Huskies Find Something Redeeming in Oregon -- Tight Ends

Mention Oregon to any skeptical University of Washington football follower, and it just doesn't mean anything worthwhile unless it's wading in the surf at Cannon Beach or skiing down the slopes of Mount Hood.

Unless, of course, you consider the Husky tight-end position.

Most of those guys were made in Oregon. Groomed in the land of no sales tax. Kept at a distance from the Ducks.

Baron Naone, Austin Simmons, Charlie Crowell and Sam Vyhidal.

They're each either from the 503 or 541.

Austin Simmons is back for a second season with the Huskies. | Dave Sizer photo

Of the seven scholarship Husky tight ends on the roster, four of them hail from Oregon and there's one each from California, Hawaii and Washington.

"It definitely made me feel a lot more comfortable with this group of guys," Naone said of his fellow Oregonians.

Freshman Sam Vyhidal waits his turn for the next TE drill. | Dan Raley

Husky fans can relate to this 6-foot-4, 263-pound sophomore from West Linn because he's had his own lifelong dislike of the Ducks.

In 1983 and 1984, his father Charles was a starting edge rusher for Oregon State. Two inches shorter and 22 pounds lighter than his son. A native Hawaiian who passed down his indifference to the team in Eugene.

"The Ducks, I haven't really paid much attention to them because my dad played at Oregon State," Naone said. "So I've always had a little rivalry with them."

Naone played in seven UW games as a true freshman and is being groomed to become the next highly capable Husky blocking tight end, supplying a skill set where the departed Quentin Moore flourished.

Charlie Crowell looks fully healthy after two lost seasons. | Dave Sizer photo

He currently backs up or shares in a two tight-end alignment with Decker DeGraaf, the junior from Southern California.

Behind Naone is Austin Simmons, a 6-foot-5, 251-pound redshirt freshman from Albany. He got a taste in 2025, appearing in three games before preserving his eligibility.

As an aside, Simmons showed up last year with long hair flowing out of helmet before he shaved his head. For now, he has it cut somewhere in between those two looks.

Charlie Crowell is fully engaged in Husky football for the first time in a while. The 6-foot-5, 260-pound sophomore from Bend missed the past two seasons with repeated knee injuries. A rangy, powerful player, he's well on his way to making his UW debut in five months.

New to this group of displaced Oregon players is Sam Vyhidal, a 6-foot-4, 222-pound freshman tight end from Lake Oswego. He moves really well when running routes, but obviously he's in need of a big weight gain before becoming a heavily used player on game day.

While UW backers usually are wary of anything happening south of the Columbia River, they no doubt would like nothing better than beating Oregon using Oregon players.