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Inside The Huskies

Huskies Down 5 Running Backs for Purdue Game

Freshman Ansu Sanoe joins the long list of injured UW rushers.
Dan Raley|
Freshman running back Ansu Sanoe celebrates his 1-yard touchdown run against Utah State.
Freshman running back Ansu Sanoe celebrates his 1-yard touchdown run against Utah State. | Dave Sizer photo

The number of University of Washington running backs unavailable for game duty reached a season-high five, with freshman Ansu Sanoe ruled out of Friday night's Purdue game with an injury that wasn't spelled out.

Also, defensive tackle Kai McClendon will miss his first UW game after playing in the first six, according to the Big Ten availability report. McClendon had recovered from a knee injury that kept him sidelined all of 2025 at Mississippi State before he transferred.

Quarterback Demond Williams Jr. remained questionable for the Boilermakers (3-3 overall, 2-1 Big Ten) with what was described as a serious rib injury and is expected to be replaced in the starting lineup by Elijah Brown, the Stanford transfer and the UW back-up.

Among Husky players upgraded to probable are starting edge rusher Jacob Lane, starting right offensive guard Champ Taulealea, freshman defensive back Jeron Jones, nickelback Rahshawn Clark and freshman wide receiver Jordan Clay.

The UW running-back situation has become downright ridiculous, with just three players in freshman starter Brian Bonner Jr., Troy transfer Trey Cooley and converted cornerback D'Aryhian Clemons able to play against the Boilermakers.

The 6-foot, 240-pound Sanoe from Gresham, Oregon, had appeared in five games for the Huskies (3-3, 0-3) and scored touchdowns in wins over Utah State and Eastern Washington.

As for inactive Husky rushers, he joins original spring starter Jordan Washington, season-opener starter Quaid Carr, Oregon transfer Jayden Limar and sophomore Julian McMahan as backs who aren't healthy.

Mired in a three-game losing streak, all to Big Ten teams, the Huskies suffered a rash of injuries either during or following last weekend's 41-24 loss to Iowa.

Linebacker Xe'ree Alexander, a starter in a three-man alignment the past two games, suffered a high-ankle sprain against the Hawkeyes and is out for an extended time.

Xe'ree Alexander, with eyes locked in, started the last two games, but is out with a high-ankle sprain.
Xe'ree Alexander, with eyes locked in, started the last two games, but is out with a high-ankle sprain. | Dave Sizer photo

Reserve offensive linemen Jack Shaffer and Justin Hylkema are out and probable with recent injuries, respectively, according to the league report.

The Huskies will try to generate a rushing attack once more after getting stuck with -3 yards against Iowa, the program's lowest total in 14 seasons. They average just 90.3 yards per game.

Coach Jedd Fisch finally has all four of his returning offensive-line starters from 2025 healthy all at once with center Landen Hatchett playing for the first time in 10 games over two seasons after breaking his right wrist.

Couple his recovery with John Mills, the Huskies' top offensive lineman, taking over at left offensive tackle and there's still hope the team can get a rushing attack going.

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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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