Safety Cam Williams Enters Portal After Failing to Mesh with New Staff
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Once Kalen DeBoer took over as the University of Washington football coach, 13 of Jimmy Lake's players left the program before the Huskies played another game.
They either didn't see a future in DeBoer's system, wanted out after a bad UW season or had personal reasons —Jackson Sirmon and Cooper McDonald joined family members elsewhere — for exiting Montlake.
With the transfer portal now open for business again, Husky junior safety Cam Williams has become the first to depart the program this week and the 14th departure overall since the coaching change, on Saturday confirming reports that he is leaving.
Williams didn't mesh with the new DeBoer staff at all and watched as his first-team reps decreased throughout spring and fall practice. The body language of the former starter seemed to suggest he didn't feel part of what was happening.
With the portal a stark reality for college football everywhere, Williams won't be the last Husky to move on in search of more playing time or a better program fit.
At Oregon, where the Ducks have their own first-year coach in Dan Lanning, they've lost at least five players to the portal this past week, including wide receiver Dont'e Thornton, who caught a 46-yard touchdown pass in the Ducks' 37-34 loss to University of Washington, plus reserve quarterback Jay Butterfield.
California offensive guard Ben Coleman, who started in the Golden Bears' 28-21 loss to the UW, announced he was transferring.
Likewise, Stanford safety Jonathan McGill and linebacker Levani Damuni, who started in the Cardinal's 40-22 setback to the Huskies in Seattle, have put their names in the portal, as well as reserve offensive lineman Drake Metcalf.
The transfer portal spares no college football program these days. Here are breakdowns of Williams' time in Montlake and other UW players who have had limited roles since the DeBoer staff came on board and might consider their options:
Cameron Williams
After appearing in the first four games this season, the junior safety from Bakersfield, California, opted to sit out the rest of this season, even with the Huskies badly in need of secondary help. He asked to redshirt, which meant an eventual transfer likely was coming. It wasn't that long ago that he caused a game-ending fumble to secure a 31-24 overtime victory over California in 2021 and he was brought in afterward to meet with the media as one of the stalwarts of the night. As a freshman in 2019, the 6-foot, 207-pound Williams started the first six games of his Husky career, which was topped off by a 28-14 win over USC in which he intercepted two passes. He played in 27 UW games and started 10. But now he's gone.
Dylan Morris
He was the Huskies' two-year starting quarterback, winning 7 of 15 games, before two things happened: The interim staff chose to go with freshman Sam Huard in the 2021 Apple Cup, and DeBoer and his coaches brought in Michael Penix Jr. from Indiana to quarterback the Huskies this season. Morris has served as the back-up to Penix, appearing in seven games yet only one with the game still in question. He has gone from 363 passing attempts last year to just 16 this season. Known for his competitiveness, Morris, who's from Puyallup, Washington, seems determined to reclaim the No. 1 job once Penix heads to the NFL and he might be the last guy on the roster who entertains the transfer portal. He has two seasons of eligibility remaining.
Victor Curne
For some reason many of the Texans on the roster have had their Montlake careers regress or end once the new coaching staff took over. Running backs Caleb Berry and Emeka Megwa transferred to Incarnate Word and Oklahoma, with Megwa joining the Sooners as a walk-on, while edge rusher Cooper McDonald left for San Diego State. Running backs Jay'Veon Sunday and Aaron Dumas have seen limited or no duty this season. And then there's Curne. The junior offensive tackle from Houston was a two-year returning starter who opened 16 consecutive games before the new offense was installed and he's been limited to a back-up role and just three outings this season. At 6-foot-4 and 320 pounds, he might not be the body type the DeBoer staff is looking for in providing quarterback protection. Both current starting tackles, sophomore Troy Fautanu and redshirt freshman Roger Rosengarten, have multiple seasons of eligibility remaining, too.
Kuao Peihopa
He pulled snaps in four games this season before DeBoer announced the promising defensive tackle from Hawaii had been suspended indefinitely for a violation of team rules that was unspecified. Peihopa's expulsion involved some sort of insubordination with a coach and the new staff wasn't going to put up with that. So the 6-foot-3, 304-pound redshirt freshman was put on hiatus two months ago. He has eight appearances over two seasons for the Huskies under his belt. It remains to be seen whether he can repair his relationship with the DeBoer staff and resume his UW career or whether he'll move on.
Daniel Heimuli
Likewise, this sophomore linebacker from East Palo Alto, California, recently was indefinitely suspended for a code of conduct violation that wasn't spelled out. It seemed to coincide with his playing time further diminishing with the return of Edefuan Ulofoshio, though there's no indication that prompted it. Heimuli has played in 19 career Husky games, starting two a year ago when Ulofoshio got injured, but he was faced with the possibility of becoming a third-team linebacker and having his career stall. It was thought that when high school teammate and defensive tackle Noa Ngalu left the UW program after spring football, Heimuli might not be too far behind him
Julius Buelow
This 6-foot-8, 311-pound sophomore from Hawaii started the first five games of 2021 at left offensive guard and appeared in 10 outings overall, but he hasn't been given any major responsibility since that time. Converting him to tackle, the new staff has used Buelow in 10 games this season, but mostly on special teams. While he's still young, the starting tackles ahead of him, Troy Fautanu and Roger Rosengarten, are young, too, plus Vic Curne remains in the mix.
Aaron Dumas
The new staff brought Dumas in as a transfer from New Mexico, where he led the Lobos in rushing in 2021 as a freshman with 658 yards, including 143 against Fresno State and DeBoer. While he took most of the spring practice snaps, with most UW backs nursing injuries, he completely disappeared once fall camp began. While seven other backs have carried the ball this season, Dumas has not appeared in a game. It's possible he could be redshirting and trying to make his game better fit the DeBoer/Grubb offense. The coach staff has said only that he's been caught up in the competition at the position.
Jabez Tinae
The scholarship wide receiver from Seattle appeared in just one game for Jimmy Lake's staff in 2021 and he hasn't seen any game action for the new coaches this fall. It's not clear what's been holding Tinae back for two different staffs, whether he's been injured or is simply buried on the depth chart. Either way, he hasn't made much progress in his two seasons in Montlake.
Jay'Veon Sunday
This redshirt freshman running back from Waco, Texas, had everyone's attention during 2021 spring football practice, high-stepping, finger-waving and drawing a real negative reaction from the Husky defense, which made sure to voice its displeasure to him over his continued brashness. Once the '21 season began, Sunday took his place in line behind four veteran runners and was doled out limited playing time in four games, including the final three outings on the schedule. He rushed eight times for a modest 10 yards. Once the new staff came in, Sunday was moved even farther back in the rotation. He made a lone appearance this season against Colorado, breaking off an encouraging 19-yard gain two weeks ago. He seems to like Seattle, though, and likely will stick around and try to make it work with the new regime.
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