Inside The Huskies

Whole 9 Yards: Hatchett Went from Wide-Eyed UW Visitor to Coveted Player

As his family showed on social media, the freshman lineman's journey to Husky Stadium began a decade ago.
Dan Raley|
Whole 9 Yards: Hatchett Went from Wide-Eyed UW Visitor to Coveted Player
Whole 9 Yards: Hatchett Went from Wide-Eyed UW Visitor to Coveted Player

Somewhat lost in the pandemic concerns, in the face of getting tested and staying safe, incoming University of Washington football players such as Geirean Hatchett are dealing with a wide range of other emotions as the report.

Like leaving home for the first time. 

Finding their place in a big-time college program. 

And taking a deep breath and just reflecting for a moment.

Hatchett, a highly regarded freshman offensive lineman, will make the 100-mile drive from his hometown of Ferndale High School to the UW and on Sunday begin his much-anticipated college career.

Compliments of his mother Jana on social media, Hatchett's football journey to Husky Stadium actually got its start a decade ago, when a  9-year-old Geirean found himself in a glorious setting for an impressionable boy.

From those innocent days and pre-pubescent times, Hatchett has grown into a 6-foot-4, 279-pound man with football skills that were widely coveted by coaches at Notre Dame, Stanford, Ohio State, Oklahoma and Washington.

Similar to Jake Locker, the one-time can't-miss Ferndale High quarterback, Hatchett considered and passed up all of those glamorous outside options and chose to stay close to home and play college football. 

Same as Super Bowl-winning coach Doug Pederson, another can't-miss Ferndale quarterback, Hatchett packed a suitcase and headed off to his college destination, hoping to turn this experience into an NFL opportunity.

Yet it all started with a grade-school kid walking into Husky Stadium, beaming over the moment, looking around in awe and later deciding he wanted to be part of it. 

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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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