Why Washington Husky LB Jacob Manu won’t play against No. 7 Oregon
Washington linebacker Jacob Manu warms up for Saturday’s game against UCLA on Saturday. (Dean Rutz / The Seattle Times)
By Andy Yamashita Seattle Times staff reporter
From a purely football perspective, Jacob Manu’s appearance against UCLA was strange, to put it generously.
NCAA rules mandate a football player is allowed to play in four regular-season games while redshirting. Washington coach Jedd Fisch announced Manu, the senior linebacker who missed the beginning of the season while recovering from a knee injury that cost him five games in 2024, intended to redshirt and maintain his eligibility for 2026.
Manu made his UW debut Sept. 27 against No. 1 Ohio State. He played again during Washington’s 24-20 comeback win versus Maryland on Oct. 4 and during its 24-7 defeat against No. 18 Michigan on Oct. 18. And with a regular-season finale against No. 7 Oregon looming, Manu’s final appearance seemed likely to come against the Ducks.
But Manu was on the field against UCLA, helping the Huskies crush the Bruins 48-14. And Fisch stated — unequivocally — that the 5-foot-11, 225-pound linebacker will not play against Oregon on Saturday. All because of a vow Fisch made to Manu 11 months ago.
“I made a promise to Jacob when he transferred to Washington that if he was healthy, he was going to play against UCLA,” Fisch said Saturday. “We were never not going to make that. Whatever promise we make to a player, we’re going to keep.”
So Manu, a former first-team All-Pac-12 linebacker, won’t suit up when Washington welcomes Oregon to Husky Stadium for a 12:30 p.m. kickoff Saturday at Husky Stadium. Fisch expanded on his explanation for Manu’s involvement against UCLA during his news conference Monday, noting the current state of Washington’s linebacker group allowed him to comfortably play Manu, a Southern California native, at the Rose Bowl.
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“We were OK not playing Jacob this week,” Fisch said, “knowing that (linebackers Zaydrius Rainey-Sale, Deven Bryant and Xe’ree Alexander) have elevated their game to such a point that we felt great about those linebackers against Oregon.”
Manu and his family had initially brought up his desire to play against UCLA during his official visit to Washington in January. He’d entered the transfer portal following his injury-shortened junior season at Arizona, and quickly agreed with Fisch — who’d coached Manu during his first two seasons with the Wildcats — that a redshirt was likely the best approach for 2025 while he recovered from the knee injury that ended his 2024 campaign.
The Santa Ana, Calif., native readily accepted when Fisch asked if he’d be willing to let the coaching staff select which four games Manu played in once he returned from injury. The former Servite High star’s only request was that he be allowed to play against UCLA, in front of his friends and family, if he was healthy. Fisch agreed.
Manu’s recovery went well through spring practices and fall camp, and Fisch said he expected to easily hold up his end of their bargain.
But UW’s linebacker group started suffering attrition. Against Washington State in the 117th Apple Cup on Sept. 20, junior Taariq “Buddah” Al-Uqdah sustained a season-ending knee injury. Rainey-Sale, the highly touted freshman from Bethel High, had torn his right anterior cruciate ligament during his final high school game, and wasn’t available while the Huskies (8-3, 5-3 Big Ten) prepared for the Buckeyes.
Manu made his season debut against Ohio State, making three tackles in the 24-6 defeat. But with Rainey-Sale still unavailable against Maryland a week later, Fisch said he asked Manu to make a sacrifice for the team and play against the Terrapins. The senior linebacker made six tackles including one for a loss.
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“We had to play Jacob against Maryland,” Fisch said. “And when that happened, we made a decision. And that decision was, we had to do what was best for the team.”
But Washington’s linebacker room stabilized upon Rainey-Sale’s return. The Tacoma native made his collegiate debut against Rutgers on Oct. 10. He played a season-high 57 snaps against Purdue on Nov. 15. Alexander also began to emerge as a reliable option at linebacker, making double-figure tackles against Illinois on Oct. 25 and Wisconsin on Nov. 8, while Bryant remained a consistent presence.
The UW coach added he considered the UCLA game critical to Washington’s season. Fisch said he wanted to end the campaign with a winning road record. He wanted to enter the Oregon game with eight wins. And he wanted to keep his promise to Manu. Fisch said he didn’t know the exact number of friends and family members the linebacker had at the Rose Bowl, but noted Manu had a lot of hugs to give out postgame.
“We were excited that we were able to do that,” Fisch said. “We felt like the plan was in place properly.”
And Manu may be one of the only UW players unavailable against Oregon. Fisch announced freshman wide receiver Raiden Vines-Bright (concussion) has been fully cleared. The Husky coach also said junior wideout Denzel Boston (ankle) and senior tailback Jonah Coleman (knee) will both be available for a “substantial” amount of snaps after playing very limitedly against UCLA.
Additionally, Fisch said junior right tackle Drew Azzopardi (lower leg) will return to practice Tuesday. He’ll get team repetitions Wednesday and Thursday while the coaching staff evaluates whether he can return against Oregon. Junior edge rusher Isaiah Ward (lower body) may also be available for limited situational snaps like Boston and Coleman were against UCLA. Azzopardi hasn’t played since Wisconsin, while Ward most recently appeared against Michigan.
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The only player Fisch said he expected to join Manu on the sideline was junior center Landen Hatchett (hand), who will continue to wear a ball cast on his regular snapping hand against the Ducks (10-1, 7-1). The Ferndale native is physically able to play in case of emergency, but has been replaced by sophomore center Zachary Henning during the past two games.
Sophomore wide receiver Audric Harris will also be available Saturday. The Las Vegas native burned his redshirt by appearing against UCLA, catching one pass for minus-1 yard. Fisch heaped praise on Harris after the game for putting the team ahead of himself by being available against the Bruins.
“He wanted to play,” Fisch said. “He wanted to play with his buddies. He wanted to play with his teammates. There’s great opportunity to put film out and figure it out. There’s also great opportunity to continue to see if you want to be here and see if you want to be a part of this. But I’m just proud of him, as a person, for doing that.”
Andy Yamashita: ayamashita@seattletimes .com. Andy Yamashita is a sports reporter at The Seattle Times, primarily covering Washington Huskies football.