Surviving Job Interview, Huskies Remain Unbeaten in Offseason
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Ryan Grubb sometimes shows up for press briefings in shorts while wearing flip-flops on his feet. He occasionally references getting acclimated to Seattle's extra rainy weather with a sneer.
So you can't really fault the University of Washington offensive coordinator for taking an overnight trip to Alabama, where the climate is more temperate. However, he apparently learned the grass is not always greener or the skies really any less gray.
Maybe Grubb — and he's cocky enough to do this — just wanted to look Nick Saban in the eye, shake his hand, check out the man's office and network a little, while leaving his business card on Saban's desk for future reference.
Regardless, this man dubbed as college football's latest offensive genius traveled all the way to the South and back and nothing happened.
Actually, a lot of positive stuff takes place with each difficult decision lately within the program, including this one, as the Huskies continue to enjoy what amounts to an unbeaten offseason.
It can't be understated how well everything has gone down for the UW football team since the Apple Cup, better in the offseason than anyone can remember over several decades for a group with contending possibilities.
A year ago, Kalen DeBoer took over a downtrodden 4-8 football team and immediately lost four current or former Husky defensive starters when the following transferred out or were injured: inside linebackers Jackson Sirmon (California) and Edefuan Ulofoshio (knee, winter workouts), defensive tackle Taki Taimani (Oregon) and edge rusher Laiatu Latu (UCLA, coming out of medical retirement).
Amid all of that turmoil, Junior Adams accepted an offer to become DeBoer's receivers coach and then resigned to take a job at Oregon, which caused top recruit and touted wide receiver Germie Bernard to ask for a scholarship release and flee to Michigan State.
Bernard is exhibit B to how much fortunes have changed for the UW, with the Nevada native backtracking and joining the Huskies a second time.
Exhibit A?
Note that no one mentions Michael Penix Jr.'s injury history anymore. It's been 16 months and two time zones since this very talented yet once snake-bitten quarterback suffered the last of his four consecutive season-ending, surgery-requiring physical mishaps. He's not in rehab, not rebuilding some body part.
Penix, of course, got everyone focused on 2023 before they even handed Texas a 27-20 Alamo Bowl beating by announcing his return on video at the team banquet rather than put his name in the NFL draft.
He's been followed by draft-eligible wide receivers Rome Odunze and Jalen McMillan, edge rushers Bralen Trice and Zion Tupuola-Fetui, defensive tackle Tuli Letuligasenoa, tight end Devin Culp and offensive tackle Troy Fautanu each making a public pronouncement with a positive UW outcome.
Consider the one time in program history the Huskies went unbeaten in 12 games and won a national championship in 1991, they lost returning quarterback and Rose Bowl MVP Mark Brunell to a spring-practice knee injury and survived that disaster.
For that matter, the 1960 UW team that went 10-1 and likewise was christened as a national champ lost All-America quarterback Bob Schloredt to an early-season broken collarbone and somehow managed without him until his Rose Bowl return.
These Huskies seem to have much better luck, though spring practice awaits them. Yet they're on an overly impressive win streak even without putting on any pads.
If Grubb listening to Saban overtures and getting flattered by the Crimson Tide attention is as bad as it gets this offseason, the Huskies are in for very promising season. He'll learn to like the rain more, too.
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