Tuputala's Ill-Fated Return Adds to UW's Long List of Explosive Plays

it was a thing of beauty until it wasn't, when University of Washington linebacker Alphonzo Tuputala intercepted one against Utah and took off running for the goal line 77 yards away.

As everyone who watched the game or later saw the ESPN and FOX highlights knows by now, Tuputala covered three quarters of the Husky Stadium artificial surface with little trouble yet the football did not.

The veteran player absentmindedly dropped the ball thinking he had scored, and it stopped dead on the 1, where a Utes offensive lineman got his hands on it. This became an immediate blooper-reel moment.

While he received more outward grief than glory for his long runback that came without a scoring reward, Tuputala added his name to the UW's growing list of those with long-distance plays this season, which now stretches to 14 players covering 45 yards or more. Five have resulted in touchdowns.

Tuputala, a 6-foot-2, 240-pound junior linebacker from Federal Way, Washington, has the fourth-longest play among his teammates.

These Huskies have proved to be explosive and can cover a lot of ground. Here's a breakdown:

LONG-DISTANCE HUSKIES in 2023

92 yards — Ja'Lynn Polk, TD reception, Stanford

89 yards — Mishael Powell, TD interception, ASU

83 yards — Rome Odunze, TD punt return, California

76 yards — Alphonzo Tuputala, interception, Utah

57 yards — Josh Cuevas, reception, Michigan State

57 yards — Josh Cuevas, reception, Arizona

53 yards — Dillon Johnson, run, USC

52 yards — Dillon Johnson, TD run, USC

51 yards — Germie Bernard, punt return, Tulsa

50 yards — Rome Odunze, reception, Michigan State

50 yards — Ja'Lynn Polk, reception, Boise State

47 yards — Tybo Rogers, reception, California

45 yards — Edefuan Ulofoshio, TD interception, California

45 yards — Dillon Johnson, run, Michigan State

UW coach Kalen DeBoer watched Tuputala's gaffe unfold from well up the Husky sideline and later took a pragmatic view of it, noting how his team responded by causing a Utah safety on the very next play and ultimately won in spite of giving away a sure touchdown.

"Unfortunately you just get excited and it's a great lesson to learn from," DeBoer said. "Fortunately, we win the football game and he can learn from that. [With] the defense getting back out there and getting some points with the safety, and just continuing to pick up and play ball, I saw a lot of guys as the game's going along going to Zo and making sure they knew that they've got his back."

Had he hung onto the ball, Tuputala would have provided the UW's third pick-6 this season, joining nickelback Mishael Powell, who went 89 yards to score against Arizona State, and linebacker Edefuan Ulofoshio, who covered 45 yards on his TD runback against California.

Tuputala's interception left him tied for 14th in school annals for the longest return with cornerback Dashon Goldson, who raced 76 yards to score against USC in 2005.

Of those more than a dozen UW players with the longest interception returns, just three didn't score: safety Brandon Beaver, who went 96 yards against Utah State in 2015, safety Tommie Smith, who covered 86 yards against WSU in 1991, both getting tackled ... and Tuputala.

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.