Husky Roster Review: UW In Good Hands with Denzel Boston

For all of the positive strides made by the University of Washington football team this past spring, a glaring shortcoming was dropped passes.

It seemed epidemic at times. Muff, clank, boink. Running backs, tight ends, but mostly wide receivers.

It was as if everybody had a bad case of steel-factory hands at some point during spring ball.

To be fair, it might have been noticeable only because the receiving corps not too long ago was stocked by players such as Rome Odunze, Jalen McMillan and Ja'Lynn Polk, who caught practically everything thrown at them.

Denzel Boston makes a touchdown catch against Michigan. | Skylar Lin Visuals

Then, of course, the Huskies were without the sure-handed Denzel Boston for all of the 15 spring practices while he was held out in a precautionary move after having some sort of offseason procedure that wasn't disclosed.

And, no, it had nothing to do with his hands.

It is hoped that once the 6-foot-4, 209-pound Boston is back in the mix, snagging passes right and left, his excellence will rub off on all the others.

"He can be the best in the country," receivers coach Kevin Cummings said.

Denzel Boston took part in a few spring drills while recovering from an unspecified injury. | Skylar Lin Visuals

This is one in a series of articles -- going from 0 to 99 on the Husky roster -- examining what each scholarship player and leading walk-on did this past spring and what to expect from them going forward.

While he was limited to non-contact drills, if that, Boston continued to build a bigger reputation in his down time, showing up on multiple NFL mock drafts, and even going as the top wide receiver chosen on at least one of them.

The attraction to him is everything -- size, speed and soft hands.

He's still just a junior, but there's virtually no way this won't be his final college season.

"We need to continue to improve the execution of our passing game," UW coach Jedd Fisch said of team priorities once spring practice was over. "It's very difficult when Denzel isn't able to be part of any of the spring."

The return of Boston in Seattle likely changes everything for the Huskies through the air, with nearly everyone around him getting to see how it's done.

DENZEL BOSTON FILE

What he's done: After catching 105 passes in high school, Boston became a full-fledged Husky starter in 2024 and caught 63 passes for 807 yards and 9 touchdowns. He had a career-high 9 catches against USC. All of his scoring grabs came in the first seven games, with him going scoreless over the final six outings. He's also been an active special-teamer in both kick coverage with 4 tackles and punt returns with 12 for 80 yards.

Starter or not: Boston has 14 career starts, counting one as a redshirt freshman in 2023. Again, some consider him the best receiver in the nation, and that label extends beyond his coaches who automatically might make that claim.

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