Landen Hatchett Joins Brother, Nearly Two-Dozen Huskies in Portal
Typical of Landen Hatchett, his message included no fancy graphics, no long list of heartfelt thank-you's, no overly emotional tinge. Just 26 straight-to-the-point words.
The talented University of Washington offensive lineman, expected to be a program building block for future seasons, did what roughly two-dozen of his teammates have done — late Wednesday night, young Hatchett entered the transfer portal.
He did this about 10-11 hours after his older brother and fellow UW lineman Geirean Hatchett had submitted his name to the portal.
While all of these players have the ability to rescind their transfer actions, the Husky football program has never been battered quite so badly with people treating Montlake these days as if it were ground zero for the COVID outbreak.
Everyone's collective departures at such a great magnitude most likely have done irreparable harm to a once-proud UW program, setting it back years in a major rebuild.
Hatchett, if he follows through on his transfer, will be one of the most significant setbacks for the Huskies. He came ready to play as a 6-foot-2, 310-pound freshman from Ferndale, Washington, appearing in nine games and never intending to redshirt.
Hatchett is recovering from a knee injury after getting hurt in practice leading up to the Sugar Bowl and College Football Playoff semifinals and watching the postseason games while on crutches. He likely wasn't going to be ready to play until next fall, if that early.
This younger Hatchett and redshirt freshman center Parker Brailsford, who was a 15-game starter, were expected to be side by side as pillars on the Husky offensive line for the next three seasons.
Not anymore.
Brailsford, who previously was known to be in the portal, made his actions official on Wednesday with his own social-media posting.
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