Washington is about to lean harder on its true freshmen at wide receiver, and Kevin Cummings isn’t hiding what he thinks of the two kids stepping into the spotlight.
With sixth-year receiver Christian Moss sidelined for two-to-three months by a lower-body injury and fourth-year receiver Rashid Williams listed week-to-week with a soft tissue injury, Jordan Clay and Trez Davis are suddenly in line for meaningful snaps. Moss was hurt in Week 1 against Washington State, while Williams went down in Washington’s Week 2 win over Utah State.
Cummings said Tuesday that both freshmen have already shown they can handle the moment.
"I think you saw it a little bit the other day," Huskies wide receivers coach Kevin Cummings said in a weekly news conference Tuesday. "Those guys are going to go in there and they're not gonna flinch.
They're still learning a lot about the game. ... There's gonna be mistakes, there's going to be different things that you got to learn.
But go out there with no fear, go out there with confidence, at the end of the day go out there and have fun and you saw those guys do that and make some huge plays for us."
That showed up in the Aggies game on Sept. 12, when Clay caught four passes for 42 yards, all in the first half, and Davis matched him with four receptions for 44 yards.
Both players arrived as part of Washington’s highly regarded 2026 recruiting class, which ranked 12th nationally and stood as the best ranking in program history. Each was rated a four-star prospect by the 247Sports composite, and the Huskies had to battle to land both.
Clay has drawn the heavier load of expectations. He came in viewed as a possible answer at the "X" spot after Denzel Boston, Washington’s 2025 leading receiver, left for the NFL’s Cleveland Browns. But minor injuries in spring and fall camp kept Clay from showing what he could do with the starters on a consistent basis.
Now the chance is here.
"Jordan is probably (6-foot-3, 218 pounds) right now," Cummings said. "And to be that size as a freshman and to be able to move the way that he moves is what we look for in an 'X' receiver. ...
His talent-level is undeniable and we've said that from the beginning. Now, it's just our job as coaches and his job, day-in and day-out in practice, making sure that he's getting the reps that he needs and is getting into the conditioning that he needs to be able to be the guy that we expect him to be."
Washington has already had to adjust across the roster because of injuries, with true freshmen Brian Bonner Jr. and Ansu Sanoe stepping in at running back after injuries to second-year Quaid Carr and fourth-year Jayden Limar. On defense, first-years Derek Colman-Brusa, Jeron Jones and Ramzak Fruean have also picked up starting reps.
Now the Huskies are asking two more freshmen to grow up fast.
Clay and Davis will get another chance to prove they’re ready when Washington faces Eastern Washington in its final nonconference game of the season at 4:15 p.m. PT on Saturday at Husky Stadium in Seattle.
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