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DawgmanRadio: Day 12 practice wrap live from Husky Stadium Apr 23, 2022

Show notes

The guys from Dawgman.com - Kim Grinolds, Chris Fetters, and Scott Eklund - wrapped up their first full viewing of a practice this spring, as up to 500 Washington fans joined them to check out what the Huskies have been up to so far in April. It was a normal two-hour practice, full of individual periods, some team periods, some one-on-one and 7-on-7 work, special teams, and more. So the fans that did show up this morning got a great sense of all the different items the coaches stress and work on to get the players as ready as they can for the summer player-run workouts.

It's a relatively quick podcast today, around 20 minutes, because it was more of highlighting the players that did well and stood out during the team sessions. Julius Irvin was the lone turnover king today with an interception (Ruperake Fuavai looked like he recovered a fumble as well), while Michael Penix, Jr. and Dylan Morris combined for three touchdowns during their drives in the final team period of practice. Penix hit Giles Jackson twice on scores, one from 5-yards out, and the other from 20, while Morris hit a streaking Nick Juran down the middle of the field for 46 yards.

Washington Head Coach Kalen DeBoer singled out the receivers and EDGE players Friday when he spoke to the media, and both position groups definitely had their moments today during the team periods. The Dawgman guys talk about their days, as well as offer some more color and insight as to how the practice went for those Washington fans that were unable to attend. It was also the same day the Huskies were hosting their coaches clinic for the high school staffs to come in and see what the new UW staff is all about, so there were plenty of high school coaches and recruits on hand to watch practice under sunny skies at Husky Stadium.

DawgmanRadio: Friday scrimmage thoughts and more Apr 22, 2022

Show notes

The guys from Dawgman.com - Chris Fetters and Scott Eklund - wrapped up the week of practice as Washington readies their team to open things up to the media and fans on Saturday at Husky Stadium. But Friday we learned that there was a catch; what we thought would be a scrimmage Saturday will actually just be a full 2-hour practice. The scrimmage actually happened today, roughly 75-80 plays according to UW Head Coach Kalen DeBoer.

The guys broke down some of DeBoer's comments, first starting with some of the position groups that have stood out to him. He mentioned right off the bat how disruptive the EDGE players have been. So does that mean they've been killing it, or are they taking advantage of some of the offensive linemen put in newer positions, like Troy Fautanu and Matteo Mele? DeBoer singled out Fautanu for his consistency all spring, so it's likely the fact that the first four EDGE players are simply playing at a high level.

When the talk moved over to the other side of the ball, we ended up devolving the conversation to the point where we came up with a possible spring conclusion; Corey Luciano might be the only player leaving April confident knowing where he's going to start fall camp. The conversation got very interesting, so check it out!

After a quick break to pay off some debts, the talk turned to the receivers group, where DeBoer singled out Ja'Lynn Polk for his work Friday helping to move the chains. Could the former Texas Tech player become that key possession guy that Washington has been missing for a while?

And then the conversation moved to the running backs room, where the talk all spring hasn't been great. With so many players out hurt and unavailable to play, DeBoer was asked about what motivated the staff to go out and sign three running back transfers? He noted the health issues, as well as their need to have versatile body types at the position.

Could it be that the running backs we haven't seen this spring (Richard Newton, Cameron Davis, Emeka Megwa) won't become a factor at all this fall? And how far behind have Caleb Berry and Sam Adams lagged due to missing a fair bit of spring themselves, either through illness or not being 100 percent healthy? The running back room is struggling right now, and there's no doubt Aaron Dumas and Jay'Veon Sunday are benefiting from that struggle. But it feels like we're going to have to wait until August to see just how things will shake out once Wayne Taulapapa and Will Nixon arrive.

Part of the running back conversation involves the idea of attrition, how NIL can now impact the idea of a player leaving to go into the portal or not, and how that can impact things especially when a new staff is trying to instill their own culture and way of doing things.

DawgmanRadio: How things stand after Day 10 of spring football Apr 20, 2022

Show notes

The guys from Dawgman.com - Kim Grinolds, Chris Fetters, and Scott Eklund - wrap up their thoughts now that the Washington Huskies are 10 April practices in. With only 15 practices in total, that means the Dawgs are now two-thirds of the way through spring ball. Where did the time go?

Starting with the quarterback competition, the guys talk about who they think is leading the pack, as well as how they expect things could shake out as the battle continues to be joined. They also talk about the running backs. For a position that has seen very little go on from the media standpoint, there certainly has been a ton of player movement. Emeka Megwa has been out all of spring, and Caleb Berry has just started to come back. Cameron Davis and Richard Newton have not been practicing either, so at this point the only scholarship running backs that have played spring at 100 percent health are New Mexico transfer Aaron Dumas, and Jay'Veon Sunday.

The guys got a chance to speak with both UW OC Ryan Grubb and RB Coach Lee Marks to break down what they see in the two incoming transfer running backs; Virginia's Wayne Taulapapa and Nebraska's Will Nixon. Clearly with three transfer running backs in before the start of the 2022 season, an already loaded room will undoubtedly suffer attrition of some sort. What the numbers will be and who those players are is anyone's guess at this point.

Chris broke down who he saw playing with the two-deeps on defense during the limited 11-11 session the media gets to see, and with a few players that weren't spotted in there, like Jordan Perryman and Carson Bruener (both were practicing), it's hard to know if they are still cycling players through to get turns put on film, or if there's something else going on.

After a quick break to pay some bills, the talk turned to recruiting and who was at practice today. The Huskies also had a couple of draft hopefuls on hand in Cade Otton and Luke Wattenberg.

The guys also provide some insight into some of the interviews they did post-practice. Not only did they speak to Grubb and Marks, but they also talked with Dylan Morris, Ja'Lynn Polk, Roger Rosengarten, Troy Fautanu, and others.

A quick hoops update was followed by the guys' final thoughts on the day and also how things are wrapping on what has been a very quick April. Only five practices left, UW fans, including a scrimmage this Saturday at 11 am that is OPEN TO THE PUBLIC. Be there!

DawgmanRadio: Day 9 is in the books Apr 18, 2022

Show notes

The guys from Dawgman.com - Kim Grinolds and Scott Eklund - just got done watching what they could of Day 9 of Washington's spring football campaign, as well as doing their post-practice interviews. Today they spoke with some of the defensive players and coaches, but again the big spotlight today on what they saw revolved around the quarterbacks.

Who stood out? Who made the big plays? Chris gave some thoughts on a drill he had never seen before.

When talk turned to the defense, it was mostly about the cornerbacks, as well as transfer linebacker Cam Bright. We spoke with Bright today after practice, and the soft spoken senior from Alabama, by way of the University of Pittsburgh, definitely seems to be the type that speaks softly but carries a big stick with him at all times.

We also spoke with his position coach, William Inge, and what Inge did to help persuade Bright to move even further away from his home state. Inge also talked about the process to re-recruit everyone in his room, especially now that we're in the days of the transfer portal and the free on-time transfer.

Chris and Scott talk about that process and what it might look like after spring football is over. The deadline to transfer and still be able to play in the fall is May 1 - literally one day after Washington's spring game. So how is that going to work for those UW players that are genuinely interested in checking something else out via the portal?

We also provided a quick hoops recruiting update, as things are in a bit of a holding pattern as Washington tries to shore up their front court with a couple of big men. Will it be Utah Valley's Fardaws Aimaq? West Virginia's Isaiah Cottrell? Oregon's Franck Kepnang? We shall see.

DawgmanRadio: Scrimmage Talk (or not) after Day 8 of spring football Apr 15, 2022

Show notes

As the Washington football team began its first full scrimmage of the spring on Friday, the media was heading up the tunnel. So short story shorter, we didn't get to watch any of it. But new UW Head Coach Kalen DeBoer was able to give us some tidbits from the 89-play scrimmage in front of some former UW players, coaches, and current recruits.

He spoke of the two interceptions from defensive back Davon Banks. He talked about Cam Bright and Kuao Peihopa as two of the spotlight players from the scrimmage. He also talked about players like Devin Culp and Taj Davis from the other side of the ball, and let us know that both Michael Penix, Jr. and Sam Huard had touchdown passes of roughly 40 to 50 yards.

The guys from Dawgman.com - Chris Fetters and Scott Eklund - talked about the things DeBoer mentioned during his post-practice briefing, as well as questions that were asked of him pertaining to name, image, and likeness (NIL). You'll want to read those quotes when they become available a little later today.

Both Chris and Scott did talk about the things they were able to watch before having to leave, namely the first significant periods that had the punters involved, as well as a cool coverage drill where the coverage player had to defeat their blocker to get to the returner.

Scott talked a little about the recruits that were at Husky Stadium today, and we also talked about the two transfer players Washington officially announced today; Virginia RB Wayne Taulapapa and Nebraska WR/RB Will Nixon - as well as the two players Washington announced as signed for the men's basketball team; Garfield guard Koren Johnson, and former WSU guard Noah Williams.

DawgmanRadio: Spring Ball Day 7, Recruiting, Hoops, and More Apr 13, 2022

Show notes

The guys from Dawgman.com - Kim Grinolds, Chris Fetters, and Scott Eklund - recapped a cold Day 7 of Washington Spring Football, held inside Husky Stadium. It was a Wednesday where some different combinations were being used on both sides of the ball during the 11-11 period where the media was able to watch. And Sam Huard got the first-team reps today.

The guys broke down their post-practice conversations with some of the offensive coaches and players they spoke to, including Lee Marks, JaMarcus Shephard, Aaron Dumas, Jay'Veon Sunday, Junior Alexander, and Rome Odunze.

After a quick break, talk turns to recruiting - namely the prospects that we were able to see watching practice, including one big local name and one big name from California that we were able to identify.

We also spoke a little bit more on Washington's latest hoops transfer, guard Noah Williams from Washington State, his potential impact on the roster, and the ongoing search for a couple of big men.

To finish up, we spoke on a couple of the newer drills - one involving special teams and one between the receivers and defensive backs - that we enjoyed watching during practice.

DawgmanRadio: Spring Football Day 6 and plenty of hoops portal chatter Apr 11, 2022

Show notes

The guys from Dawgman.com - Kim Grinolds and Chris Fetters - go through their observations from Day Six of UW spring football, and there wasn't a ton to talk about there because of the limited number of 11-on-11 reps the media got a chance to see on Monday. But we did get a quick chat in with Kalen DeBoer, who stopped by the media gaggle on his way inside, and he dropped a couple of interesting nuggets.

There was also plenty of good stuff to talk about during the post-practice interviews, and we get into some of the chats that we had with Tuli Letuligasenoa, Kuao Peihopa, Jordan Perryman, Asa Turner, Julius Brown, and more.

In the second half of the podcast, the guys dig headfirst into the basketball transfer portal, including talk about the two visitors the men's team had this weekend and a former O'Dea star that UW is prioritizing as a potential replacement for Terrell Brown, Jr..

Everything Kalen DeBoer had to say during Day 5 of Spring Football Apr 09, 2022

Show notes

On Friday, new UW Head Coach Kalen DeBoer spoke in front of the media for the first time since the start of spring football, and there were plenty of updates. Former Washington Defensive Line Coach Randy Hart spoke to the team after practice, which is what DeBoer is referring to at the beginning of his media session.

DeBoer went on to give updates on specific players, including Jaxson Kirkland and Emeka Megwa, as well as his thoughts as to how the team has done absorbing all the teaching that has taken place through the first two weeks of spring football.

DawgmanRadio: Week Two of Spring Football is in the Books Apr 08, 2022

Show notes

The guys from Dawgman.com - Kim Grinolds, Chris Fetters, and Scott Eklund - recap what they saw from Day Five of UW Spring Football, held Friday inside a blustery Husky Stadium.

And after practice, the media spoke with new head coach Kalen DeBoer for the first time since spring ball started. He hinted at the open practice, which is now officially scheduled for 11 am on Saturday, April 23, and also fielded questions about the quarterback battle, the status of Jaxson Kirkland (there is no change as of today), the news that Emeka Megwa will be out for months while he recovers from the injury he suffered in high school, and more.

There were also a number of former player and coach sightings, as Danny Shelton was at practice in his UW letterman's jacket, and former UW Defensive Line Coach Randy Hart was also there. DeBoer noted that Hart addressed the team after practice.

After a quick recruiting rundown, including the players that were spotted at Friday's practice, Kim also provided a quick hoops recruiting update. UW is in the process of hosting some potential transfers as they continue to remake their roster ahead of the 2022-23 season.

DawgmanRadio: Spring Ball Day 4 recap and tons of recruiting news Apr 06, 2022

Show notes

The guys from Dawgman.com - Kim Grinolds, Scott Eklund, and Chris Fetters - had to pull rare double duty during Day 4 of UW Spring Football. For as long as we've been doing this, there has never been a player commit during practice, but we're in the transfer portal era now, so former Nebraska WR Will Nixon announced his intentions to join Washington about 15 minutes before UW's practice ended.

The Dawgman guys first get into what they were able to see during practice, which wasn't a great deal because the media's access to viewing practice is limited at this time. But they did note some grouping changes at cornerback and linebacker, and also talked about anything new they've seen in the QB battle between Michael Penix, Jr., Dylan Morris, and Sam Huard, as well as running back.

After a quick break, the talk turned to recruiting - and for obvious reasons. Besides the talk about Nixon and how his commitment came about from Nebraska, the guys also talked about the prospects that were at practice today - including Tacoma Lincoln QB Gabarri Johnson, and also about the two commitments the Huskies received on Tuesday. Former Virginia RB Wayne Taulapapa was the first to announce his intention to spend his final year of eligibility at Montlake, and then at the end of the day, it was WR/RB Keith Reynolds, a prep prospect from the small California high desert town of Adelanto - located outside of Los Angeles on the way toward Las Vegas - who decided to make his verbal commitment to the Huskies known.

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