Inside The Huskies

UW Nickelback Competition Was As Intense As Any On the Team

Leroy Bryant edged out Rahshawn Clark for the right to go onto the field first.
Dan Raley|
Leroy Bryant looks all alone at Penn State.
Leroy Bryant looks all alone at Penn State. | Skylar Lin Visuals

It was zero and 2, going one on one against each other on the Montlake practice fields throughout August.

In one of the more intense University of Washington position battles -- yet somewhat overshadowed by the competition on the offensive line and at wide receiver -- Leroy Bryant emerged as the Huskies' fifth defensive back, as the starting nickelback for Saturday night's season opener against Colorado State.

The 6-foot, 185-pound sophomore from Fairfield, California, edged out Rahshawn Clark, the 6-foot, 195-pound redshirt freshman from Seattle, in a memorable struggle.

"Rahshawn Clark and Leroy have been battling every day," UW coach Jedd Fisch said. "The competition has been really, really good. It's been fun to watch."

Rahshawn Clark watches the Spring Game intently.
Rahshawn Clark watches the Spring Game intently. | Skylar Lin Visuals

Bryant is the guy who as a true freshman played in seven games during the Huskies' 2023 run to the national championship game and amazingly preserved his redshirt status -- because three of those outings came in the postseason and didn't count against his eligibility.

Meantime, Clark might have been the UW's spring football most valuable player, at any position, by coming up with one interception after another, seven at last count over 15 practices.

Over the past month, they took their credentials and accomplishments and went at it like Jordan and Kobe dunking on each other, and the competition was well worth the price of a court-side seat.

"One guy comes in and makes a play, one guy comes in and makes a tackle, one guy comes in and gets a pick and one guy comes in and loses a rep," Fisch said, giving a blow by blow like a boxing announcer. "The competition has been constant."

In the end, Bryant's added year of Husky football playmaking enabled him to pull away and win the job, though his reward might not be much more than getting his name called out as a starter over the public-address system before kickoff.

Fisch, with all of these furious position battles waged up and down the UW lineup, intends to reward everyone who is capable of playing right away, with Bryant simply becoming the first onto the field at the nickel.

These guys are so good, they might be the Huskies' starting cornerbacks in 2026. For now, they'll take turns doing what they do at nickel.

"He and Rahshawn will rotate whether it be by series or personnel groups," the coach said. "But we'll see both of those guys."

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:

Published
Dan Raley
DAN RALEY

Dan Raley has worked for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, as well as for MSN.com and Boeing, the latter as a global aerospace writer. His sportswriting career spans four decades and he's covered University of Washington football and basketball during much of that time. In a working capacity, he's been to the Super Bowl, the NBA Finals, the MLB playoffs, the Masters, the U.S. Open, the PGA Championship and countless Final Fours and bowl games.

Home/Football