Two-Thirds of the Huskies Have Never Been Part of a Bowl Game

Walk-on players used to join the University of Washington football program not because they had visions of pushing aside the scholarship guys and getting on the field.

They wanted to go to a bowl game in a warm-weather climate and have the best seat in the house. Even more enticing was the swag that each Husky player received during one of these postseason outings, regardless of their game-day contribution.

They gladly accepted the finest pair of sweats, limited-edition T-shirts, even high-end athletic shoes, stuff you just couldn't get anywhere else.

This was enough to make the non-scholarship players sign up in droves just to be part of the UW postseason bandwagon and the recipient of one-of-a-kind athletic gear. During the Don James coaching era, the Huskies went to 14 bowl games in 16 seasons through 1993, which meant you graduated with a closet full of cool stuff.

Fast forward three decades into the future, and Kalen DeBoer's first UW team just became bowl eligible by earning its sixth victory of the season, a 28-21 decision over the California Golden Bears.

This is more than significant, well beyond being well-dressed later on while going to class in high-end Husky threads.

The UW hasn't been to a postseason game in three years, which seems like a college football lifetime, because of the pandemic and last year's unexpected downturn.

"It's something you don't want to take for granted, having the chance to go postseason and play beyond the 12 games," UW coach Kalen DeBoer said.

Consider that of the 116 players on the Husky roster, 71 have never been to a bowl game in any capacity. That's 61 percent. That's not exactly a surefire recruiting pitch.

Of those 45 players lucky enough to have shared in an extra game at the UW or at another school before hitting the transfer portal, just 25 have played in one of those mostly made-for-ESPN matchups.

"Being bowl eligible is special, especially for an older guy," sixth-year safety Alex Cook said. "One of the things I'm going to remember forever is the bowl experience. For those young guys, they need to experience it. I feel like everybody in college football needs to experience that."

The Huskies still have 16 players who were part of the 2019 Rose Bowl team against Ohio State and six of them played in Pasadena that day.

Jaxson Kirkland and Cook were starters at offensive guard and wide receiver, respectively, while Zion Tupuola-Fetui, Edefuan Ulofoshio, Henry Bainivalu and Peyton Henry pulled special-teams duty.

Three players remain from the UW's Fiesta Bowl 2017 appearance against Penn State, a 35-28 loss, in Kirkland, Bainivalu and Henry, though none of them played on that afternoon in Arizona.

"There's two pieces to it," DeBoer said. "No. 1 is the experience, the experience to do something special, to play out the schedule, play during the holidays. Families a lot of times are able to come join you. These are experiences you want in your program. Those are where memories are built, too. The other is the development of your program, for the individual players and practices that come with a bowl game.

"We'll be playing beyond the Thanksgiving weekend and that's huge."

From the Huskies' most recent bowl excursion, the 2019 Las Vegas Bowl against Boise State, 35 players still turn up on the roster. Seventeen got to play in the 38-7 blowout four days before Christmas.

Among the portal transfers coaxed to Montlake, edge rusher Jeremiah Martin previously from Texas A&M and running back Wayne Taulapapa from Virginia have each played in the Orange Bowl, among other bowls.

Martin faced North Carolina in the 2020 game and shared in a 41-27 victory, and Taulapapa showed up the year before in Miami and lost to Florida 36-28.

Linebacker Kris Moll played five seasons for UAB and appeared in the 2017 Bahamas Bowl, the 2018 Boca Raton Bowl and the 2019 New Orleans Bowl. COVID cancelled out the 2020 Gasparilla Bowl for him. Moll sat out the 2021 Independence Bowl with an injury.

Of all the players who might be the most appreciative of a chance to appear in postseason game that would be Husky starting quarterback Michael Penix Jr.

While at Indiana, he suffered four season-ending injuries in as many seasons and could only watch when the Hoosiers lost to Tennessee 23-22 in the 2019 Gator Bowl and to Ole Miss 26-20 in the 2020 Outback Bowl.

HUSKIES IN BOWL GAMES

Ulumoo Ale, DL — 2018 Rose Bowl (didn't play), 2019 Las Vegas Bowl

Henry Bainivalu, OL — 2017 Fiesta Bowl (didn't play) 2018 Rose Bowl, 2019 Las Vegas Bowl

Jacob Bandes, DL — 2019 Las Vegas Bowl

Julius Buelow, OL — 2019 Las Vegas Bowl (didn't play)

Cam Bright, LB — 2018 Sun Bowl, 2019 Quick Lane Bowl, 2021 Peach Bowl for Pittsburgh

Alex Cook, S — 2018 Rose Bowl, 2019 Las Vegas Bowl

Devin Culp, TE — 2018 Rose Bowl (didn't play), 2019 Las Vegas Bowl

Vic Curne, OL — 2018 Rose Bowl (didn't play), 2019 Las Vegas Bowl

Cam Davis, RB — 2019 Las Vegas Bowl

Kam Fabiculanan, S — 2019 Las Vegas Bowl (didn't play)

Drew Fowler, LB — 2019 Las Vegas Bowl (didn't play)

Dom Hampton, H — 2019 Las Vegas Bowl

Gage Harty, ER — 2018 Rose Bowl (didn't play), 2019 Las Vegas Bowl (didn't play)

Daniel Heimuli, LB — 2019 Las Vegas Bowl (didn't play)

Peyton Henry, PK — 2017 Fiesta Bowl (didn't play), 2018 Rose Bowl, 2019 Las Vegas Bowl (didn't play)

Julius Irvin, S — 2018 Rose Bowl (didn't play), 2019 Las Vegas Bowl (didn't play)

Giles Jackson, WR — 2019 Citrus Bowl for Michigan

Nick Juran, WR — 2019 Las Vegas Bowl (didn't play)

Nate Kalepo, OL — 2019 Las Vegas Bowl (didn't play)

Jaxson Kirkland, OL — 2017 Fiesta Bowl (didn't play), 2018 Rose Bowl, 2019 Las Vegas Bowl

Tuli Letuligasenoa, DL — 2018 Rose Bowl (didn't play), 2019 Las Vegas Bowl (didn't play)

Corey Luciano, C — 2019 Las Vegas Bowl (didn't play)

Jeremiah Martin, ER — 2018 Gator Bowl, 2019 Texas Bowl, 2020 Orange Bowl

Matteo Mele, C — 2018 Rose Bowl (didn't play), 2019 Las Vegas Bowl

Kris Moll, LB — 2017 Bahamas Bowl, 2018 Boca Raton Bowl, 2019 New Orleans Bowl, 2021 Independence Bowl (didn't play) for UAB

Dylan Morris, QB — 2019 Las Vegas Bowl (didn't play)

Richard Newton, RB — 2018 Rose Bowl (didn't play), 2019 Las Vegas Bowl

Zeke Pelluer, TE — 2019 Las Vegas Bowl (didn't play)

Michael Penix Jr., QB — 2019 Gator Bowl (didn't play), 2020 Outback Bowl (didn't play) for Indiana

Mishael Powell, CB — 2019 Las Vegas Bowl (didn't play)

David Pritchard, WR — 2019 Las Vegas Bowl (didn't play)

Wayne Taulapapa, RB — 2018 Belk Bowl, 2019 Orange Bowl for Virginia

Bralen Trice, ER — 2019 Las Vegas Bowl (didn't play)

Faatui Tuitele, DL — 2019 Las Vegas Bowl

Alphonzo Tuputala, LB — 2019 Las Vegas Bowl

Zion Tupuola-Fetui, ER — 2018 Rose Bowl, 2019 Las Vegas Bowl

Asa Turner, S — 2019 Las Vegas Bowl

Jack Westover, TE — 2018 Rose Bowl (didn't play), 2019 Las Vegas Bowl (didn't play)

Cam Williams, S — 2019 Las Vegas Bowl

Edefuan UlofoshioLB — 2019 Las Vegas Bowl

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