Tuesday evening was the beginning of week four of Spring practice at Washington. It was practice number 10 of 14, not including the Spring Game on Friday, May 1st, and the team took the East practice field in shells. Even though it wasn’t a full-contact practice, the offense went against the defense in team periods for a good portion of the evening. During the 11-on-11 reps, the young cornerbacks made a few different plays, and their position coach commented on their quick progress this month.
Richardson Discusses UW Cornerbacks
Jones and Jiles
Jeron Jones opened the day with a pass breakup right away. The former four-star out of Mission Viejo, California, dove in front of a pass on an out-breaking route towards the far side of the field. With his left arm extended in front of the receiver, Jones deflected the football incomplete.
Shortly thereafter, Ksani Jiles stepped up on third down and short. After a short completion, the former three-star defensive back made hard contact on the ball-carrier, stopping him down short of the line to gain. Of course, it wasn’t a full-contact practice, but Jiles was right there to make the play in what would have been a hard hit.
“They’re growing fast,” secondary coach John Richardson said after practice of the freshmen cornerbacks. “You’re able to see their athleticism as well, watching them mature, watching them handle their academics with our academic staff, doing a phenomenal job and being able to handle all that.”
Gatorade Player of the Year
Elijah Durr is the other cornerback who enrolled early in the 2026 recruiting class. He was a three-star local product out of Tacoma, Washington, who earned Washington Gatorade Player of the Year honors for the 2025 season. Durr recorded a stop during the Huskies’ scrimmage last Saturday and had two pass breakups during the second week of practice.
“I don’t think he has a ceiling. We’re still scratching the surface on what we’re gonna see,” Richardson said of Durr’s potential in the secondary. “He’s working on multiple different things to try to get on the field this year, but he doesn’t back down from competition, and you can coach him hard. So that’s always a great thing.” Durr was the ninth-ranked player out of the state of Washington in last year’s class. “Being a local kid, [he’s] making sure that the state knows that the best players play here.” Four out of the top 10 players in the state in the class of 2026 now play for Washington, including three of the top five.
Recruiting Class Competition
One of the ways these young cornerbacks are already showing their growth is in their matchups against recruiting classmates. On the other side of the ball, Washington brought in receivers like Jordan Clay, Mason James, Trez Davis, and Asa Thompson, who have elevated the receiver room as true freshmen. Their one-on-one matchups against Jones, Jiles, and Durr are noticeable. “You’re not trying to get shown up by guys in your same class, you know,” Richardson said after practice. “So that type of competition, and when they go off, and they hang out, I’m pretty sure they talk about those things. So, that’s kind of accelerating the curve as well.”
That competition showed up during Tuesday’s practice on a few different occasions. Durr matched up against Thompson during one-on-ones along the near sideline. Demond Williams delivered a back shoulder pass, and Thompson adjusted to the football in tight coverage to make a catch and win the battle. In that same practice period, James and Jiles went at it. After a physical release at the line, James got a step on the cornerback and showed his acceleration to run under a pass for a touchdown. These individual competitions continue to fuel the growth of the young talent on this Washington roster.
“The guys are competing day in and day out,” Richardson said on Tuesday. “When you get a chance to coach against the best wide receiver coach in the country, Coach KC, we’re gonna get challenged every day, so we can’t complain at all.”
Main Photo: Nick Lemkau Last Word On College Football 2026
