Welcome to part seven of this series where we look at the DL position.
As a reminder, prospects can fall into four tiers:
Committed: Just as the name implies, these are prospects that have already committed to other schools and the staff is no longer actively recruiting them.
Tier 1: Would accept their offer no matter when they are ready to commit. Reserved for the prospects at the very top of their board.
Tier 2: Prospects they are actively recruiting and would really like to have. If they were forced to choose between a prospect in tier 1 and 2 they would select tier 1, but tier 2 are very talented players who UW would have a good shot at.
Tier 3: Prospects that UW are not seriously in the running for or they are still evaluating more than actively recruiting.
Committed (0)
Tier 3 (6)
Marcus Fakatou (Orange, CA) National Rank: 59 Position Rank: 5
The prospect with arguably the highest ceiling in the 2027 class, Fakatou has an impressive frame that he uses to overpower and dominate OL. Fakatou recently reclassified from the 2028 class where he was a top 3 prospect and is still rated this highly because he is just that good. He is liking Notre Dame a lot early along with Alabama, Ohio State, and Oregon among others.
Brayden Parks (Oak Lawn, IL) National Rank: 128 Position Rank: 12
I don’t know how opposing centers are supposed to deal with a 6’3 300Lb. NT lining up right over them. Especially not with the combination of power and speed he displays. Tons of offers have been pouring in for Parks including Alabama, Ohio State, and Texas to name a couple. With so many top offers, he will likely need time to sort through them all.
Luke Starcevic (Kindred, ND) National Rank: 152 Position Rank: 18
One could call into question the level of competition he faces in ND, but there is no denying the strength and power that Starcevic has. He is a man amongst boys out there. Starcevic has had a few visits this season out to Michigan, Notre Dame, and Oklahoma so far and they appear to be separating themselves from the group at this early stage.
Khyren Haywood (Denton, TX) Position Rank: 84
Strong and stout, Haywood has an extremely strong lower body that he uses to drive back OL. Haywood has been reeling in majors offers including LSU, Oregon, and Texas among others.
Blake Fiacco (La Puente, CA) Position Rank: 98
A dominant run stuffer, Fiacco eats up blockers and space with ease. Fiacco has early offers from New Mexico, San Diego St., UW and Western Michigan.
Robert Taylor III (Birmingham, AL) Position Rank: N/A
Taylor has a similar playing style to Husky DL De’Shawn Lynch where he can play inside/out. He has explosiveness and speed off the edge while also using quickness to beat IOL up the middle. Georgia Tech, Missouri, and Vanderbilt are among his early offers.
Tier 2 (10)
Elija Harmon (Inglewood, CA) National Rank: 200 Position Rank: 26
I truly don’t know how you stop this guy. Even when they double team him, he still overpowers the OL he is matched up against and makes plays in the backfield. The Huskies were able to get Harmon on campus for the Ohio State game, but it appears he is favoring schools like Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas A&M, and USC more right now which is the only reason he isn’t in tier 1.
Myles Smith (Inglewood, CA) Position Rank: 33
Harmon’s fellow DL teammate, Smith is a powerhouse in his own right. With the sheer power he displays, it appears it is a pick your poison situation with him and Harmon on who you want to double team. Smith has an extremely strong lower body and uses his legs to drive lineman backwards on every play. He joined Harmon on the trip to UW, but has been taking his time overall in his recruitment. He had an injury in his sophomore year so he was clearly excited to show off this season and focus on playing again. He has offers from schools like Alabama, Michigan, and Ohio State among many others.
Jeremiah Williams (Tustin, CA) Position Rank: 34
It isn’t often that you see 300+ Lbs. players playing RB and even when they do, they typically don’t carry 7 defenders with them. No, I’m not exaggerating, he didn’t go down until the 8th defender arrived. Williams has a lot of offers to sort through including Georgia, Miami, and Texas among many others.
Montana Toilolo (Santa Ana, CA) Position Rank: 44
Toilolo typically lines up in the interior of the DL and uses his quickness and fast hands to beat the OL. Miami, Notre Dame, Tennessee, UCLA, and UW are the schools leading for Toilolo at this stage.
Sione Felila (Hesperia, CA) Position Rank: 49
Felila may be best out of a four point stance where he consistently shows explosiveness and violence. He also shows strong strong hands and an impressive motor. Notre Dame, Oregon, and UW are among his early offers.
Lemani Fehoko (San Mateo, CA) Position Rank: 58
A stout run stuffer, Fehoko also has a very quick first step that he can use to beat opposing IOL to their stance and cause pressure in the backfield. Fehoko is taking his time in recruiting, but does boast early offers from Michigan St., Tennessee, and UW among others.
Yahzeen Zion (Goodyear, AZ) Position Rank: 70
Although he mostly lines up at the edge spot right now, at 6’4 265 Lbs. Zion projects to continue to fill out his frame and move inside at the next level. He is fast off the line and uses his impressive bend and body control to move around opposing OL. The Huskies just offered him this week joining Arizona, Arizona St., and SMU among others.
Matamatagi Uiagalelei (Santa Ana, CA) Position Rank: 75
The younger brother of UW DL Ta’ita’i Uiagalelei and younger cousin of Matayo/DJ Uiagalelei, Matamatagi is making his own name for himself. He plays similarly to his brother as a hybrid DL. He flashes speed on the edge and good lateral quickness as well. UW appears to hold the early pole position for him even though he wouldn’t overlap with his brother in Seattle.
Isaia Vandermade (Rancho Santa Margarita, CA) Position Rank: 80
Explosive, yet very nimble, Vandermade is able to make plays in the backfield making use of his power and speed. Vandermade had a very productive junior season and has been adding offers this fall. He currently has offers from BYU, Texas Tech, and UW among others.
Zayne Reed (Westlake Village, CA) Position Rank: 124
Reed takes full advantage of his 6’5 275 Lb. frame to overpower opposing OL, sometimes even two at a time. As he continues to grow and get stronger, he will be a force at the next level. Arizona, Colorado, and UW are among his early offers.
Tier 1 (5)
Kasi Currie (Chatsworth, CA) National Rank: 21 Position Rank: 2
At 6’5 330 Lbs. Currie is a force of nature the way that he obliterates opposing OL and blows up plays. He is incredibly strong and powerful at the point of attack, but is also advanced at hand fighting and displays impressive finesse moves as well. All of these traits combined are part of the reason he vaulted up the rankings from 247 to 21 overall in the country. Currie is exploring his recruiting options from everywhere in the country since nearly every top program has extended an offer to him. Fortunately UW was able to get him on campus this season for the Illinois game, which will likely keep them relevant in his recruitment until the end.
Alifeleti Tuihalamaka (Westlake Village, CA) National Rank: 87 Position Rank: 8
Currently playing more Edge and DL, at 6’4 260 Lbs. Tuihalamaka projects to continue to fill out his impressive frame and slide inside. He already has enough speed to win on the edge, so imagine that speed bursting through the interior of an OL. The Huskies were able to get him on campus for the Ohio State game, which is a big first step to landing an out of state prospect. He has a plethora of top offers including Michigan, Texas, and USC among others, but the school to watch out for is Notre Dame since that is where his brother plays. He will graduate before Alifeleti could join him there, but the family connection is strong nonetheless.
George Toia (Trophy Club, TX) National Rank: 97 Position Rank: 10
The younger brother of UCLA standout Jay Toia, George is making a name for himself on his own. At 6’2 305 Lbs. it is almost unfair just how quick he is at the point of attack. Add in his overwhelming power and he is a mismatch no matter where he is on the DL. Toia and his family moved from California to Texas this past year to be closer to Jay after he was drafted by the Cowboys. Toia has a lot of big name programs like Miami, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Texas A&M after him, but the west coast schools like Oregon, USC, and UW are also very strongly in the mix.
Jon Ioane (Tustin, CA) National Rank: 179 Position Rank: 8* (Rated as an athlete by 247)
It goes without saying that Ioane is big, fast, and strong, but the most impressive part of his film are his hands. He is extremely advanced for his age in the ability to use his hands to disengage blockers and blow plays up in the backfield. The Huskies hosted Ioane for the Ohio State game and set a high bar for his recruitment. Oklahoma, Oregon, and Texas A&M are a couple of other schools to watch out for in the early stages of his recruitment.
Tevita Nonu (Seattle, WA) National Rank: 191 Position Rank: 24
Nonu is incredible strong and nimble for his size, showing off impressive bend to get around blockers. After missing on two O’Dea DL prospects in the 2026 class, Husky fans want redemption with Nonu in the 2027 class. He has visited multiple times and is clearly very interested in the Huskies.