Young UW receivers still catching on

When pushed, Washington freshman receivers Jermaine Kearse and Devin Aguilar will admit they're not entirely comfortable on the field. At least not yet. Not after just three college games.

There are times, when the moment simply overwhelms them.

• The roar of the crowd at 72,000-seat Husky Stadium.

• The ESPN-televised game.

• The nationally ranked opponent and the suffocating defensive backs who stick like flypaper.

It can be too much for a rookie, and that anxiety helps to explain why Washington ranks eighth in passing in the Pac-10 Conference.

"The first game, I was like, 'OK, I'm a college receiver [and] let's see how this goes,' " Aguilar said. "I'm still in awe. I'm not more so in awe after the Oklahoma game, because I started contributing. I was like, 'I could do this. I'm a good player, too.' "

Against the then-No. 3 Sooners, Aguilar finished with five receptions and 72 yards, a dramatic improvement from the previous two games when he had just one catch for 10 yards.

"The first two games, I was just really excited," he said.

Kearse felt a similar nervousness.

"As the season goes on, I'll get more comfortable," he said. "It will slow down a lot more for me and I'll be able to create separation and read coverages on the go."

Washington coach Tyrone Willingham and quarterback Jake Locker have no choice other than to wait for someone to emerge from a quartet of first-year players and join sophomore wideout D'Andre Goodwin as a consistent pass-catching threat.

The candidates include: redshirt freshman Alvin Logan, who has started all three games; true freshman Jordan Polk; Kearse; and Aguilar. If the coaching staff doesn't play true freshmen Anthony Boyles and Cody Bruns on Saturday against Stanford or next week at Arizona, they will likely be redshirted.

For now, the focus is on Aguilar, UW's third-leading receiver, and Kearse, who has five receptions for 76 yards, including a 48-yard touchdown two weeks ago against Brigham Young. Logan and Polk each have three catches.

"Every week they're going to get better and better," offensive coordinator Tim Lappano said. "But to say they'll reach their full potential by the middle of the year? I don't buy that."

The biggest adjustment from preps to college is the speed of the game and size of the defensive backs, Kearse said.

"In high school, you can just run around somebody. But in college, once they get a hand on you, it's hard to get away from them," he said. "You just try your best to use your technique to get off the jam and create separation."

Notes

• Sophomore WR Curtis Shaw, who left the team early in training camp in August for personal reasons, watched Thursday's practice from the stands. He is not expected to return this season and would have three years of eligibility remaining if he rejoins the Huskies.

• Sophomore OLB Matt Houston is slated to unseat junior Joshua Gage and make his first start Saturday against Stanford. Gage has seven tackles in three starts. Houston has played in every game and has four tackles.

• Senior WR Chancellor Young suffered a bruised knee last week and will miss the next couple of weeks.

• Freshman DT Craig Noble, who arrived at UW on Monday and practiced sparingly this week, will not play against the Cardinal.

• After a 2-0 start last season, it seemed as if Locker would finish his UW career as the latest in a long line of great Huskies quarterbacks. In the past 13 games, however, he has a 1-12 record.

• The Huskies added four freshman walk-ons to the roster: 5-foot-11, 206-pound LB Jonathan Amosa (Rainier Beach HS); 6-1, 185-pound K Kevin Howe (Capistrano Valley Christian HS, San Juan Capistrano, Calif.); 6-1, 245-pound OL Gavin Silva (Punahou HS, Kaneohe, Hawaii); and 5-11, 192-pound DB Warren Woods (Loyola HS, Walnut, Calif.)

Percy Allen: 206-464-2278 or pallen@seattletimes.com