Washington Football’s Biggest Piece in 2019
Washington football is going into 2019 with a new quarterback and running back for the first time since 2015, after losing the school’s best at both positions, but without their big left tackle, the transition wouldn’t be nearly as smooth.
Jake Browning and Myles Gaskin set pretty much every school record you can think of during their time with Washington football, and the Huskies will be in unfamiliar territory without them in 2019, but there’s one man who can make the Browning/Gaskin to Jacob Eason/Salvon Ahmed transition a lot smoother. That man is Trey Adams.
Before he tore his ACL during the 2017 season, Adams was on his way to being an All-American, and a first-round pick in the NFL Draft. He wanted to bounce back during his senior year but needed back surgery before the Week One game against Auburn. Adams was able to come back and play in the four-game maximum in order to retain his medical redshirt.
Adams will be a man on a mission during the 2019 campaign, as he’ll want to prove to NFL scouts that he’s healthy enough to still be the same first round player that he was before the injury. Keep in mind that the Huskies lost Kaleb McGary on the right side, so Jared Hilbers, who was an excellent stand-in for Adams, will slide in at right tackle.
That’s already a solid pair of tackles, and then you can add in all-conference center Nick Harris at center, and freshman All-American Jaxson Kirkland at right guard. The only new starter that the Dawgs should see on the offensive line is at left guard, and there are ample options. Whether it be Luke Wattenberg or Henry Bainivalu who both have experience on the field or a redshirt freshman comes in and steals the job, in the form of Victor Curne or M.J. Ale, the Huskies will have a strong offensive line.
With that being said, Adams is the key to it all. The fifth year senior is an excellent all-around player, and with a strong season has the chance to be the first tackle taken in the 2020 NFL Draft. Eason is going to need a strong offensive line, and with protection, he can pick any defense in the country apart.