Building the Future: Inside Washington's 2026 Recruiting Blitz
Washington Huskies Football Targets Top Recruits in 2026 Class: Key Visits, Commitments, and Insights
The Washington Huskies football coaching staff is now focusing on putting together its 2026 recruiting class. After compiling the No. 25-best ranked class in 2025, head coach Jedd Fisch will look to improve upon that ranking. The 2025 class marked the program’s highest-ranked recruiting class since 2020.1 Fisch has already made clear that he intends to treat high school recruiting like the NFL draft, and that he wants to build the UW football program through high school recruiting.
The Contact Period began on January 6th and runs through February 1st. During the Contact Period, Washington coaches can make in-person, off-campus recruiting contacts and evaluations. This includes visits to prospective recruits’ schools and in some cases, home visits to meet a recruit’s family.2
The Husky coaching staff hit the recruiting trail on Tuesday and the rest of the week. The coaches visited commits and recruits in at least 30 different high schools across Washington, Oregon, California, Utah, Arizona, and South Dakota. Here’s a rundown of the 2026 recruiting class as it stands, along with all the intel I gathered on the staff’s recruiting efforts this past week.
Commits
3-star ATH Terrance Saryon (Evergreen - Vancouver, WA), 5-10 / 160
In-state recruit Terrance Saryon committed to Washington in mid-November after making a handful of gameday visits during the fall. 247 Sports recruiting analyst Greg Biggins writes that Saryon is “quick and shifty with some wiggle and a lot of make you miss ability.”
Jedd Fisch, UW Offensive Coordinator Brennan Carroll, and Wide Receivers coach Kevin Cummings traveled to Vancouver to visit Saryon on Wednesday morning.

On committing to Washington, Saryon told SeaTown Sports: “As soon as I stepped foot on campus, I knew it was home.” He added, “it was only a matter of building a relationship with the coaching staff.” Saryon emphasized that his “relationship with the coaching staff and [his] relationship with everyone in the building is amazing” and he “just felt like it was time.”
3-star LB Wassie Lugolobi (Eastside Catholic - Sammamish, WA), 6-2 / 215
Another in-state recruit, Wassie Lugolobi, decided to stay home and play for the Huskies. Lugolobi, like Saryon, committed to Washington in November. Washington Linebackers Coach Robert Bala and Defensive Line Coach Jason Kaufusi visited Lugolobi on Tuesday at Eastside Catholic.
Lugolobi told SeaTown Sports that his “strong relationship” with the UW coaching staff “particularly with Coach Bala, played a significant role in [his] decision.” He added that “the combination of elite athletics, elite academic opportunities, and elite coaching, all within my home state, made Washington the right fit for me.”
3-star ATH Ansu Sanoe (Lakeridge - Lake Oswego, OR), 6-1 / 210
Sanoe committed to Washington this past April and was the first 2026 commit for Fisch’s staff. 247 Sports recruiting analyst Greg Biggins says: “Sanoe is one of the premier power backs in the Northwest. He’s a rocked out 6-1, 210 pounds and makes his money running between the tackles.”

Jedd Fisch, Washington Running Backs Coach Scottie Graham, and Kevin Cummings visited Sanoe on Wednesday at Lakeridge HS in Oregon.
K CJ Wallace (St. John Bosco - Bellflower, CA), 5-11 / 160
Following Sanoe’s commitment, kicker CJ Wallace also committed to Washington in April. Starring for national high school football powerhouse, St. John Bosco, Wallace earned First-Team All-Area honors from the Long Beach Telegram. He converted field goals from 49 and 48 yards this past season and totaled 45 touchbacks.
Kevin Cummings, along with Director of Recruiting Josh Omura and Assistant Director of Recruiting Armond Hawkins visited Wallace at St. John Bosco on Tuesday.
Wallace told SeaTown Sports that he has “always felt a close connection to Coach Fisch, Coach [Jordan] Paopao, and the football staff at UW.” He added, “the staff, the school, facility renovations, aggressive recruiting, all make me eager to get on campus and compete in the Big Ten Conference.”
IOL Ah Deong Yang (Roosevelt - Seattle, WA), 6-3 / 343
Yang is one of Washington’s latest commitments after he pledged to stay home in late November. On his choice to commit to the Huskies, Yang told SeatTown Sports that “it’s home” and that UW’s coaches “always made [him] feel that way” and “treated [him] like family.” He added, “[W]ho wouldn’t want to play at UW?”

Jedd Fisch, Brennan Carroll, UW Defensive Coordinator Ryan Walters, Robert Bala, and Jason Kaufusi all visited Yang on Tuesday at Roosevelt HS.
An opposing high school coach provided this scouting report on Yang: “Roosevelt lineman is mean, in a good way. He is technically, but finishes blocks very well. I assume he will play on the interior for UW.”
4-star IOL Esun Tafa (Corner Canyon - Draper, UT), 6-4 / 305
The highest-ranked commit of the UW’s 2026 class so far, Tafa received a visit from Brennan Carroll last week. He told SeaTown Sports that he “always love[s] seeing” Coach Carroll. Tafa will be making an unofficial visit soon.
On his commitment to Washington, Tafa said that his “growing relationship with Coach Carroll and Coach Fisch is great.” He said that the two coaches built that relationship with him “early” and “made [him] a priority.”
Top 2026 Targets
Four-star Edge Derek Colman-Brusa (Kennedy Catholic - Burien, WA) received a visit on Tuesday from Jedd Fisch, Ryan Walters, Brennan Carroll, Robert Bala, and Jason Kaufusi. This week, Colman-Brusa also received a visit from USC, and an in-home visit from Oregon coaches Dan Lanning, Tosh Lupoi, and Joe Lorig. Derek’s brother, 2025 OT Lowen Colman-Brusa, signed with Washington in December.
Four-star QB Brady Smigiel (Newbury Park - Newbury Park, CA) received an in-home visit from UW Quarterbacks Coach Jimmie Dougherty and Scottie Graham. Smigiel, a current Florida State commit, visited Washington in December.
Washington’s coaching staff is also attempting to flip four-star DL Bott Mulitalo (Lone Peak - American Fork, UT). Mulitalo committed to Oregon in December. Ryan Walters along with Jason Kaufusi met with Mulitalo on Thursday. Prior to committing to Oregon, Mulitalo had visited Washington in October and June of last year.
Four-star WR Daniel Odom (St. John Bosco - Bellflower, CA) met with Kevin Cummings on Tuesday. Odom has UW in his top six, along with Miami, Oklahoma, Oregon, Tennessee, and Texas.
Kevin Cummings and Daniel Odom (Photo credit: @nolimitd3_) Three-star Edge David Schwerzel (O’Dea - Seattle, WA) and his teammate four-star Edge Fameitau Siale (O’Dea - Seattle, WA) met with a contingent of Washington coaches on Tuesday (Jedd Fisch, Brennan Carroll, Jason Kaufusi, and Robert Bala). Schwerzel is being recruited “heavily” by Washington and Siale is also a “big” priority for the Huskies, sources told SeaTown Sports. The pair helped lead O’Dea to state championship last season. Siale told me he is “excited” to visit UW in the spring.
Three-star CB Justin Lewis (Rancho Cucamonga HS - Rancho Cucamonga, CA) received an in-home visit from Armond Hawkins on Wednesday. Lewis holds an offer from Washington and made a gameday visit last fall. UW is in the mix along with a handful of other schools.
Armond Hawks and Justin Lewis (Photo credit: @JustinxLewiss) Four-star ATH Deshonne Redeaux (Oaks Christian - Westlake Village, CA) received a visit from Scottie Graham and Jimmie Dougherty on Tuesday. 247 Sports ranks Redeaux as the No. 4 running back in the 2026 class. Redeaux holds offers from UW and over two dozen other schools.
Four-star ATH Salesi Moa (Fremont - Ogden, UT) received a visit from Ryan Walters and Jason Kaufusi on Thursday. Moa has over a dozen offers, including ones from Washington, Oregon, and BYU.
Washington coaches Brennan Carroll, Scottie Graham and Jimmie Dougherty visited Folsom HS on Friday morning, the former stomping grounds of Husky legend Jake Browning. The trio met with three-star OT Vlad Dyakonov, four-star QB Ryder Lyons, and three-star WR Jameson Powell. Powell worked out for the coaches, along with 2027 QB Nick Johnson, 2027 QB Brody Rudnicki, and 2027 WR Rob Larson.
Three-star TE Eddie Whiting (Jefferson - Sioux Falls, SD) received a visit from Jordan Paopao on Thursday. Along with an offer from Washington, Whiting also holds offers from Iowa State, Michigan State, Minnesota, and South Dakota State. Whiting earned First-Team All-State honors this past season.
Eddie Whiting and Jordan Paopao (Photo credit: @EdwardWhitin9) Three-star CB Marcellous Ryan (Junipero Serra - Gardena, CA) received a visit from Washington Cornerbacks Coach John Richardson on Wednesday. Ryan visited UW last June and has been a priority for the staff since then.
Three-star WR Rico Blassingame (Tolleson Union - Tolleson, AZ) received a visit from Kevin Cummings on Thursday. Blassingame is from the Seattle-area and told me that “growing up, Washington was my dream school.” UW is in Blassingame’s top ten, and the wide receiver remains a recruiting priority for the Huskies.
Three-star WR Luc Weaver (Notre Dame HS - Sherman Oaks, CA) received a visit from Washington on Tuesday. Weaver holds a UW offer. He also holds offers from Utah, Kansas, Nebraska, Minnesota, others.
Washington is also recruiting Ah Deong Yang’s Roosevelt teammate 2026 WR Kayden Steptoe who holds offers from UW and Bowling Green.
Washington is in play for four-star DL Elijah Golden (Cardinal Mooney - Sarasota, FL). A recent On3 report calls UW a “dark horse” in Golden’s recruitment. He recently earned Second Team All-American Max Preps honors.
New offers this week
Washington offered three-star 2026 ATH Demari Nunley (St. Pius X-St.Matthias - Downey, CA) last week. Nunley holds offers from UW, UNLV, BYU, and WSU. He helped lead his team to a CIF Southern Section Championship this past season.
2026 DB Jonathan Dennis Jr. (Oak Hill - San Anselmo, CA) received an offer from Washington this week. UW is Dennis Jr.’s first scholarship offer. In the fall, he made gameday visits to Fresno St. and Arizona.
2026 QB Tayden Kaawa (Orem HS - Orem, UT) received an offer from Washington. Kaawa has over a dozen offers including Oregon, BYU, and ASU. Last season he totaled 3280 passing yards, 318 rushing yards, and 35 touchdowns.
2027 ATH Royalton Allen (Oak Hills - Hesperia, CA) received an offer from Washington. The two-way player (DB/WR) also holds offers from BYU and Arizona State.
2027 WR Dontay Tyson (Peoria HS - Peoria, AZ) received an offer from Washington. Tyson also has offers from Oregon, Tennessee, Kansas State, Arizona, and Colorado State.
Keep your eye on . . .
Three-star 2026 RB LaMarcus Bell (Lake Oswego HS - Lake Oswego, OR) received a visit from Scottie Graham. Bell told SeaTown Sports that their conversation was “amazing.” Bell has offers from Boise State, BYU, Illinois, and a handful of other schools.
Three-star 2026 TE Hayden Vercher (Thousand Oaks HS - Thousand Oaks, CA) received a visit from Jordan Paopao on Wednesday. Vercher holds offers from Arizona, Arizona State, Liberty, Minnesota, and San Diego State.
2026 LB Ramzak Fruean (Bethel HS - Spanaway Lake, WA) is receiving interest from Washington. Jedd Fisch met with Fruean on Thursday. A possible visit is in the works. Fruean holds offers from BYU, Oregon State, and Colorado State. Fruean made a gameday visit to Washington last fall.
2026 LB Donnie Vercher III (Central Catholic - Portland, OR) met with Scottie Graham this week. Vercher told SeaTown Sports their conversation was “really good.” Vercher has Husky roots and a “love for UW.” His mom’s uncle is Husky legend Walter Bailey.
2026 CB Jasiah Denmark (Puyallup HS - Puyallup, WA) met with Washington on Thursday. Denmark received an offer from Kalen DeBoer’s staff and it looks like the current staff remains interested in Denmark.
2026 ATH Zamarie Tellez (Federal Way HS - Federal Way, WA) met with Washington secondary coach John Richardson on Friday. Tellez received an offer from the current UW staff when they were at Arizona. Washington is also showing interest in 2028 ATH Kaicen Carter (Federal Way HS - Federal Way, WA)
On Friday, Jordan Paopao and Jason Kaufusi visited Archbishop Murphy (Everett, WA). Three notable 2026 names to remember: TE Jack Sievers, ATH Henry Gabalis, and OT Hakeim Smalls.
Three-star 2026 QB Maika Eugenio (Bishop Gorman - Las Vegas, NV) is receiving interest from Washington. Eugenio has offers from UNLV, ASU, FAU, North Alabama. Yale, Dartmouth, and Princeton are also showing interest. Eugenio tallied 2,060 passing yards, 32 TDs, 2 INTs in 2024.
2027 QB Landon Dougherty (Gadsden County - Tallahasse, FL) made an unofficial visit to Washington on Thursday: Dougherty stands a tall 6-5 and has already received offers from Duke and Central Michigan as a sophomore.
Where else were Washington’s coaches?
Along with the schools mentioned above, Washington coaches also visited these schools this week: Lincoln HS - WA; Canby HS - OR; Tualatin HS - OR; Servite - CA; Woods Cross - UT; Northridge - UT; Saguaro HS - AZ.
Chris Petersen recruited the 2020 class, but those recruits signed with the Huskies when Jimmy Lake was named head coach in 2019.
January 12th is designated as a “Quiet Period” day when it is permissible for coaches to make in-person recruiting contacts only on the college or university’s campus. No in-person, off-campus recruiting contacts or evaluations are permitted. January 13-15 is a “Dead Period.” During the Dead Period, coaches are not allowed to make in-person recruiting contacts or evaluations on or off campus, official and unofficial visits are also not allowed during this period.