Defensive Front, Safeties Make Marks in Huskies Saturday Scrimmage

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Washington Huskies safety Rylan Dillard-Allen stood out in Saturday’s scrimmage at Husky Stadium. Credit: Aaron Coe/Emerald City Spectrum [/caption]

SEATTLE, Wash. — Creating havoc with the defensive front was one of the Huskies’ stated goals for the 2026 season.

Mission accomplished.

The defense landed the most punches — literally, in one instance — during Saturday night’s scrimmage at Husky Stadium. The No. 1 offense countered with some strong moments of its own among a 125-play scrimmage, about half of which featured live tackling.

Overall, UW head coach Jedd Fisch was pleased with what he saw from his team 22 days ahead of the Sept. 6 season-opening Apple Cup against Washington State.

“Overall, though, very hard to assess because you're going against each other, going against the same schemes day in and day out,” Fisch said. “So the key really is for us to just see who makes plays, really, right? Who makes plays when the opportunity presents itself?”

Despite missing defensive tackle Elinneus Davis, the defense found a way into the backfield several times. Darin Conley, a fourth-year transfer from Ball State, made his presence known. Russell Davis II, a one-time Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week who played just three games the last two seasons because of injuries, also caused problems for the offense on several occasions.

First-year players Ramzak Fruean and JD Hill also penetrated the offensive line at times. Logan George, a fourth-year transfer from Ohio State, also broke through early for an apparent sack.

The scrimmage featured mostly situational work, including series that started on the defense’s 25-, 2- and 1-yard lines.

Here are some of the players who stood out on Saturday:

Safety Rylon Dillard-Allen

Lurking in plain sight rather than in the shadows, the post safety nicknamed “Batman” made the most of his 5-10, 170-pound frame with several big hits. RDA teamed with fellow safety Alex McLaughlin to stuff 240-pound freshman running back Ansu Sanoe on the last play of the night, a game-winner for the defense.

He also spent some quality time with safeties coach Taylor Mays after punching receiver Rashid Williams in the helmet. That began when RDA and the defense blew up a screen pass to slot receiver Dezmen Roebuck. Williams, blocking on the play, mixed it up with Dillard-Allen before the punch and a lot of woofing between the offense and defense.

Put RDA at the top of the “They’re ready to hit guys in another uniform color” list.

“RDA reminds me so much of [fifth-year linebacker] Jacob Manu as a freshman, and I feel like it's my responsibility to really invest in RDA as a person,” Fisch said. “I love Jacob Manu. I love Jayden de Lora, who I invested in, who had those tendencies that they got so competitive and they got such edge.

“So I got to get RDA in that same world. I got to spend more time with them and help them understand the difference of playing at the highest level possible, but not crossing the line. And I feel really good that we can get that done because he is an exceptional player.”

Safety Alex McLaughlin

Offered a walk-on spot at Arizona by Fisch and entering 2025 spring ball as a second-string safety, McLaughlin has ascended to arguably the team’s best defensive player.

Though contact is not allowed on quarterbacks during scrimmages, McLaughlin signaled to the offense on three occasions that he registered sacks. We’ll never know if quarterback Demond Williams Jr. could have escaped one of them, but McLaughlin looks like he’ll be a problem for opponents on several different layers of the defense. He also potentially sacked apparent third-string quarterback Dash Beierly twice.

“He’s really bright, so he has a really good feel for how to read it, what track to take, how to time it out right,” Fisch said. “And the position he plays permits us to use him in every disguise, drop, play the linebacker position, play the safety position, be a blitzer. Certain guys have a great feel for blitzing, and he’s done a great job at that.”

Ramzak Fruean

The first-year edge caused the offense problems early in the scrimmage. He’s been a regular in the backfield for most of fall camp and appears to be in line for a major role in the defense this season.

“Ramzak — he's a freak,” fifth-year right tackle Drew Azzopardi said. “He's one of those guys who's super twitched up as a young freshman who didn't even play defensive line … in high school.

“He came in, he put his head down. He worked every single day. He practices hard as hell. He's a great motor, great edge to him, and I can't wait to watch him and the other guys.”

Tight end Baron Naone

Naone seems to have worked his way into an almost co-starter role with third-year tight end Decker DeGraaf. Thought to be more of a blocker, it was Naone who had one of the bigger plays of the scrimmage. Naone, forced into action last season as a true freshman because of injuries to Kade Eldridge and Quentin Moore, separated himself from second-year linebacker Donovan Robinson and caught a perfectly placed pass from Williams in the right corner of the end zone.

Robinson, playing significant first-team reps with Zaydrius Rainey-Sale and Manu sitting out of team sessions with minor injuries, nearly got a fingertip on the ball, but Williams put enough on it to keep it out of reach.

“Baron's done a really, really good job in all facets,” Fisch said. “He's really added a ton of strength. Size from last year to this year is significantly different. He's catching the ball at a really high level. I can't think of many times he's dropped the ball this camp.”

“He's just grown in his overall understanding of the offense that we could put him in in every situation, every personnel group.”

Running back Jayden Limar

The fourth-year transfer from Oregon had a pair of runs that were about 15 yards in his most extensive team action as he works his way back from offseason ankle surgery.

While the running game can be difficult to judge as plays are often whistled dead before contact or at the initial hit, Limar looked like someone who could push apparent starter Quaid Carr for significant playing time this season. Carr was bottled up early, but had a few nice runs mixed in as the offensive line began to establish some presence. Freshman Brian Bonner Jr. played significant snaps with the No. 2 offense and found room at times. Trey Cooley, a sixth-year transfer from Troy, also saw some action as he works his way back after missing the 2025 season with a knee injury.

Cornerback Jeron Jones

The freshman played significant snaps with the No. 1 defense while starter Dylan Robinson sat out with a minor injury. Jones looked sticky in coverage, knocking away Demond William Jr.’s first pass attempt of the scrimmage and locking down receivers on multiple occasions. Though he does not possess Robinson’s 6-3 frame, the 5-11 Mission Viejo, California native looked like he has the potential for a Robinson-like ascension this season.

“Confidence is elite, and when you have elite confidence, you’re able to play man-to-man coverage as a corner and not flinch, and that’s what he has,” Fisch said. “He can get beat on a play and not get beat the rest of practice. It doesn’t stick with him at all. He’s getting stronger. He’s gained, I think, 15 pounds since he’s been here, so being in the weight room has made a difference for him.

“We’re going to continue to build him up, because I think in the spring he was playing mostly nickel. With Dylan being down for fall camp, now we’ve gotten to see Jeron out there at the corner spot. So all of that combined gives us a chance to really see his feel for zone, but his ability to play man-to-man coverage.”

Receiver Chris Lawson

The biggest play of the day came from the second-year receiver on a 35-yard completion from quarterback Kini McMillan. Freshman receiver Mason James later capped the drive with a McMillan’s four-yard touchdown pass. McMillan was the fourth quarterback to enter the scrimmage behind Williams, Stanford transfer Elijah Brown and Beierly.

Lawson has been running a lot with the second-team offense at the Z position behind Rashid Williams, but is pushing for a regular role in the offense.

“Chris is getting better and better,” Fisch said. “The competition at receiver is really becoming better than it's ever been, also, because you've got Chris, then you've got Dez [Roebuck], you got Rasheed playing at a high level, and Christian [Moss], and you got Trez [Davis], and then Mason makes some plays.”

Freshman Jorday Clay, who has been banged up at times throughout spring and fall practices, could also enter the mix at the X position, currently held down by Moss, a transfer from Kennesaw State.

“So you got guys that are constantly working, and we got to get Jordan Clay back. Jordan Clay should be back for Tuesday's practice, so he's got to step up, and he's got to go compete and make it hard. But I love the way Lawson's playing, and the thing about Chris is he can play all three spots. So Chris's flexibility at Z, at X, and at F for us is a big difference.”

Safety Gavin Day

The freshman won the “Red Zone Lockout” drill for the defense with a leaping interception of Brown’s pass on a play that started at the 25. He also jumped all over a screen pass to Asa Thompson, hitting the freshman receiver for a loss.

Offensive Line Shuffles

Starting right guard Champ Taulealea could miss a couple of days, according to Fisch, after coming out of the scrimmage and having his helmet taken away. Backup guard/center Geirean Hatchett could be back in the coming days, and starting center Landen Hatchett continues to be held out of team sessions as he works back from offseason wrist surgery.

Sam Houston State transfer Kolt Dieterich, a potential backup at all five offensive line positions, started at center with the No. 1 offense. When Taulealea departed, backup tackle Soane Faasolo spent some time at guard and appeared to hold his own.

Washington will hold a closed walk-through practice Sunday and take Monday off. Tuesday’s 10 a.m. practice marks the first of five straight days of open practices culminating in Saturday’s 6:30 p.m. mock game. After that, practice will be closed to media and fans as the team begins preparing for the Apple Cup.