With His Blocking Skills, Naone Ready To Become UW Land Baron

Husky Roster Review: The Oregon-produced tight end is poised to become a reliable escort.

Baron Naone seemed to solidify himself as the UW's No. 2 tight end. | Dave Sizer photo

In the University of Washington Spring Game in May, sophomore tight end Baron Naone showed off a talent people hadn't seen before and hopefully won't have to witness again.

With the coaching staff calling for a bit of trickery on the first series of the second half, Naone was handed the ball and he let fly with a pass that sailed over the head of junior wide receiver Rashid Williams and into the welcoming arms of sophomore safety Paul Mencke Jr. for an interception.

So the 6-foot-4, 263-pound Naone doesn't necessarily have a passing future -- but the rest of his game seems to come with high marks.

"Baron Naone made a huge jump this spring," UW coach Jedd Fisch confirmed.

Baron Naone loosens up during a spring practice in Dempsey Indoor. | Dave Sizer photo

This is one in a series of articles -- going from 0 to 99 on the UW roster -- examining what each scholarship player and leading walk-on did in spring practice and what to expect from them going into fall camp.

Naone, a sophomore from West Linn, Oregon, spent nearly all 15 spring practices as the No. 2 tight end behind junior incumbent Decker DeGraaf as a host of players bid for the chance to replace the graduated Quentin Moore, who gave the Huskies an exquisite blocker.

Baron Naone (85) gets loose before a UW spring practice. | Dave Sizer photo

Naone provided the Huskies with a little something of everything. Over the course of the spring, he caught 11 passes for 111 yards and 2 touchdowns.

His finest moment wasn't real artistic, but it worked out just the same. Backing up and waiting for it, he hauled in a 39-yard scoring pass from Demond Williams Jr. during the sixth practice.

Meantime, Naone seemed to relish the contact that comes with his position and his chance to replace Moore, his former teammate now trying to catch on in the NFL. It's his turn to give the Husky rushing attack a chance to skirt the corners for big yards.

“Quentin Moore did an unbelievable job for us, just in terms of his physicality, changing the tempo of games, the climate of games,” tight-ends coach Jordan Paopao said. “I see Baron having a great opportunity to replace that and really own that role, with potentially an addition of downfield catching and being able to do some things in the passing game, as well.”

Naone is sort of an old-school player who recognizes that guts over glory is a preferable approach for him.

“I’ve always kind of been the guy that can really do everything," he said. "I can catch passes, but I try to focus in on my blocking, for sure. Help the O-line out. They’re a really good group of guys, but if you can get that extra help with them being that good, the run game will be unstoppable.”

What he's done: Naone appeared as a freshman in seven UW games, with six of his appearances coming after fellow tight ends Kade Eldridge and Moore each got hurt against Michigan at midseason. He burned his redshirt status. He's still awaiting his first career catch for the Huskies.

Starter or not: He's sort of a younger version of Decker DeGraaf, which is reliable and physical, and likely will pair with DeGraaf when the UW goes to a double tight end formation. So starting assignments are in his near future.