UW Fresh Start (No. 66): Bainivalu Returns to Huskies to Make Himself an NFL Player

Henry Bainivalu is this spring's Luke Wattenberg or Sean McGrew, a sixth-year senior for the University of Washington football team, someone it seems has been around forever.

The offensive right guard from Sammamish, Washington, has started the past 18 consecutive Husky games covering three seasons, more than anyone else on the roster.

Besides all of that experience, Bainivalu brings great size to the trenches. At 6-foot-6 and 330 pounds, he's one of the UW's largest players.

However, there's a catch to all of his pending contributions, to the fact that he's still a collegian.

Similar to his 4-8 team, Bainivalu didn't have a sterling 2021 season. He was inconsistent. Good against Oregon State and Stanford, not so much against Montana and others.

In order to improve his NFL stock, and possibly even a little concerned he might not get drafted, big Henry is back for more with a new coaching staff.

With spring practice a few days away, we're offering intel and observations gathered on the UW football personnel in a series of stories on every scholarship player from No. 0 to 99. We'll review each Husky's previous starting experience, if applicable, and determine what comes next under DeBoer.

As is the case with any coaching change, it's a new football beginning for everyone, including the Huskies' No. 66 on offense.

Overall, Bainivalu has appeared in 40 games, beginning with the end of Chris Petersen's coaching run. He redshirted back in 2017, played special teams the following season and became a starter for the final two games of the 2019 season when Jaxson Kirkland got hurt. He hasn't come out of the lineup since.

He's only flirted with personal recognition, earning All-Pac-12 honorable-mention accolades following the pandemic-shortened season of 2020 and receiving Outland Trophy watch list attention a year ago.

If he wants to be an NFL player, Bainivalu needs a big push to the finish line with the Huskies. He's needs to be something more along the lines of a first- or second-team all-conference selection. Consistent most of the time.

He also shouldn't automatically assume that a UW starting job of his is fully guaranteed.

The Huskies have a host of young, promising guards who are itching to get their chance to play meaningful minutes, to move into the lineup and not come out, to cast this sixth-year guy aside.

Among them are once heavily recruited redshirt freshmen Myles Murao, Gaard Memmelaar and Owen Prentice, plus sophomores Nate Kalepo and Julius Buelow.

Bainivalu has a lot at stake as he extends his college football career, hoping to bring about NFL employment. It's totally up to him whether it all pans out the way he wants it.

UW Starter or Not: If Kirkland doesn't make it back at left tackle after petitioning for his sixth season, Bainivalu will have the most starts of anyone on the team over his career, consecutive or not. That should count for something. Realistically, he should retain his starting job. However, the one thing about a coaching change is everyone has to prove himself all over again. No one gets a free pass. Bainivalu has those talented, young guards pressing all around him. He'll have to fend them off while improving his pro football prospects. This guy won't be coasting.

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