UW Fresh Start (No. 48): Healthy Ulofoshio Is Scary Ulofoshio

Edefuan Ulofoshio got hurt in the UCLA game. Last October, the inside linebacker suffered a season-ending arm injury that required surgery and put him in a sling. Only his football season didn't end the moment he was wounded.

This fearless warrior who doubles as the University of Washington defensive leader walked off the field only when the clock ran out against the Bruins. He was tackling people right up to the finish.

Ulofoshio, even when available for just half a season, is yet another reason you have to ask how or why these Huskies bottomed out with a miserable 4-8 record and were left with no bowl game, no head coach, no glory whatsoever.

New UW leader Kalen DeBoer, while acknowledging the high number of injuries team-wide and a John Donovan offense that didn't work, still has to be scratching his head when trying to reconcile how all of this happened.

Teams that have players as motivated and talented as the 6-foot-1, 235-pound Ulofoshio don't have throwaway seasons. He's one of one of those great stories in college football that hasn't been told in full yet.

Had he given in to misguided assessments of his linebacker skill set early on, he'd be playing for Northern Arizona or Robert Morris right now. He'd be an FCS guy.

Yet Ulofoshio — whose last name in Nigerian translates to "not afraid of war" — never once thought he didn't belong at the Power 5 level. He was unafraid of being a walk-on and caused a fumble on the first play of his UW career on a kickoff.

He's piled up 18 tackles against Stanford, 16 against Oregon State, 14 against Utah and 13 more against Michigan. Ten tackles against Oregon State as a redshirt freshman in 2019 earned him Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week honors, and he didn't even start that game. Ulofoshio had 10 tackles against UCLA when his arm was dangling at his side.

He should be healthy now, healthy enough to offer DeBoer a firm handshake as they get acquainted.

Edefuan Ulofoshio returns a fumble 39 yards against Stanford in 2020.

Going from walk-on to starter, Edefuan Ulofoshio is a feel-good story.

As a redshirt freshman, Edefuan Ulofoshio burst onto the scene.

Edefuan Ulofoshio never takes a play off.

Edefuan Ulofoshio inspires the troops.

Edefuan Ulofoshio practices downtown.

Edefuan Ulofoshio is a UW leader.

Less than a month until spring practice, 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. 48.

As good as Ulofoshio has been, he still hasn't played a full season as a starting linebacker yet. DeBoer should have that high on his list of program takeover priorities.

Ulofoshio started the final three games of the 2019 season as a young player coming into his own, four more during the abbreviated pandemic season that followed and just five last fall.

Twelve starts in three seasons.

The coaching staff needs to get at least a dozen starts from Ulofoshio this coming campaign alone.

Ulofoshio was a second-team All-Pac-12 linebacker in 2020. Pro Football Focus delegated him as the nation's top inside linebacker entering last season.

Even with only one sound wing, he can be pretty good.

UW Starter or Not: Ulofoshio headlines possibly the Huskies' most competitive position area, one that counts freshman sensation Carson Bruener and Pittsburgh transfer Cam Bright as potential running mates. Bruener replaced Ulofoshio when he went down. For the next two seasons, the linebacker competition probably comes down to who gets to play alongside Ulofoshio.

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