Washington welcomes 29 new players as January enrollees

The Huskies' spring roster will look far different this year than last.

The first day of winter quarter at Washington marks the arrival of two groups of new football players: those acquired throughout the past few weeks via the transfer portal, and some of those who signed as part of UW’s 2025 high-school recruiting class.

In all, a UW spokesperson confirmed the enrollment of 29 new players — 14 transfers, including one walk-on, and 15 high-school signees — for the start of classes this week.

January enrollment allows for participation in the program’s winter conditioning drills, and, eventually, spring practices. Most, if not all, of UW’s incoming transfers will be relied upon for immediate contributions. UW coach Jedd Fisch likes to play freshmen, too. Getting such players on campus in the winter has never been more important. In addition to the 15 high-school recruits who enrolled Monday, the Huskies currently expect another four — defensive tackle Dominic Macon; linebacker Jonathan Epperson; cornerback D’Aryhian Clemons; and punter Dusty Zimmer — to enroll in March for the start of spring quarter. The remaining nine signees are expected to join this summer. (That could always change, of course.)

It’s always possible there could be an addition at some point in the coming days — Arizona cornerback transfer Tacario Davis still hasn’t announced his decision, for example — but for now, here are UW’s January enrollees confirmed by the school, organized by position (*denotes walk-on). And yes, there must be further attrition before training camp in order for UW to stay at 85 scholarships.

(For more detailed analysis on each of UW’s incoming transfers, check out our portal tracker.)

Quarterback

Dash Beierly (2025)

Treston (Kini) McMillan (2025)

Thoughts: With Demond Williams Jr. taking over, any competition will be for the backup role. Shea Kuykendall, a transfer last offseason from Northern Colorado, has eligibility remaining. Beierly is a career winner from powerhouse Santa Ana (Mater Dei) who as a senior threw for 2,175 yards with 26 touchdowns and two interceptions, and rushed for 447 yards and five touchdowns. He helped Mater Dei to the last two CIF open division championships. McMillan won numerous Hawaii state player of the year awards as a junior, when he passed for 3,521 yards and 42 touchdowns, rushed for 575 yards and 11 touchdowns, and assembled one of the most entertaining single-season highlight reels you’ll ever see. He missed a chunk of his senior year at Mililani due to a collarbone injury, but returned for the final three games.

Running back

Julian McMahan (2025)

*Beck Walker (Golden West College transfer)

One of UW’s two scholarship tailback signees in this class, McMahan had big high-school stats — 245 carries for 1,436 yards and 20 touchdowns as a senior at Danville (Calif.) Monte Vista — and is listed at a sturdy 6-foot-2 and 230 pounds. He also played linebacker. Assuming good health, Jonah Coleman and Adam Mohammed should take the bulk of UW’s carries in 2025. Fisch has said the running game should be central to the Huskies’ offensive identity, though, so they’re going to need several guys ready to go. McMahan will battle redshirt freshman Jordan Washington for snaps this spring, and fellow 2025 signee Quaid Carr will join that battle this summer. Walker is a walk-on who prepped at Skyline High in Sammamish before rushing for 238 yards and three touchdowns at Golden West last season. He was first-team All-KingCo 4A as a senior in 2021.

Wide receiver

Johntay Cook II (Texas transfer)

Chris Lawson (2025)

Raiden Vines-Bright (2025)

Marcus Harris (2025)

With Giles Jackson and Jeremiah Hunter moving on — and Keith Reynolds and Jason Robinson Jr. in the transfer portal — UW’s receiver room will look a lot different this spring. Look for Fisch to give Cook every opportunity to shine alongside returning star Denzel Boston. Lawson, Vines-Bright and Harris all were four-star prospects per the 247Sports Composite; each is listed at 6-foot-1. Two more 2025 receivers, Deji Ajose and Dezmen Roebuck, will arrive by the summer. A redshirt freshman, Justice Williams, could return along with sophomore Audric Harris, third-year sophomore Rashid Williams and fourth-year junior Kevin Green Jr.

Tight end

Kade Eldridge (USC transfer)

Austin Simmons (2025)

Assuming Quentin Moore returns healthy, expect a top three of Moore, sophomore Decker DeGraaf and Eldridge, a third-year sophomore from Lynden, Wash., who spent the last two seasons at USC. The Huskies also signed West Linn (Ore.) High’s Baron Naone, a three-star prospect and the No. 2-ranked recruit in Oregon, who should be here by summer. Charlie Crowell is coming off a knee injury sustained late in training camp, so I wouldn’t expect him to be available this spring. Tight end was perilously thin last spring, and the Huskies still lack much experience. But they should at least have more available bodies. We’ll see what the future holds for fourth-year junior Ryan Otton, whose health has thus far prevented him from playing much.

Offensive line

Carver Willis (Kansas State transfer)

Geirean Hatchett (Oklahoma transfer)

John Mills (2025)

Champ Taulealea (2025)

Jack Shaffer (2025)

Jake Flores (2025)

The Huskies had seven healthy offensive linemen last spring, so few that their No. 2 offense sometimes ran 7-on-7s to give the big guys a breather. The competition will be a bit more intense this time around, as two transfers and four of UW’s five high-school signees join a group of scholarship returners which could number as many as 10. We’ll see if Hatchett, who had season-ending biceps surgery in September, will be healthy enough to participate; he’s a likely starter at guard once he’s ready to go. Willis seems like the starting left tackle. One note: Peter Langi, a three-star signee from Archbishop Riordan, is no longer coming to Washington. Burien (Wash.) Kennedy Catholic offensive lineman Lowen Colman-Brusa will round out the 2025 o-line group.

Defensive line

Anterio Thompson (Western Michigan transfer)

Simote Pepa (Utah transfer)

Ta’ita’i Uiagalelei (Arizona transfer)

Caleb Smith (2025)

Will coaches throw Thompson and Pepa right into the mix with the No. 1 defense? Logan Sagapolu, Elinneus Davis, Bryce Butler, Jayvon Parker, Armon Parker and Omar Khan could all return, but the Parker twins are coming off season-ending injuries. Smith might be more of a developmental prospect, with some time needed to bulk up for interior duties. But UW’s staff is high on his potential. Macon is expected on campus by spring, too.

EDGE

N/A

Really, Uiagalelei belongs in both the d-line and edge rusher categories, because he regularly played both at Arizona. The Huskies will add Devin Hyde and Victor Sanchez Hernandez by the summer. The portal could always bring another between now and then, too.

Linebacker

Taariq (Buddah) Al-Uqdah (Washington State transfer)

Xe’Ree Alexander (UCF transfer)

Jacob Manu (Arizona transfer)

Zaydrius Rainey-Sale (2025)

This might be the most exciting group of new talent arriving at any position. Al-Uqdah and Alexander have legit Power 4 experience and should play a ton for the Huskies in 2025. Manu, perhaps the best of the bunch when healthy, told 247Sports he likely will redshirt while recovering from an October ACL tear. Rainey-Sale was the top-rated prospect in Washington and could be an immediate contributor. With three seniors moving on and Khmori House transferring to North Carolina, opportunity abounds here, and these newcomers will have every chance to establish themselves this spring. Sixth-year senior Anthony Ward and third-year sophomores Deven Bryant and Hayden Moore are the only scholarship returners. Epperson should be here for the spring, too, with Donovan Robinson (who could also play safety) arriving by summer.

Cornerback

Ramonz Adams (2025)

We’ll see whether Tacario Davis might join this group, too. For now, Adams, a three-star prospect from Bastrop, Texas, is the only new addition this winter. Clemons should be here for the spring, too. They’ll join a unit going through a bit of a transition, with Thaddeus Dixon, Jordan Shaw, Elijah Jackson, Curley Reed and Darren Barkins all transferring, and younger players like Leroy Bryant, Caleb Presley and Elias Johnson vying for snaps. Ephesians Prysock is expected to return, of course, and Davis could well join him in the starting lineup.

Safety

CJ Christian (FIU transfer)

Alex McLaughlin (Northern Arizona transfer)

Rylon Dillard-Allen (2025)

Plenty of turnover here, too, with Kamren Fabiculanan and Cam Broussard both moving on, and two experienced transfers arriving in their place. Dillard-Allen is talented enough to contribute early, though he’ll potentially have to compete against Makell Esteen, Vincent Holmes, Peyton Waters, Paul Mencke Jr., Rahim Wright and Rahshawn Clark (though maybe coaches move one or more of those guys to corner). Could someone in this group replace Shaw at nickel? Dyson McCutcheon, maybe? Christian and McLaughlin bring college production, albeit at different levels.

Specialists

LS Ryan Kean (Utah Tech transfer)

Will be interesting to see how longsnapper sorts itself out, with Cameron Warchuck also on scholarship. He has one year of eligibility left; Kean has two. I’m guessing coaches wouldn’t be paying another longsnapper to come in and sit. UW also has a commitment from a 2025 walk-on, Hunter Solwold.

— Christian Caple, On Montlake