Trey Adams fills up space like few others in college football. He stands 6-foot-8, weighs 309 pounds. He’s sculpted rather than lineman fat.
He is Washington’s left tackle, but he looks and runs like a gigantic tight end. He has NFL written all over him, and he is only a sophomore.
A year ago, Adams and his teammates thumped Southern Mississippi in the Heart of Dallas Bowl. On New Year’s Eve, the fourth-seeded Huskies (12-1) will face No. 1 and unbeaten Alabama (13-0) in the semifinals of the College Football Playoff, at the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl in the Georgia Dome. Adams walks and talks with a bit of a swagger as he considers the postseason upgrade.
“We’re not going to, no offense, a little Dallas bowl,” he said. “We’re going to a big bowl. If you want to be the best, you have to play the best. This feels like it was meant to be.”
As much as anyone, Adams represents the dramatic change in talent level and matching attitude at Washington wrought by third-year coach Chris Petersen. For nearly a decade, a number of homegrown players similar in regard to the blue-chip lineman from Wenatchee, Wash., sidestepped a Husky football program in continuous disarray and went elsewhere to win championships and prepare themselves for possible pro careers. Jonathan Stewart to Oregon. Max Browne to USC. Myles Jack to UCLA. David DeCastro and Joshua Garnett to Stanford. The exodus of elite players from a talent-rich state was nonstop.
That’s no longer the case. The Crimson Tide might make the following observation once the ball is snapped in the Georgia Dome: Hey, a lot of these Washington players look just like us. Confident. Competitive. Complete package.
Free safety Budda Baker grew up a few miles from Husky Stadium, as a teammate of Jack’s at suburban Bellevue High School. Baker originally committed to Oregon. He was a big USC fan as a kid, greatly admiring Trojans breakaway running back Reggie Bush. He had no interest in Washington at all.
Petersen convinced Baker to reverse course and stay home. The defensive back became a first-team All-Pac-12 choice for the Huskies as a sophomore. He is a persistent All-American selection as a junior. He’ll likely be in the NFL next season.
“Of course, they’ll want to see what we’re about,” Baker said of the Crimson Tide. “We’ve got All-Americans on this team, too.”
Petersen has been nothing short of a miracle worker in restocking the Huskies’ football talent pool. In the 10 seasons before his arrival in Seattle, Washington supplied 14 NFL draft picks; Alabama practically matches that in a solitary draft. Only two first-rounders emerged from the Pac-12 school during the downturn — quarterback Jake Locker to the Tennessee Titans and cornerback Marcus Trufant to the Falcons. In 2008, no Huskies football player was drafted in any round. It was miserable.
In his first two seasons, Petersen has supplied six NFL picks from his Washington rosters, including three first-rounders in 2014 alone, with more draftees expected next April. The program feels different. Husky Stadium is remodeled, home to a respected coach now and a college football destination again.
“I’m proud to be able to take this program back to where it once was,” said Kevin King, a senior cornerback and solid pro prospect.
All-Pac-12 selections, or the lack of them, proved to be an even more telling example of the football famine in Seattle. Washington didn’t have a first-team, all-conference pick in 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008 or 2009. It had only five first-teamers chosen throughout the decade before Petersen arrived. None were linemen, offense or defense. Few battles in the trenches were won.
This season alone, Petersen has welcomed nine first-team All-Pac-12 choices — the most in school history. That gives the coach 14 overall in his brief tenure at Washington. Even more encouraging, just one of the Huskies’ current all-league first-teamers is a senior (offensive guard Jake Eldrencamp), though a couple of those underclassmen might decide to leave early for the NFL. Either way, the program should retain its competitiveness next year and beyond.
Adams said he’s ready to mix it up with Alabama in Atlanta, eager for an extended run in the spotlight.
“It’s good vs. good,” he said of facing the Tide. “Obviously it’s going to be a challenge. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Hopefully we’ll do it again next year.”
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