Husky Roster Review: Muhammad Key to Defensive Upgrade

Let the record show that a year ago quarterback Michael Penix Jr. emerged from Indiana and the transfer portal, joined a bunch of veteran University of Washington players and was the lynchpin for turning the offense into one of the nation's most prolific.

The Huskies are hoping to get the same sort of performance boost on defense from cornerback Jabbar Muhammad, a portal newcomer from Oklahoma State and a certified playmaker.

What's similar about Penix and Muhammad is it didn't take much coaxing to get either elite player to sign on with Kalen DeBoer's team. Both did their homework and were open to coming to Seattle.

While the quarterback previously knew DeBoer, having had him as his offensive coordinator for one year in the Big Ten, Muhammad caught everyone off guard when he reached out to the UW staff ... via a Twitter message.

"It was kind of a surprise," Husky co-defensive coordinator William Inge said. "Initially, we weren't anticipating anything. All of a sudden, a guy gets a message on Twitter, and that's kind of how it started."

Once a player enters the portal and the Huskies are even just vaguely interested, they send out a blanket inquiry. Often times, these things go unanswered in faraway locations.

Muhammad was different. He was on board. While his communications skills might have been fairly basic, his advanced pass coverage skills were unquestioned.

"When he responded back, saying the door is open," Inge recounted of his sudden UW recruitment follow-up, "that's when the sharks came in to bite."

Going down the roster from No. 0 to 99, Muhammad, who wears No. 1 on defense, is next up in a series of profiles about each of the Huskies' scholarship players and assorted walk-ons, summing up their spring football performances and surmising what might come next for them.

Oklahoma State transfer Jabbar Muhammad impressed everyone with his confident style during spring practice, both in battling with wide receivers and speaking with media members.

Cornerback Jabbar Muhammad, an Oklahoma State transfer, lines up opposite tight end Josh Cuevas, a newcomer from Cal Poly.

Jabbar Muhammad carries the names of two iconic athletes and the native Texan said his father actually named him after Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

Rome Odunze, having a better spring than any other Husky, beat all of the UW defensive backs at times, including Jabbar Muhammad.

A DeSoto, Texas, product, Jabbar Muhammad was a 3-star recruit who chose Oklahoma State over Texas Tech, Colorado, Houston, North Texas and Tulsa.

Jabbar Muhammad said he came to the UW because of its reputation for developing cornerbacks and he wanted to take the next step in his game.

Jabbar Muhammad has one interception in his college career, coming up with it in Oklahoma State's 20-14 victory over Iowa State at home last season.

Jabbar Muhammad entered the transfer portal after the regular season ended, accepted a UW offer and skipped Oklahoma State's Guaranteed Rate Bowl appearance against Wisconsin in Phoenix.

Jabbar Muhammad drew his first Oklahoma State start in the 2022 Fiesta Bowl in a 37-35 victory over Notre Dame, finishing with 7 tackles and a pair of two pass break-ups.

An orange-shirted and exultant Jabbar Muhammad celebrates a big hit against Baylor last season, one of his 48 tackles for Oklahoma State.

In spring ball, the 5-foot-10, 165-pound Muhammad started off slow, nursing some sort of winter workout injury, but it didn't take long for him to show what he could do and establish himself as the best cornerback on the practice field.

He had memorable one-on-one battles with wide receiver Rome Odunze, getting beat at times by his new teammate. Yet he showed himself to be a fierce competitor, coming back to grab, push and crowd the All-America candidate on subsequent plays.

"Super competitive, very high football IQ, extremely mature," said Chuck Morrell, the UW's other co-defensive coordinator. "That's the thing we needed in that room was a veteran presence. ... He's going to be a guy who's going to be highly competitive and knows how to win."

The Huskies could have him for up to two seasons, though if he plays as advertised he'll be in the NFL draft in 12 months.

JABBAR MUHAMMAD FILE

Service: Muhammad appeared in 31 games for Oklahoma State and started 13, a dozen coming last season. He was named second-team All-Big 12. While the Huskies beat Texas 27-20 in the Alamo Bowl, Muhammad gained a regular-season victory over the Longhorns, 41-34. While the UW got upset by Arizona State 45-38, the corner shared in a 34-17 win over the Sun Devils.

Stats: He topped the Cowboys with 9 pass break-ups, finished with 48 tackles and had a forced fumble in 2022. He has one of two career college interceptions for a current UW corner, with his coming in a 20-14 victory over Iowa State last season.

Role: Pencil Muhammad in as a solid starter for the Huskies, as a secondary leader. The big mystery will be who becomes the first-team cornerback opposite him.

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