Inside The Huskies

Heimuli Is One of Nine Huskies Who Let the Tide Go Out

The linebacker is part of a unique group within the UW team.
Dan Raley|
Heimuli Is One of Nine Huskies Who Let the Tide Go Out
Heimuli Is One of Nine Huskies Who Let the Tide Go Out

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Washington Huskies

Daniel Heimuli is a reserve linebacker for the University of Washington football team, someone who usually rotates onto the field during the second or third quarter and draws his time.

He's appeared in 18 games for the Huskies over the past three seasons, and even started a couple of those outings in 2021 as a replacement for an injured Edefuan Ulofoshio. 

"He's a violent player," Husky co-defensive coordinator William Inge said. 

Yet the 6-foot, 225-pound sophomore from East Palo Alto, California, now on his third Husky coaching staff, admittedly has been held back by the nuances that come with playing his position.

He struggled after arriving as a 4-star recruit from the Bay Area and redshirted without even using any of his four-game freshman eligibility freebie. 

"I didn't know what to expect coming in," Heimuli said. "I wanted to get the most out of what was going on in 2019. It was a shaky start."

However, over the next couple of seasons, he worked his way up, with the help of then-defensive coordinator Bob Gregory, to where he could handle a starting role when needed.

Heimuli, however, had to start all over again with Kalen DeBoer's new coaching staff and a new way of playing defense.   

"In spring ball, it was kind of hard to get through the playbook, but the coach is doing, and has done, a great job to get me through it," he said, referring to Inge.

What continually makes his individual progression so interesting is Heimuli remains part of a unique society of UW football recruits who had ultimate options for picking a school. 

He's one of nine players on the Husky roster who received a scholarship offer from Alabama, considered the elite of the elite college football programs with its multiple national championships. He said no thanks to Nick Saban and the Crimson Tide.

Other Huskies who share in this SEC distinction/option are redshirt freshman running back Sam Adams II, redshirt freshman offensive guard Geirean Hatchett, junior safety Julius Irvin, sophomore wide receiver Jalen McMillan, redshirt freshman offensive guard Myles Murao, sophomore wide receiver Rome Odunze, sophomore edge rusher Sav'ell Smalls and sophomore defensive tackle Faatui Tuitele. 

As it turns out, the linebacker wasn't going to be swayed by Alabama, no matter what. 

"For me, I grew up watching the Pac-12," Heimuli said. "I grew up watching Washington play Stanford. My dream as a kid was to play in the Pac-12. It didn't matter for who, but I wanted to stay on the West Coast so my family could see me play."

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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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