UW's Dieterich Plows the Field Playing Center, Riding a Tractor

With a hint of a Texas twang, Kolt Dieterich's background is a dead giveaway. He grew up on a farm 20 miles out of Waco, where his family raised corn, wheat and cotton, and at one time had a small herd of cattle.

"I pretty much sat on a tractor since I was 12 or 13," he said following Friday's final Fall Camp practice.

The Huskies, however, don't need him to operate any heavy machinery. They simply want Dieterich, this son from a farming family, to take care of just a little bit of acreage that fronts the Husky quarterback and brings the offensive line together.

For the Sept. 6 season opener against Washington State, the 6-foot-6, 305-pound Sam Houston State transfer is looking more and more like the Huskies' starting center, replacing the injured Landen Hatchett.

Prior to the UW's May 1 Spring Game, which he sat out while recovering from shoulder surgery, Dieterich had given no thought to playing over the ball. The Huskies brought him in as a tackle. Yet he was easily swayed to try something else by Husky coach Jedd Fisch.

"Coach Fisch came up to me and said, 'Let's get you snapping,' " said Dieterich, who was watching as a spectator.

By then, the Huskies were down two Hatchetts, Landen and Geirean, both injured, both centers at one point in their careers and currently his roommates.

With 19 Fall Camp practices under his belt, Dieterich seems to have taken to this new endeavor and handled the big change in responsibilities that comes with his new assignment.

"At tackle, I'm going up there and look at the center and then I'm just running the play," he said. "Now I have to make the calls and be on time with the cadence."

Offensive lineman Kolt Dieterich (55) was limited in spring ball after having shoulder surgery. | Dave Sizer photo

He saw all sides of the college football landscape while playing for his Conference USA team. He started six games at tackle in 2024 for Sam Houston State when it went 10-3 and beat Georgia Southern 31-26 in the New Orleans Bowl. He opened all 12 games for the Bearkats last year when they struggled through a 2-10 season.

Just a few days after entering the transfer portal, Dieterich arrived in Seattle, a place he had never been before. While highly regarded through analytics, he visited only the UW rather than shop himself around, committing before he left town. He has two seasons he can play for the Huskies.

"I felt I had put myself in good position playing at Sam for three years, and I could get on a bigger stage and play for a bigger team," he said. "Go somewhere where I could play for a national championship."

Dieterich is one of five Texans currently on the UW roster, along with nickelback Ramonz Adams Jr. of Smithville, wide receiver Jordan Clay from San Antonio, defensive tackle Omar Khan of Cypress and safety Paul Mencke Jr. from Cibolo.

Geirean (56) and Landen (66) Hatchett hang out with Kolt Dieterich (55) and Dom Harris (79) post spring game. | Dave Sizer photo

He was reminded that these Huskies have beaten his home state Texas Longhorns the last two times they've played. That did not pain him in the slightest.

"Come on, come on," he said. "I'm not a Texas fan."

Actually, his home of Riesel, with a population of just 1,062, is located close to another Power 4 program that had his attention.

"I grew up a Baylor fan," Dieterich said of the Bears. "But they didn't recruit me."

The Big 12 team, once it learns of his versatility in the trenches as well as his ability to operate a tractor, might live to regret that oversight.

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