Washington's DL building blocks stand out at spring practice No. 5

A lot of the Washington Huskies' success in 2026 hinges on its defensive line taking another step forward. Even after losing most of a unit that anchored the nation's No. 12 run defense in 2025 to either graduation or the transfer portal, but defensive line coach Jason Kaufusi believes that his unit has still improved.

A lot of that improvement is due to a youth infusion from the 2026 class, headlined by former four-star recruit Derek Colman-Brusa. While starting a true freshman at defensive tackle in the Big Ten is extremely rare, it's clear that the 6-foot-6, 295-pound product of nearby Kennedy Catholic High School, who has almost exclusively taken snaps with the first team so far in spring practice, is no ordinary freshman.

“Big, fast, strong. The kid should still be in high school," Kaufusi said. "He’s unbelievable. He’s obviously doing some really good things. He’s running around and giving good effort, and playing with good fundamentals.”

After mainly playing on the edge at the high school level, Colman-Brusa, who carries his weight extremely well, has made the shift inside and shown few growing pains.

"Football's football, whether you're inside or outside," Kaufusi added of his adjustment to the interior. "You block destruct. It's a little bit different when you move out a little bit more, playing the d-end, the space is a little bit different, but I think he's adapting well. He's a tough, physical kid."

Colman-Brusa has also impressed his running mate on the first team, junior Elinneus Davis, who has been more than happy to mentor the true freshman in his first few months of college football.

“He’s very explosive. He’s a freshman, but he’s way ahead of what a typical freshman would be,” Davis said. “Me being a good mentor to him and him being able to ask questions to me, I feel like that really helps slow the game down for him, and be able to play more free.”

Davis is probably the best mentor that Colman-Brusa could hope for, as throughout the early portion of spring, the former three-star recruit from Minnesota has been arguably the most disruptive pass rusher for the Huskies, making his way into the backfield regularly to blow up runs and touch down quarterbacks for would-be sacks.

As the Huskies look to transfer portal additions Darin Conley and DeSean Watts, along with another four-star freshman in Tufanua Ionata "TI" Umu-Cais, to help overhaul the unit in 2026. Defensive coordinator Ryan Walters has begun experimenting with some different looks and combinations up front in an attempt to improve on the 24 sacks the unit was able to muster in 2025, which was good for just No. 12 in the Big Ten, and appears to have plenty of talent at his disposal.

Here are some other notes from Thursday's practice.

Spring practice notebook

• One of those combinations came in the first five-down front we've seen so far this spring from the first team. It consisted of Watts at nose tackle, Colman-Brusa and Devin Hyde as the two interior players, and Ramzak Fruean and Zaydrius Rainey-Sale at outside linebacker. That unit brings a tremendous amount of athleticism to the table and allows Walters to run any variety of rushes and coverages along with it.
• Offensive lineman Geirean Hatchett was in a sling on Thursday, while linebacker Xe'ree Alexander and safety Rylon Dillard-Allen were both in street clothes. A trio of wide receivers: Christian Moss, Bodpegn Miller, and Chris Lawson were all in uniform as the Huskies went with shells (just shoulder pads) on Thursday, but did not participate in any team periods and worked with the rehab group.
• Freshman receiver Trez Davis had another really strong day, with several explosive plays during team periods. His best play of the day came against the first team, as he picked up 20 yards over the middle of the field on a dig route while working against Virginia transfer Emmanuel Karnley.
• Redshirt freshman running back Quaid Carr's athleticism continues to stand out whenever he touches the ball, as his speed and explosiveness were extremely apparent at several points throughout the day.
• During the Sandstorm period, when the Huskies usually hold their stiffest competition of practice, Demond Williams Jr. found wide receiver Rashid Williams streaking up the sideline for a 30-yard touchdown.
• The Huskies had some major local targets in attendance on unofficial visits: five-star 2028 tight end Tytan McNeal and four-star 2027 defensive tackle Tevita Nonu.

This article originally appeared on Huskies Wire: Washington Huskies' DL building blocks stand out at spring practice