Portal-Dependent Huskies Offer, Host Former Texas State Safety
The University of Washington football program is courting another Zion for its defense, this one a Texas State safety in the transfer portal.
Zion Childress holds a scholarship offer from Kalen DeBoer's staff and recently visited Seattle after leaving his Sun Belt Conference team on April 25.
Childress, 6-foot, 194-pound sophomore who has three years of eligibility remaining, also is mulling offers from TCU, Missouri, Kansas, Colorado State, UNLV and Georgia Southern, the latter which relies on former UW defensive-backs coach Will Harris as its defensive coordinator.
The Huskies already have 2020 All-Pac-12 selection Zion Tupuola-Fetui at edge rusher, attempting to regain his top form after tearing an Achilles tendon last year, and this Zion could line up behind him and be inserted in any one of the UW's three secondary positions..
Childress, a converted quarterback from New Caney, Texas, which is 30 miles north of Houston, started all 12 games at safety for a 4-8 Bobcats team and opened six games as a nickel back as a freshman in 2020, while also pulling snaps at cornerback.
"From his freshman to sophomore year, he's like a kid that's been around a program for five years," Brett Dewhurst, former Texas State defensive-backs coach, told the Austin American-Statesman. "If he has that mindset every day, I think the sky is the limit."
This past season, Childress finished with 74 tackles, 5 pass break-ups, 2 forced fumbles and an interception.
He collected 7 tackles and a forced fumble in a 29-20 loss to Baylor early in the season. He had a team-high 10 tackles in a season-ending 24-22 victory over Arkansas State, a Sun Belt team the UW pummeled 52-3 in Seattle in September.
Zion Childress played two seasons for Texas State.
Texas State
The Huskies have been very active in the transfer portal since Kalen DeBoer was hired as coach, picking up Indiana quarterback Michael Penix Jr., UC Davis cornerback Jordan Perryman, New Mexico running back Aaron Dumas, Pittsburgh linebacker Cam Bright, Arizona State wide receiver Lonyatta Alexander Jr., Virginia running back Wayne Taulapapa, Nebraska wide receiver/running back Will Nixon and Idaho State punter Kevin Ryan.
A scholarship directed to the UW secondary opened up last week when sophomore cornerback Jacobe Covington entered the portal.
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