Day two in the books. ...

WHAT HAPPENED

UW held its second practice of fall camp in front of a couple hundred fans at Husky Stadium.

THE BIG STORY

Another day, another NCAA Clearinghouse issue as JC transfer CB Dominque Gaisie, who had participated in Monday's practice, was not in uniform while the Clearinghouse takes a closer look at his transcripts.

"They're evalatuing a couple of things and we've just got to communicate and send some things back and forth just to make sure,'' said UW coach Steve Sarkisian. "He could be back tomorrow (Wednesday), could be anytime. You just don't know sometimes with that stuff. I wish I knew more because that part of it gets frustrating that you don't always know and you just kind of sit here in limbo.''

Freshman CB Desmond Trufant remains out while attempting to retake a class that the Clearinghouse didn't approve.

Also out was freshman DE Talia Crichton with a groin injury with which Sarkisian said the team wants to be cautious. WR Devin Aguilar was also sidelined a little bit early on with an ankle injury that first crept up Monday.

And OL coach Dan Cozzetto was also limping around after saying he was leg-whipped during a drill.

STAR OF THE DAY

In the practice structure of Sarkisian, there is a winner and loser each day among the offense and defense. After the offense won Monday's practice, the defense got the upper hand Tuesday, claiming victory on the final play when cornerback Justin Glenn broke up a pass over the middle.

"That's how it should be as we keep growing and getting better as a football team,'' Sarkisian said. "The offense won yesterday, the defense came back and battled back and won today.''

Sarkisian was most impressed that the defense was able to get itself aligned quickly against a no-back offense.

"That was not an easy alignment adjustment and they got it done,'' he said. "It comes down to one-on-one matchups and Justin made the play.''

NOTES, QUOTES AND RANDOM THOUGHTS

--- There was a lot of talk afterward about the tight end position and that's something I focused on for more main story, which you can already find on-line here. That story seems to reinforce a notion I've gotten from talking to some other people around the program that there was just a real lack of communication in the past, that a lot of players didn't seem to necessarily know what their role was.

--- LB E.J. Savannah also talked with reporters for a while afterward and I may get more of that up later. But among the highlights are that he says he weighs about 235 pounds, which is where he said he wants to be. He somewhat sheepishly admitted to having been about 247 during the spring. He also said he's glad to be playing weakside linebacker and he said that while the new defense is a lot different than what UW ran in 2007, his position is largely the same, so it's an easy transition back to the game. He also said he may look into getting a sixth year after the season depending on how things go but that for now, he is assuming this is his final year of eligibility.

--- Sarkisian was asked about the TB spot but said nothing has been established and that "until we get to full pads, it's really hard to tell. We are, as we say in the football world, still in underward. Until we get half pads and full pads on and see how they handle the physicality of th game and the way our defense is going to play, then it is going to separate itself a little bit.''

--- Sarkisian cited WR Jordan Polk as one of the standouts of the day. Polk had about a 30-yard catch on a route down the sideline early in the day from Ronnie Fouch.

--- Jake Locker's best pass of the day may have been about a 25-yarder down the right side to fullback Austin Sylvester. Locker rolled to his right on the play and displayed the kind of touch that he has sometimes struggled with in the past.

--- PK Erik Folk had a better day today, making all three of his attempts with a long of around 42.

--- Looked like the defense was experimenting quite a bit with both Jason Wells and David Batts as safeties with the No. 1 unit, giving each a chance to work with the starters.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

Sarkisian, when asked about giving some guys like Izbicki and Savannah second chances, said this: "I think they are enjoying the opportunity. We have to remind ourselves that these are still kids of a sort, they are 18-19-20 year old guys. Everybody can make a mistake here and there and you are still finding your way and I think sometimes you think I made so many wrong decisions and things are not going my way and it's doom and gloom. And when you get a ray of hope, an opprtunity there, it can motivate you. With our team right now, we have quite a few guys that have been motivated to the point of 'man, I've got an opportunity and I want to make the most of it.'''

WHAT'S NEXT

The Huskies will put on shoulder pads and do some more intense hitting for the first time this season in a 3 p.m. practice today. Full pads are not allowed until the fifth practice.

Even though it's just half-pads, Sarkisian said he's excited to get some hitting going on. "Its exciting because for us there's a huge emphasis on being a physical football team and being phsyical up front on the defensive side of the ball and stopping the run and being physical up front on offense and being able to run the ball,'' he said. "So tomorrow is the first day to put on the pads and I know the guys are excited and we are excited to really take the first step to emphasize that we are a physical football team and taking the steps to accomplish that.''

All for now.