UW starting center announces transfer to Alabama

Parker Brailsford has committed to play for Scott Huff.

Twice.

Brailsford, a redshirt freshman who started all 15 games (13 at center and two at right guard) last fall, announced on social media Saturday that he will transfer from Washington to Alabama. In Tuscaloosa, Alabama, Brailsford will reconnect with Huff, who is anticipated to coach the offensive line alongside Kalen DeBoer and Ryan Grubb.

Brailsford, who stands 6-foot-2 and weighs 275 pounds, is the second Husky (so far) to follow DeBoer to Alabama, joining highly touted redshirt freshman quarterback Austin Mack.

Brailsford, a Mesa, Ariz. native, was awarded a first-team freshman All-American and second-team Pac-12 performer in 2023. He emerged as part of a unit that won the Joe Moore Award, which recognizes college football’s best offensive line.

The entire line appears to be leaving this offseason, as left tackle Troy Fautanu and right tackle Roger Rosengarten declared for the NFL draft, while Brailsford, left guard Nate Kalepo, and right guard Julius Buelow all entered the transfer portal.

Of the 21 Huskies who have entered the portal since the end of the regular season, eight have committed to other institutions, while one (junior defensive back Dyson McCutcheon) has withdrawn and returned to Washington. Jedd Fisch, the new UW coach, will try to deter a few more from bolting in the coming days and weeks.

However, it is becoming increasingly evident that the University of Washington’s offensive line, coached by new offensive coordinator and position coach Brennan Carroll, will start from over in 2024. Beyond Brailsford, Kalepo, and Buelow, brothers Geirean and Landen Hatchett have also accessed the portal.

It is an exit epidemic.