation — he was a 4-star player from Carlsbad, California, who chose the UW over Notre Dame — Turner carries greater expectations than many of his teammates.

As a freshman, he watched as fellow first-year player Cam Williams took over at strong safety and started seven times at the beginning and end of the 2019 season, while he logged five starts. 

Last fall, Turner took all four starts and kept Williams at arm's length in a reserve role.

This spring, Turner and Williams played side by side at times.

It's time for the former to be known for more than having the longest hair on the team, for being somewhat of a loner, for needing to show more explosiveness. He's been good, but people are counting on great from him.

Harris said the Huskies know what Turner can do.

He didn't say if that was a good or worrisome thing.

Turner's 2021 Outlook: Strong safety starting candidate

UW Service Time: Played in 16 games, started 9

Stats: 36 tackles, 2 TFL, 2 interceptions, 3 passes defended

Individual Honors: None

Pro prospects: 2023 NFL third-day draftee

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