With spring practices open to the public, it was no big secret to anyone watching that the University of Washington football team is going to throw the ball to tight end Decker DeGraaf a lot this coming season.
Over 15 workouts, the Huskies delivered no fewer than 31 passes to him — way more than any other receiver — finding him multiple times each day whenever there was 11-on-11 team competition.
More often than not they dumped balls to him on turnaround routes just beyond the line of scrimmage. They repeatedly found him over the middle. They occasionally threw to him downfield, with a 27-yarder the longest completion. Or in stretches, they kept trying to hit him like a bottle at the county fair.
For the 12th practice, DeGraaf came away with 7 receptions that day, all thrown by Demond Williams Jr., with a pass to the 6-foot-4, 249-pound junior from San Dimas, California, becoming a springtime event unto itself.
Onn that busy Saturday, those in charge of the musical selections blasting through Husky Stadium cranked up a Metallica song and the UW immediately fired a 9-yard pass to DeGraaf. He was part of the playlist in more ways than one.
This is one in a series of articles — going from 0 to 99 on the UW roster — examining what each scholarship player and leading walk-on did in spring practice and what to expect from them going into fall camp.
An immediate contributor since first arriving in Montlake — he caught a 33-yard touchdown pass on the dead run just a few plays into his college debut against Weber State — DeGraaf is poised for a breakout season that could elevate him among the nation’s elite players at his position.
He’s been the typical high-end Husky tight end, playing right away as a freshman and only elevating his game with each ensuing season.
“I’ve just got a lot stronger, just been working on run blocking, pass blocking, the whole game, trying to be a well-developed tight end,” he said.
People are beginning to take notice. In June, ESPN ranked the Husky veteran among the nation’s top five tight ends, an added breakthrough for him as he builds a wider reputation.
“Having 26 games played going into my junior year is a great place to be,” DeGraaf said. “I feel like I’ve played a lot of football and it’s starting to show up. I have a lot of confidence.”
What he’s done: DeGraaf is the next in the long line of highly accomplished Husky tight ends who include Austin Seferian-Jenkins, Darrell Daniels, Josh Perkins, Will Dissly, Drew Sample, Cade Otton, Hunter Bryant, Jack Westover, Devin Culp and Keleki Latu, who each have played in the NFL over the past decade. He has 47 career catches for 593 yards and 5 touchdowns. He had 32 receptions in 2025 alone and should exceed that total this fall.
Starter or not: He’s appeared in every game since he joined the UW football program and started five times as a freshman and 11 games last fall. He’s determined to take over for the graduated Quentin Moore as an elite blocker. When he’s done in Montlake, he projects to be a high-round NFL draft pick.
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