Inside The Huskies

Even with UW Corner Jobs Open, Leroy Bryant Reportedly Turns to Portal

The Husky defensive back will exit after appearing in 25 games and starting six times.
Dan Raley|
Leroy Bryant reportedly will try the transfer portal.
Leroy Bryant reportedly will try the transfer portal. | Dave Sizer photo

Leroy Bryant apparently is going to see what a pair of LA Bowl interceptions can get him on the open market.

Two days after having his best game as a University of Washington defensive back, and this after dealing with a somewhat lackluster regular season, the 6-foot, 185-pound sophomore from Fairfield, California, will enter the transfer portal, which was confirmed on socil media by Husky defensive-backs coach John Richardson.

"A program is going to get a great teammate that is smart and can play multiple positions," Richardson wrote.

Bryant will become the fifth UW football player to go this route since the regular season ended, joining sophomore wide receiver Audric Harris, sophomore linebacker Deven Bryant, senior nickelback Dyson McCutcheon and redshirt freshman center Davit Boyajyan.

What's a little odd about this is the Huskies' biggest need entering next season are finding two new starting cornerbacks with seniors Ephesians Prysock and Tacario Davis using up their eligibility and turning their attention to the NFL Draft.

Unless, he had heard something otherwise in coaching staff interviews, Bryant stood to be a strong candidate to for one of these jobs as the oldest corner candidate on the roster. He's played in 25 UW games and started six. He has 23 tackles, 2 pass break-ups and those 2 interceptions.

Others who will enter the Husky corner competition this spring include freshmen Ramonz Adams Jr. and D'Aryhian Clemons and redshirt freshman Elias Johnson, each who received a smattering of game snaps during the recently completed season.

Leroy Bryant pulls in his end-zone interception against Boise State.
Leroy Bryant pulls in his end-zone interception against Boise State. | Dave Sizer photo

However, the Huskies made defensive backs their recruiting priority this past cycle and signed five of them, and they included cornerbacks Rahsjon Duncan, Kasani Jiles, Jeron Jones and Elijah Durr, and safety Gavin Day.

Duncan and Jones were rated as 4-star players, as well as Day the safety.

For Bryant, his Husky career was one of extremes once he joined the roster as a Kalen DeBoer signee in 2023.

Leroy Bryant eyes a Penn State receiver in last year's game.
Leroy Bryant eyes a Penn State receiver in last year's game. | Skylar Lin Visuals

That season, he made the biggest splash of any UW freshman defensive back by playing in seven of his team's 15 games, largely on special teams, and preserving his redshirt status. Three of his appearances came in postseason outings that didn't count against the maximum total.

In 2024, Bryant appeared in six games and started once in the Sun Bowl against Louisville, limited by a hand injury suffered before the season began.

This season, he was given the opportunity to start both at nickelback and cornerback, the latter as an injury replacement for Davis, got lit up in coverage multiple times and beat out.

Bryant just didn't seem like the confident, playmaking sort that previously described his UW career until he came up with a pair of acrobatic interceptions in the 38-10 victory over Boise State in the LA Bowl.

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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.

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