Husky O-Line Battles Loom Though Left Side Looks Settled

Washington spring football practice begins on April 1 and new coach Jimmy Lake and his staff are moving players around like chess pieces, trying to find the best possible combinations.

Three and a half weeks from holding their first workout, all indications are the Huskies will use junior honors candidate Jaxson Kirkland at left tackle as the anchor of the offensive line, replacing Trey Adams.

In this accompanying video from last December, offensive-line coach Scott Hoff readily acknowledged that the 6-foot-7, 323-pound Kirkland would be given every chance to step into pro football's money position for linemen. Nothing's changed.

A highly productive sophomore right guard, Kirkland capped off the regular season by being named second-team All-Pac-12 by Pro Football Weekly. However, he missed the Las Vegas Bowl, and the Huskies' 38-7 victory over Boise State, sitting out with an assortment of injuries. He's healthy now.

The Huskies would be extra stout on the left side by pairing Kirkland, a two-year starter, with 6-5, 300-pound senior guard Luke Wattenberg, a three-year line starter. Unless Wattenberg shifts to right tackle.

One of the spring's best position battles will come at center, where 6-5, 305-pound sophomore Matteo Melo, a one-game starter last season, will compete against early enrollee Myles Murao, who at 6-2 and 312 pounds is one of the UW's most heralded recruits.

Junior Henry Bainivalu, a 6-6, 326-pounder who started the Vegas Bowl, could step in at right guard, and 6-3, 320-pound sophomore Victor Curne, who played most of the postseason game against Boise State, will receive a long look at right tackle.

Yet with several gigantic and promising line prospects slotted throughout the two-deeps, the position battles are far from settled and should be intense during spring drills.

Of course, the competition in the trenches will be greatly overshadowed by the starting quarterback sweepstakes between sophomore Jacob Sirmon, last year's backup, and redshirt freshman Dylan Morris, who hasn't played yet, with incoming freshman Ethan Garbers joining them for fall camp.