Time for Jackson Sirmon To Grab For More of the Glory

Jackson Sirmon's 54-yard fumble return against Boise State in the 2019 Las Vegas Bowl seemed to size him up as a University of Washington football player.

Instinctive, heady effort.

Covered more than half the field.

Came up 35 yards short of the goal line.

On the next-to-last play of the game.

He didn't get the glory.

Kidded about this, Sirmon lightheartedly deferred to former teammate Myles Bryant, now with the New England Patriots, for him not reaching the end zone. For not supplying a final block on the player who pulled him down.

"This is to Myles Bryant, if he sees this," Sirmon said, looking into a UW camera. "He was telling me the whole time I was good and he was right behind me. I give him crap all the time. He should have peeled off and given the guy a little bump."

Readying for the coming season, the 6-foot-3, 235-pound sophomore inside linebacker from Brentwood, Tennessee, gives the Huskies a returning starter, a loyal wingman for Edefuan Ulofoshio, a steadying influence.

Yet for all the football inroads he's made, Sirmon still hears impatient fans want him to be more of a big-play performer.

To score rather than get pulled down.

To come out from the shadow of Ulofoshio, who's mentioned in some circles as an All-America candidate.

Steady Eddie, for one, thinks the true coming-out party for Jackson Sirmon will happen soon.

"I don't think he gets the credit he deserves because he's been working his butt off every single day," Ulofoshio said. "He's really been grinding and it's finally paying off. I can't wait to play side by side with him this year because he's going to do some crazy stuff."

To the long-time observer, Sirmon, a former UW assistant coach's son, is made of the same stuff that launched the careers of previous Husky players such as James Clifford, Dave Hoffmann, Tim Meamber, David Rill and Ben Burr-Kirven into inside linebacker prominence.

Toughness rather than speed.

Grit rather than flash.

Sirmon is consciously trying to become a more free-flow player on the UW second row.

"I like to think I now what's going on; I can pick things up quickly," he said. "My big struggles are I've always been a bit of an over-thinker. It's just letting it come, playing fast and making quick decisions. That's something I'm trying to hone in on."

Sirmon is a familiar name for the Huskies, with at least two on the roster for each of the past four seasons. Jackson has teamed with cousins Jacob and Camden, both quarterbacks. The linebacker's dad, Peter, was a Steve Sarkisian linebackers coach at the UW in 2012 and 2013 after playing at Oregon and six NFL seasons for the Tennessee Titans

Peter Sirmon currently is the California defensive coordinator for Justin Wilcox, another former Oregon player at defensive back, a one-time teammate and fellow Husky assistant coach.

Asked why he didn't play for his dad and whether they needed football separation, Jackson, who didn't receive a Cal offer, found that amusing.

"That's a funny question," Sirmon said. "I'm super tight with him. He's awesome. There's some things that just don't happen. They're not planned. He would be amazing to play for. I'm sure all the guys down there love playing for him. Some things don't work out. That's how it it is now."

Sirmon has 21 Husky games under his football belt. He came up with a career-best 9-tackle outing in the stunning comeback win over Utah. Quite possibly he could be the returning starter who elevates his game the most this season.

He was a reserve 20 months ago when he got pulled down with that fumble recovery in Las Vegas with nothing but open field in front of him. As a seasoned and more determined starter, Sirmon would do things different now if trying to reach the goal line with a turnover. He'd go all 89 yards.

"Yeah, I'm scoring," he said.

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