Huskies Patiently Wait for Ryan Otton to Get Ready to Play

The tight end and brother of Cade Otton is getting closer to showing what's he all about.

Ryan Otton joined the University of Washington football team as a tight end the season after his brother Cade finished up a highly accomplished career at the same position for the Huskies and entered the NFL Draft.

Some people actually thought the younger Otton might simply pick up where his older sibling left off, but that wasn't realistic.

They forget the 6-foot-5, 250-pound Cade Otton redshirted his first season in Montlake in 2017 and didn't appear in a game, so a fast start wasn't a given.

They didn't anticipate the 6-foot-6, 243-pound Ryan Otton would pull a hamstring muscle in his very first Husky practice that would bother him throughout much of his first season in 2022, though, unlike his brother, he actually saw game time against Colorado as a true freshman. Sadly, the Ottons' mother died that year, as well, affecting all of them.

A year ago, this next-generation Otton was nagged by injuries once more, plus he found himself playing behind four older tight ends -- Devin Culp, Jack Westover, Josh Cuevas and Quentin Moore -- who each appeared in all 15 games for the UW's national runner-up team. Otton still played in yet another game, this time against California.

Ready or not, Ryan Otton is badly needed by a Husky football team that finds itself in the unique position of being short of veteran tight ends. He's filled out a lot after two years in the program, shows deccent hands and should be more ready for more responsibility.

"He's taken a lot of steps," said tight-ends coach Jordan Paopao, back for a second UW coach stint. "I do think just for Ry it's just being able to show some consistency and just grow some physicality, but you see how he looks and how he catches the ball."

On Saturday, this younger Otton repeatedly rotated his shoulder joint while moving from drill to drill, as if there's lingering discomfort, and he rode an exercise bike near the end of practice, again dealing with maybe that hamstring.

Yet the Huskies will be patient for him to get his body right and enjoy good health. This Otton looks like he's getting close. And, of course, he's the younger brother of Cade, who played for Paopao the first time the coach came through the UW, which says a lot for family genes.

"I think he's a unique talent and someone I'm really looking forward to continue to work with," Paopao said of Ryan Otton, "especially since I've spent some substantial time with his family."

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