Pac-12 Eligibility Scoreboard: Rivals 3, UW 0, with McKinney, Calvert to Utah

Safety joins linebacker as Husky defectors who are now Utes.

Since the Pac-12 loosened its in-house transfer rules this week, the portal transfer scoreboard for the University of Washington football program now stands at Conference Rivals 3, Huskies 0.

After former UW freshman quarterback Ethan Garbers received his immediate eligibility at UCLA, sophomore inside linebacker Josh Calvert and senior free safety Brandon McKinney each have revealed plans to join Utah and play without penalty.

The two Huskies turned Utes must have seen defensive opportunities awaiting them after watching Utah blow a 21-0 lead last November at Husky Stadium and drop a difficult 24-21 decision.

While Calvert hadn't played yet at the UW after getting injured, McKinney joins Utah after appearing in 44 games over four seasons and starting just once — the 2019 Rose Bowl against Ohio State alongside JoJo McIntosh.

The 6-foot, 201-pound McKinney from Orange, California, played in three of the UW's four pandemic-season games last fall, ironically sitting out just the Utah game. He had four tackles for the season, three against Arizona.

Career-wise, he went from UW starter to backing up nickelback Elijah Molden in 2019 to completely dropping off the two-deeps last season and playing only special teams.

It is hoped that McKinney will shore up a Utes back row that is seeking a starting safety to play opposite Vonte Davis. At the UW, he had been passed by on the depth chart by younger safeties in Cameron Williams and Asa Turner and needed a change of college football scenery.

A one-time 4-star recruit, McKinney was described by the Utah media as one of the top safeties in the transfer portal, though he was mostly a special-teams player for the Huskies in recent seasons and started just that one Rose Bowl. To his benefit, he was competing in what is annually regarded as one of the top secondaries nationwide. 

After entering the transfer portal on April 2, McKinney received interest from Kansas State, Louisville, Colorado and Hawaii, among others, according to Rivals. He has one season of college eligibility remaining.

Follow Dan Raley of Husky Maven on Twitter: @DanRaley1 and @HuskyMaven

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