Powell Has Gone from Walk-On to Husky Starter to Big-Play Guy
Mishael Powell had seen the play before where Arizona State wide receiver Melquan Stovall slid out in the flat but always as a decoy. However, the alert University of Washington nickelback spotted something in the guy's body language that seemed to suggest the pass was finally coming his way.
Anticipating this all along, Powell jumped the route, intercepted Trenton Bourguet's pass and took off on an 89-yard interception return for a touchdown that helped his unbeaten and fifth-ranked team pull out a difficult 15-7 victory on Saturday night at Husky Stadium.
Bourguet was the only one who had any chance of catching the veteran UW nickelback and dove at his feet at the ASU 25 to no avail.
"I just started running," Powell said, next referencing the sage advice or veiled threat from one of his Husky defensive coordinators. "Coach [Chuck] Morrell said if you get caught by the quarterback, it's an issue. It's like I got going. I'd seen him. It was, 'I can't get caught.' "
Once he touched down in the east end zone, Powell put the Huskies ahead for the first time in the game, at 12-7 with just 8:11 remaining.
His interception return was the sixth-longest in school history behind Brandon Beaver, who went 96 yards against Utah State in 2015; Al Burleson, who raced 93 yards against Washington State in the 1975 Apple Cup; Jermaine Smith, who zipped 91 yards against Arizona in 1997; Bob Pederson, who had a 90-yarder against Oregon State in 1966; and consensus All-America selection George Wilson, who went 90 yards against WSU in 1925. All but Beaver's runback ended up as touchdowns.
"I'm just grateful God made my legs strong enough for this play," Powell said.
A junior from Seattle, Powell remains one of those endearing stories on this football team. He came to the Huskies as a walk-on player, a non-scholarship guy, who started three games at cornerback for Jimmy Lake in 2021 while paying for his own tuition.
One of the first things Kalen DeBoer did when he replaced the fired Lake as the Husky coach was elevate Powell to a scholarship recipient after speaking with team leaders and other support personnel. Yet he really had to do his homework on the defensive back.
"Mish's teammates kept bringing him up," the coach said. "It was almost as if Mish was working it behind the scenes and asking these guys to come forward, and it wasn't. These guys just really liked what he brought to the table."
The 6-foot-1, 210-pound Powell played in nine games at cornerback for DeBoer's first team, starting eight, while overcoming in-season surgery for an upper-body injury.
Mishael Powell celebrates with Husky fans after the 15-7 victory over ASU.
Joe Nicholson/USA TODAY Sports
This season, the Huskies moved him to nickelback, where he's started all seven games and which seems to be an ideal position for him. He intercepted his first pass at Michigan State. On Saturday, he got his second pass theft when the Huskies needed it most against ASU.
Powell is a guy who turned down Ivy League scholarships because he was convinced he could talk the Huskies into paying his way through college, and he was right about that. That full ride looks like a good investment now.
"He's a heady guy and extremely intelligent," DeBoer said of Powell. "His stubbornness makes him different, makes him special."
Go to si.com/college/washington to read the latest Inside the Huskies stories — as soon as they’re published. Not all stories are posted on the fan sites.
Find Inside the Huskies on Facebook by searching: Inside Huskies/FanNation at SI.com or https://www.facebook.com/dan.raley.12
Follow Dan Raley of Inside the Huskies on Twitter: @DanRaley1 or @UWFanNation or @DanRaley3
Have a question, direct message me on Facebook or Twitter.
