Impressions of Husky Spring Football Practice No. 1

The first of 15 University of Washington spring football practices was padless but not without a sufficient amount of emotion.

Under sunny yet cloudy skies, sophomore offensive guard John Mills got things started on Tuesday by doing his best General George Patton impression -- pacing in front of his teammates without his helmet on, hair flying, as he gave them emphatic marching orders.

From there, it was nearly three hours of drills, drills and more drills, with a couple 11-on-11 sets near the end.

First impressions were as follows:

Freshman Derek Colman-Brusa has to be the fittest 6-foot-5, 295-pounder to take the field in Montlake, as well proportioned closing in on three bills on the scale as one could imagine.

The coaching staff initially chose to use him coming out of a stance as a defensive tackle, teaming him with junior defensive tackle Elinneus Davis and senior edge rushers Jacob Lane and Isaiah Ward.

As imposing as he looked, it's easy to forget Colman-Brusa is still just an 18-year-old kid, confirmed when he was seen sneaking a wave to his two moms watching nearby as he entered a drill midway through the opening workout.

He's the kind of physical specimen you typically see at Ohio State or Georgia, but not often in a Husky uniform.

"He can play all four spots on the defensive line," UW coach Jedd Fisch. "We felt that [defensive tackle] was a good place to start him."

Colman-Brusa, however, wasn't the only one with family members watching the near three-hour workout.

Mills' grandfather, Joe Ryan, a former Husky player himself, sat in a folding chair near an end zone at the East Field, getting a close-up look at his grandson put through the paces.

Standing on the sideline was Warren Moon, the one-time UW quarterback and father of Ryken Moon, a walk-on Husky running back.

Warren Moon, in the background, watched the first Husky spring practice, which involved his son Ryken. | Dan Raley

Freshman running back Brian Bonner Jr., who arrived with a great deal of fanfare, sort of glides when he runs. Yet he's currently slight of build and will need more weight room time and bulk before he carries a big workload.

Playing next to Mills was 6-foot-6, 321-pound freshman offensive tackle Kodi Greene, who seemed fairly nimble as he went through the blocking drills and right off it didn't seem far-fetched that he could start right away.

Of the three transfer defensive tackles, DeSean Watts formerly of Sacramento State was a very compact and thick-looking individual at 6-foot and 313 pounds, while Darin Conley from Ball State was a much more filled-out 6-foot-3, 290-pound newcomer than originally listed.

The third guy?

That was the massive Kai McClendon, a 6-foot-1, 334-pound Mississippi State transfer who came out near the end of practice using a crutch and wearing a heavy black knee brace on his right side.

He tore up a knee eight months ago at the SEC school, missed the entire 2025 season and seems quite a ways off from playing for the UW.

Sophomore tight end Charlie Crowell, who missed all of his first two seasons with injuries, looked totally healthy and fairly impressive running around and catching passes with his 6-foot-5, 260-pound frame.

Freshman safety Gavin Day resembled a much younger and lighter Alex McLaughlin, the returning starter and honors candidate at that position.

Freshman safety Gavin Day had his hand rewrapped during practice. | Dan Raley

While still on the roster, last year's punter Luke Dunne came out only in a T-short and shorts as he seems ready to move on and possibly is just waiting for the quarter to end.

His replacement, Hunter Green, a transfer from San Diego State, was the first player to come out for practice, arriving 25 minutes early.

He chatted for awhile with former UW and NFL quarterback Damon Huard, who played with Green's late father Phil, who was a reserve Husky kicker and defensive back for the 1991 national championship team and again in 1992.