Inside The Huskies

Huskies Flip Another Arizona Signee in 6-8, 315-pound Offensive Tackle

Justin Hylkema answers to the nickname "Moose" and for good reason.
Dan Raley|
Huskies Flip Another Arizona Signee in 6-8, 315-pound Offensive Tackle
Huskies Flip Another Arizona Signee in 6-8, 315-pound Offensive Tackle

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Washington Huskies

Justin Hylkema played for the Chargers this past football season.

No, not the soon-to-be Jim Harbaugh version, though one glimpse of this oversized 6-foot-8, 315-pounder might give you pause for a moment.

Late Monday night, Hylkema committed to play for Jedd Fisch's University of Washington football team as a Class of 2024 recruit who previously signed a letter of intent with Arizona — becoming the second player to flip between the schools in a matter of hours.

The other was cornerback Rahim Wright from Rancho Cucamonga High School in that Southern California city, who's similarly newly committed to the UW.

Hylkema?

He's from the northern half of the state, from Wilcox High School in Santa Clara, a team that answers to Chargers. Hylkema is so big he was known as "Moose" as he lined up for his 8-5 football team.

On Monday, the 3-star Bay Area recruit announced the Huskies had offered him and, with everything happening fast, he posted on social media an hour later that he was committed.

Hylkema could be a replacement for 6-foot-5, 253-pound offensive lineman Paki Finau from Hesperia, California, though the UW is hoping land both of them. Finau signed with the Huskies in December, but recently entered the transfer portal after coach Kalen DeBoer left for Alabama.

A prototype left tackle and a 3-star recruit, Hylkema anchored an offensive line that cleared the way for Wilcox to rush for more than 260 yards per game this past season.

"He can move people," Wilcox coach Mike LaFleur told the local newspaper. "He can really take people off the ball and he enjoys it. He enjoys being a physical football player and he has great technique."

Hylkema committed to Arizona last June and signed with the Wildcats in December, yet Fisch's coaching move to Seattle made him reconsider his decision.

Besides Arizona, Hylkema previously was recruited by California, Washington State, Utah State, Nevada and several smaller schools. 

While he played for high school-level Chargers, Hylkema professes to be a lifelong San Francisco 49ers fan. Don't try to contact him on Feb. 11 because he will be a little preoccupied on Super Bowl Sunday.

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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.

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