Ranking the Husky Starting Safety Candidates, 1 through 6
The University of Washington football team has six candidates to prevent six points.
Among the position battles heading into the final two weeks of fall camp, Husky defensive-backs coach Will Harris has identified a half-dozen guys in contention for the two spots in the back row.
Three are returning starters.
One is a converted cornerback.
One is the son of an NFL legend.
The last guy has a cool nickname.
With likely one more week, including Saturday's Fan Fest scrimmage for these guys to state their cases for the jobs, we rank the safety hopefuls 1-6. Feel free to disagree.
For promotional purposes, Julius Irvin (29) and Cam Williams (6), as shown in the video below with cornerback Trent McDuffie and nickelback Bookie Radley-Hiles (44), have been the first-teamers most often in recent days.
1. Cam Williams. The 6-foot, 200-pounder from Bakersfield, California, separated himself from the rest of the pack in 2019, when he started seven games at strong safety as a true freshman. Williams had what could be the game of his career with two interceptions against USC, finishing with three that season. He sat down in favor of Asa Turner for five games that first year and all four last fall. A smart player, it's time for the sophomore to lock up the job once and for all.
2. Julius Irvin. The son of NFL great Leroy Irvin, it's time for the 6-foot-1, 185-pound sophomore to establish himself at free safety. This Irvin has played in 12 games over three seasons as a reserve. Without redshirt and pandemic allowances, he would be a senior now. The Anaheim, California, product had shoulder and knee injuries that slowed his progress early in his UW career, and last year he got burned twice for fourth-quarter touchdowns strikes in the blowout win over Arizona. He's paid his dues.
3. Dominique Hampton. He was one of the breakout stars of spring practice, but hasn't carried over that momentum to fall camp. The 6-foot-2, 220-pound sophomore from Glendale, Arizona, has appeared in 19 games at corner over three seasons. Similar to Irvin, he could be a senior, as well. He's got the best size and speed to become a strong safety starter, but he's still learning the position.
4. Alex Cook. An exceptional athlete, the 6-foot-1, 195-pound junior from Sacramento came to Washington as a wide receiver, redshirted and played in 25 games as a pass-catcher or special-teams performer. He switched to the defensive side and immediately started three games at free safety before coming off the bench in the final outing, giving way to Elijah Molden in the starting lineup. He missed much of the spring with an injury, but he's played well in fall camp.
5. Kamren Fabiculanan. He's split time between nickelback and safety, pulling the least amount of snaps of any of the candidates on the back row. Kam Fab is an interesting athlete, with a long and lean 6-foot-1, 190-pound frame, and plenty of aggressiveness to go with it. He's appeared in just one game, but came up with 4 tackles. The redshirt freshman from Camarillo, California, seems ready to play, he just needs a break to get on the field and show it.
6. Asa Turner. The 6-foot-3, 205-pound sophomore from Carlsbad, California, seemed destined for big things, after starting five games at strong safety, but he's hit a plateau. He started all four games in 2020, yet he heard criticism for shying away from the big hit. He and Williams have the only interceptions among this six-some, with Turner grabbing one in each of his two Husky seasons. He missed most of spring football with an injury and the past week with presumably a pandemic illness, pushing down the depth chart. He's got safety size; he just needs to start over and re-establish himself.
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