Inside The Huskies

Coleman Provides Game-Winner, Still Ranks Tops in TDs Nationally

The Husky running back exceeded his 2024 total with scoring plunge at Maryland.
Dan Raley|
Huskies running back Jonah Coleman (1) stiff-arms Maryland linebacker Trey Reddick.
Huskies running back Jonah Coleman (1) stiff-arms Maryland linebacker Trey Reddick. | Jamie Sabau-Imagn Images

It seemed only apropos that the University of Washington football team, in completing an amazing 24-20 comeback win at Maryland, would shove the ball into the midsection of Jonah Coleman and let him bring it home.

Six weeks into the football season, Coleman still leads the nation is scoring touchdowns with 11 -- two more than anyone else -- with his most recent six-pointer coming on a 1-yard run in College Park, Maryland.

On Saturday when the deciding play began, the 5-foot-9, 220-pound senior running back from Stockton, California, stood on the 6-yard line, to the left of quarterback Demond Williams Jr., engine revving.

As the play unfolded, tight end Decker DeGraaf crossed in front of Coleman, right to left, and took out a defender with a crunching block.

As guards Paki Finau and Geirean Hatchett stood up their defenders and Finau drove his man into the ground, Coleman took a Williams handoff and headed for the end zone, running off the left hip of center Landen Hatchet. He dove over the goal line, landing into red-colored turf with just 3:21 left to play.

It was Coleman's 11th TD in five games, one more than he scored in 13 contests during the 2024 season.

Six players have scored 9 touchdowns this fall, including Rutgers' Antwan Raymond -- which means two of the nation's leading scorers will go head to head at Husky Stadium on Friday night when their respective teams meet in Big Ten play.

Raymond shares the second spot in TDs with Vanderbilt's Sedrick Alexander, Missouri's Ahmad Hardy, UTSA's Robert Henry, and Notre Dame's Jeremiyam Love and Jadarian Price.

Huskies running back Jonah Coleman s tripped up by Maryland's Carlton Smith (32) in the second half of Saturday's game.
Huskies running back Jonah Coleman s tripped up by Maryland linebacker Carlton Smith (32) in the second half of Saturday's game. | Jamie Sabau-Imagn Images

Coleman had a workmanlike but hardly flashy effort against Maryland by rushing 18 times for 57 yards and his game-winning score, plus leading the Huskies in receiving with 8 catches for 47 yards. His longest run was just 6 yards. He longest reception went for 14 yards.

He also returned a pair of kickoffs for 31 yards, with a long runback of 19 yards. All game long, he was there whenever needed.

Coming out of the weekend, Coleman also ranked fourth nationally in all-purpose yardage with 150.8 per game, not far behind UTSA's aforementioned Henry, who is the national leader at 154.2 yards per outing.

The matchup between Coleman and Rutgers' Raymond has to be an individual motivator for both players. Coleman had 16 carries for 148 yards rushing in the 2024 game between their teams, while Raymond, then a freshman, didn't play in the Scarlet Knight's 21-18 victory in Piscataway, New Jersey.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:

Published
Dan Raley
DAN RALEY

Dan Raley has worked for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, as well as for MSN.com and Boeing, the latter as a global aerospace writer. His sportswriting career spans four decades and he's covered University of Washington football and basketball during much of that time. In a working capacity, he's been to the Super Bowl, the NBA Finals, the MLB playoffs, the Masters, the U.S. Open, the PGA Championship and countless Final Fours and bowl games.

Home/Football