Husky seniors have no regrets on eve of home finale
SEATTLE – Washington’s seniors make their final walk tonight, one step closer to the end of a career that went nothing like they had planned.
Nineteen players will walk down the tunnel and into Husky Stadium for the final time as college players tonight when the Huskies face UCLA, and on their way down that tunnel, they’ll pass numerous posters commemorating Washington’s trips to various bowl games, bowl game that, until recently, were a normal part of a UW football season.
They’ll likely notice those posters of Rose Bowls past and wondering what happened. Why weren’t they able to experience winning like that at Washington?
But while Washington’s seniors have not enjoyed the success they were hoping for in their four, five, and in the case of Juan Garcia, six years at Washington, they say they don’t regret the decision to become a Husky.
“It definitely didn’t end up the way we wanted it to,” defensive tackle Johnie Kirton said. “There were glimpses here and there the last couple of years, but things just didn’t work out the way … It’s not a perfect world, I guess you could say. But there are no regrets. Me and my classmates have gotten the best and the most out of the UW football and we’ve enjoyed our time here.”
Kirton, a fifth-year senior, hopes that his class will not be remembered for Washington’s record during their time in Seattle, which is 12-44, but rather for what he thinks will be a bright future.
“I feel like we’re a big part of the program going up,” he said.
Of the 19 seniors honored today, only Garcia was around for a non-losing season, as he redshirted in 2003 when the Huskies were 6-6. Because he lost two seasons to injuries, Garcia was granted a sixth year of eligibility. He then suffered a Lisfranc injury in the spring that threatened his last season, but elected to gamble and not have surgery. That gamble paid off, but Garcia’s reward for an early comeback has been a season of losing.
Still, like everyone else, he said he has no regrets.
“If I would have got the surgery, it would have been killing me being like, ‘Man, I wish I was out there,’ ” Garcia said last week, one of the few times he’s talked to the media this year. “I’m glad I’m out here with these guys and losing with them instead of just watching it happen. It’s kind of tough, but hey, I don’t care man, I got to wear the uniform one last time.”
“I grew up a Husky fan, so obviously my expectations were that we’re going to be with the best in the country,” tight end Michael Gottlieb said. “The first season, it went by so fast, but I just remember feeling like I couldn’t believe what was happening. It just surprised me the way the season went downhill. I expected to be at the top.”