The wide receiver room is one of Washington’s position groups with the most attrition among last year’s starters. Denzel Boston is the only player who returns more than 13 targets from a season ago. He caught 63 passes on 98 targets, leading the team in reception touchdowns with nine. Giles Jackson and Jeremiah Hunter are headed to the next level, creating an opportunity for the “next man up” at wide-out.
Spring Practice Preview: Washington Receivers
Key Returner
Through nine weeks last season, Boston led the Power Four in touchdown receptions at receiver with nine. He was one of Will Rogers’ top targets in the first half of the season, quickly ascending to the top of the stats columns in 2024. Boston is an impactful wide receiver in large part because of how he uses his length. At 6’-4”, Boston showed his ability to high-point passes, extend his catch radius diagonally, and haul in tricky passes.
A season ago, Boston showed his versatility as a pass catcher on several occasions. Against Northwestern, he hauled in a 50-yard touchdown catch over the shoulder while absorbing early contact from the safety. At Rutgers, Boston showed what he could do after the catch, turning a four-yard reception into a 51-yard touchdown with speed through the middle and down the sideline. At Iowa, Boston out-battled the cornerback in a highly contested over-the-shoulder catch for a touchdown. And at Oregon, he stretched to snag a pass from Demond Williams Jr. while dragging his left toe in bounds. Boston’s spatial awareness, hand skills, and physicality are enough to make him one of the top receivers in the conference.
Veteran With Speed
Omari Evans joins the Husky receiver room with one year of eligibility remaining. The Penn State transfer caught 21 passes for 415 yards and five touchdowns a year ago. He played in all 16 games for the Nittany Lions in 2024 and has played in 40 career games over three seasons. The addition of Evans to the room at Washington gives it a critical element of experience in addition to Boston. Between the two of them, they return 136 targets from last season. The rest of the Washington receiver room combines for just 18.
Evans separates himself, both metaphorically and literally, with his speed. He was the fastest player on the Penn State roster, running a 4.31-second 40-yard dash. Speed was the priority for Washington’s coaching staff when searching for a receiver in the transfer portal. “We wanted an element of speed,” wide receivers coach Kevin Cummings said earlier this Winter. “Speed in your offense, especially at the receiver position, changes the game.” In addition to his role as a veteran in the locker room, it’s clear Evans will be utilized to open up the offense.
Next Men In
Audric Harris is one of the young receivers who we’ll likely see take a big step forward this Spring. He caught just two passes last year for 17 yards. “He [is] going to be smooth,” Jeremiah Hunter said of the younger receiver. “I think Auddie [is] going to be big.” Harris was a three-star recruit who enrolled at Arizona in January of 2024. He transferred up to Washington, following Jedd Fisch where he saw the field in eight games as a true freshman. It’s clear the receiver room is high on the young pass-catcher. After his Pro Day showcase, Hunter was quick to point to Harris as a player to step up this season.
Rashid Williams was targeted 13 times last season, the most behind the trio of Boston, Jackson, and Hunter. His role is also projected to increase into 2025. Williams is a third-year sophomore who played in all 13 games a year ago. His best game was at Iowa where he caught four passes and one touchdown. Williams never dropped a pass last year and pulled down three contested catches out of his 11 receptions.
Under The Radar
Justice Williams redshirted last season and did not see any action as a Husky. Williams was a four-star recruit in the class of 2024 and a top-ten player from the state of California. Among the players in Washington’s 2024 class who are still on the roster, Williams was the second-highest rated in the class.
We’ll get our first opportunity to see Williams participate in Spring practice this April. He enrolled at Washington in the Summer last year. At 6’-4” and 203 pounds, Williams has great size at the receiver position. He spent four years on the varsity roster at Oaks Christian High School where he totaled over 1,700 receiving yards with 15 touchdowns on 115 catches. Williams and Boston are the two tallest wide receivers on the roster at 6’-4”. He’s someone we will be keeping an eye on as Spring practice gets going.
Freshmen To Watch
The Huskies added five prolific wide receivers in their 2025 recruiting class. Chris Lawson, Marcus Harris, and Raiden Vines-Bright were tabbed as four-star recruits and listed within the top 75 of their position. All three receivers are listed at 6’-1”. They have each enrolled and will participate in Spring practice beginning in April. Deji Ajose and Dezmen Roebuck will also join the receiver room from the 2025 class, each was a highly rated three-star.
Main Image: Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images
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