The Monday Morning Wash - Talent stockpiled at Safety is impressive

Two weeks of practice left until the Huskies face off against San Diego State to open the season at the Link. That means it is time to start getting some players healthy and begin to do some serious game preparation for the upcoming season.

I spoke with a friend who was at practice on Saturday and he said that he liked the way the offensive line was playing. He felt that the young guys were really coming along and that they had the ability to surprise some people this year despite being so young.

The key of course is keeping C Drew Schaefer healthy all season because he is the glue that keeps everything together. Don't ever under estimate the value of having a guy who is basically a four year starter in the line-up.

His observation about the defense was that Shaq Thompson has the ability to play at the elite level of a Lawyer Milloy, Ronnie Lott, or Kenny Easley. That is pretty hefty praise because those guys were the type of rare athletes who could completely take over a game on the defensive side of the ball.

If you want to stick a current label on Shaq's position I guess Rover would be the best description. The rover plays closer to the line and serves as a sort of hybrid between a defensive back and a linebacker. They often line up on the strong side of the field so he definitely is filling part of the gap at SLB.

He is a 230 lb freshmen safety who runs well, has an extremely high football IQ, and can really lay the lumber. The kid is a real game changer and I can hardly wait to see how he performs in the opener.

All the safeties are playing well right now. Sean Parker and Justin Glenn have had great camps and are primed for big years. Will Shamburger and James Sample have really come on this summer. Both looked great in Saturday's scrimmage.

His final observation was that all five of these kids seem capable of starting for most if not all of the programs in the Pac 12...heady praise indeed.

George Hickman Passes

George Hickman who was one of the original Tuskegee Airmen and who worked for Boeing and the UW athletic department on the side for over 40 years has passed away. Here is a link to a story that Steve Kelley of the Seattle Times wrote about him a couple of years back.

Bob Condotta of the Times who knew him well had this to say..."He was also simply maybe the nicest man anyone has ever known."...not a bad way to be remembered.

Rest in peace George!

Injury Summary

• Justin Glenn S (Concussion- Likely back today)
• Erik Kohler OL (Knee- Could be back today)
• Marcus Peters DB (Back - Was back on Saturday for the scrimmage)
• Taz Stevenson LB (migraines- wore yellow during scrimmage)
• Travis Feeney LB (Concussion- Will be back this week)
• Princeton Fuimaono LB (Hammy- Day to day)
• Tre Watson CB (Concussion- Wore yellow during scrimmage)
• Deontae Cooper RB- (ACL out for year)
• Hau'oli Jamora DE (Knee- Hearing rumors that he could be out for the season)
• Jamaal Kearse LB (Stress Fracture in Tibia- 4-6 weeks)
• James Johnson WR (Dislocated Wrist- 4-6 weeks)
• Nate Fellner LB (Broken Foot- 3-5 weeks)

CB Kevin King is a Husky

Kevin King is a guy the scouts really like. He has the ideal size they are looking for out on the corners. The whole idea is to get some taller guys out there to help handle the monster sized wide receivers who have been inhabiting the offense out West as of late.

Kevin plays at Bishop O'Dowd HS in Oakland which has been sending the Huskies quite a few players over the last couple of years. Check out his film. I think you are going to like what you see.

Which Frosh will play early?

Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times put together a list of the freshmen he thinks will play immediately. No surprises here with Shaq leading the list as a starter in what has become primarily a nickel type defense for the Dawgs due to multiple injuries at linebacker.

Jayden Mickens, Kendyl Taylor, Pio Vatuvei, and Korey Durkee are pretty much all locks to play. Erich Wilson, Shane Brostek, Cory Littleton and Brandon Beaver would be next in line to play if needed