UW linebacker Potoa’e hopes to turn potential into production

Published 1:30 am Saturday, August 11, 2018

Jared Hilbers is not a small human.

He just looked like one on Friday.

During a team drill inside Husky Stadium, the 6-foot-7, 313-pound right tackle settled into his pass set, and was promptly unseated by a passing train.

More literally, the redshirt junior was physically manhandled by outside linebacker Benning Potoa’e, who dispatched Hilbers and then emphatically shoved senior quarterback Jake Browning for a sack.

Herein lies the prickly conundrum when it comes to Potoa’e: at 6-3 and 277 pounds, the redshirt junior is a physical monstrosity. And yet, his production has been relatively tame.

In his past two seasons in Seattle, the DuPont product and former consensus four-star recruit totaled 46 tackles with seven tackles for loss and three sacks in 26 games. Prior to signing with Washington in February 2015, Potoa’e posted 19 sacks, 72 tackles and five forced fumbles in his senior season at Lakes High School, being named the state’s defensive player of the year by USA Today along the way.

Even then, the strength and speed already were evident.

Since arriving at UW, Potoa’e has had to improve everywhere else.

“Surprisingly it’s all been mental for me,” Potoa’e said Friday. “Physically, I feel like the tools have always been there. A lot of people have always told me, ‘You have this. You’re just not controlling it. You’re not channeling it. You’re not using it.’

“Now, as I’ve gotten older, my mental game has definitely elevated, in terms of leadership, in terms of adversity. When adversity hits, it’s being able to overcome it and just living with the punches that are thrown at me.”

Come Sept. 1, Washington will be counting on Potoa’e to throw some metaphorical punches of his own. The Huskies finished 11th nationally with three sacks a game in 2017, but no player finished with more than 5.5 sacks on the season. Auburn, on the other hand, allowed 36 sacks last fall, which ranked just 114th nationwide.

Might Potoa’e — who was named to the Polynesian Player of the Year watch list Thursday — be primed for a long-awaited eruption in Atlanta?

“Benning’s had a good camp,” UW coach Chris Petersen confirmed Friday. “He’s played hard. Very focused. I’ve seen him take a step in these seven practices.”

Actually, multiple steps. After outside linebacker Myles Rice picked up a sack during a team drill Friday, Potoa’e took off, sprinting from the sideline to midfield to celebrate with the sophomore. On the very next play, freshman Zion Tupuola-Fetui snagged a sack of his own, and Potoa’e sprang back into action, capping a second consecutive sprint with a second consecutive hip bump.

In previous camps, Potoa’e’s speed would have been reserved for drills and scrimmages.

But now?

“It’s definitely a leadership role and a different mentality,” he said. “Them being young and me being one of the older guys, it shows a lot when you’re coming from across the field to celebrate with them. It shows them that energy is important.

“Loving on each other, celebrating each other’s success is definitely important.”

The celebrations, however, are dependent on Washington’s defensive success. And Potoa’e finally looks ready to convert potential into production.

“I think we’re doing a really good job of bringing pressure to the quarterback,” Potoa’e said. “We’ll definitely do better off the edge than we did the past year or two.”