Washington Huskies Football: The Understated Importance of Marques Tuiasosopo

I was fighting back tears on Saturday night watching Ken Griffey get inducted into the Mariner Hall of Fame, and I kept thinking to myself, “My God, I hope those young pups are listening to every single word out of his mouth. Drink it all in. He’s one of the best to ever play, and he’s telling you that you can do special things just like his team did.”

The value and impact of a legend imparting wisdom to players just coming up cannot be measured. For all of those guys who mimicked Griffey’s swing in their backyard growing up, here he was standing ten feet away from them telling them that they can do it – they can win.

I started thinking then about who would carry that kind of weight with UW Football, and I immediately stopped myself. The right guy is already in place. Marques Tuiasosopo, Rose Bowl Champion, former NFL Quarterback and Husky Legend is here.

Make no mistake, he’s been here before. A few years ago he was a strength coach, but he had no game day responsibilities. He was learning the ropes. This is different. Tui is back to do one thing, and that is show these young men what winners do. He’s here to show this team how to prepare, how to work, how to finish.

The last image people have of Tui is hoisting the Rose Bowl trophy on New Year’s Day in 2001, leaving UW as one of the all-time greats. What gets forgotten is that he was scarcely recruited to even play quarterback. Big time programs wanted him to be a Safety. Only Jim Lambright gave him the chance to play QB, and that was all he needed – one chance.

Jan. 3, 2012; Phoenix, AZ, USA; West quarterback (5) Jeff Lindquist against the East during the Semper Fidelis All-American Bowl high school football game at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Now, 13 years later, Tui is back and serving a role that very few people can. Not only can he teach, but he can prove it. He can say something to all of the Quarterbacks and then say “yeah, I did it.” Don’t for a second think that this is lost on Sark. He knew exactly what he was doing brining Tui back to Montlake. Sark knew that he needed to reignite Keith Price. He needed a way to reach #17, to remind him what he is capable of and what he needs to do to get there. Enter one of the greatest UW QB’s of all time, a natural winner and competitor as Price’s position coach. Do you think Tui had Price’s attention? Maybe he showed him his Pac 10 Championship Ring or his Rose Bowl MVP trophy. If he didn’t have his attention before, he has it now.

There is another layer here as well. Price is a senior. He’s done after this year no matter what. Tui will work to get the last ounce of potential and productivity out of Price this year, but at the same time, Tui has the ears of an incredibly deep and talented pool of young QB’s who will compete for Price’s job next year. Tui is rebuilding Keith Price and at the same time molding Cyler Miles, Jeff Lindquist and Troy Williams.

We all want to see Price rebound from last year’s up and down performance – and if/when he does, all of the accolades will of course go to #17. But in the background, a Husky Legend will be smiling to himself, remembering just how sweet it is.

Bow down and go Dawgs.