SEATTLE – Washington football coach Tyrone Willingham has been saying for a week that a personnel situation was “pending,” and it resolved itself Monday. However, it wasn’t the situation that many had been waiting for.
Willingham announced that tailback Michael Houston had joined the team after transferring from the University of Texas. A sophomore, Houston must sit out this season and will have three years of eligibility remaining.
Willingham said he originally recruited Houston when he was the head coach at Notre Dame and Houston was a prep star in Denver, but Houston committed to Texas before Notre Dame had an opportunity to offer him a scholarship.
“We followed him a little bit and when things didn’t quite go as he might have planned at Texas, he was looking for another place and we were one of a group of universities that he called,” Willingham said.
At 238 pounds, Houston is a larger-than-average back. He had three carries for 27 yards for the national champion Longhorns as a true freshman last season. As a high school senior, Houston ran for 1,414 yards and 23 touchdowns and Willingham said had Houston not accepted a scholarship offer from Texas so quickly, he would have offered him one at Notre Dame.
Houston joined the Huskies Monday morning when he had to complete some NCAA-related work, and was expected to take a physical Monday afternoon. He would then join the team today where he would have to complete his five-day acclimation period before being cleared to practice in full pads.
Though Houston won’t be eligible to play this year, he will provide some depth so that perhaps the three main running backs on the roster – Louis Rankin, Kenny James and Shelton Sampson – won’t get quite as worn down. Rankin will return next year and there’s still the possibility that J.R. Hasty, who is out for the season with academic trouble, could return to compete with Houston for playing time.
Houston wasn’t the only addition on Monday. Willingham said the team also has added walk-on Mark Farney to the roster. Farney, a linebacker from Bellevue High School, was with the team in the spring but has been completing his summer class work.
The news wasn’t quite as good regarding Washington’s junior college transfers, Ashlee Palmer and Anthony Atkins. Both players were at Saturday’s practice and have completed their summer academic work, but Willingham said neither has joined the team yet, though it could happen “at any moment.” However both players would have to go through the five-day acclimation period, which means each passing day makes it less and less likely they would be available for the season-opener on Sept. 2 against San Jose State.
Reece back: Willingham said wide receiver Marcel Reece has returned to practice after missing Saturday’s practice with an infected blister.
Golden Roy: Roy Lewis continues to perform well in practice, securing his fourth gold jersey. Willingham said Lewis won it for his play on defense but could have won it for his play on special teams also. No gold jersey was given to the offense and Willingham said he was not pleased with what he has seen, calling the offense sloppy.
Getting feedback: Willingham was asked about the quarterback situation at Arizona State. ASU head coach Dirk Koetter named Sam Keller the starter on Friday, then changed his mind and named Rudy Carpenter the starter on Sunday. Some reports say that one of the reasons for Koetter changing his mind was that several players met with him to say they preferred Carpenter. Now Keller is considering transferring.
Willingham said understanding who players feel most confident with is important, especially with the quarterback, and that that sometimes makes the decision on who to start difficult. He said whether he listens to his team in those particular situations depends on the team.
“It depends on how they handle themselves,” Willingham said. “If you don’t have a team that has done a lot of work and put forth a lot of effort, there’s not a lot of confidence when they come to you to make that decision. Maybe it’s a young team and they don’t have the knowledge. Maybe it’s an experienced team and you look at it a little different. There’s always a lot of dynamics that go into those decisions.”
Getting a break: The team had as much of a break as its going to get on Sunday, not getting in pads and going through an intense practice. There were still meetings, weight work and a walk-through, but Willingham said it was important to give the team a break.
“At some point you’ve got to rest them and give them a chance to catch their breath,” Willingham said.
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