Whenever you ask any member of the Washington Huskies coaching staff about freshman outside linebacker Ramzak Fruean, it's hard for them to contain their excitement.
Following the Dawgs After Dark spring game, defensive coordinator Ryan Walters had a massive smile on his face while discussing the former four-star product of nearby Bethel High School and the splash plays he made as a pass rusher. It felt as if every single practice, the explosive 6-foot-4, 235-pound athlete showcased his speed to get into the backfield for a sack or a tackle for loss.
So far during fall camp, he has continued to showcase the pure athleticism that made him such a priority for Jedd Fisch's coaching staff, along with plenty of growth.
Ramzak Fruean working with the
edge rushers pic.twitter.com/cEsu7YTkGX
— Roman Tomashoff (@rtomashoff34) March 31, 2026
"It's been exponential," outside linebackers coach Aaron Van Horn said of the freshman's improvement since the spring. "Obviously, it's something you hope for from young guys especially; there's so much to learn as far as maturity-wise off the field and on the field."
"He takes things seriously, so he's taken a huge jump as far as the football school piece of it...the technique, the fundamentals. And the other piece of it that you can just watch is he practices as hard as just about anybody; you can just watch it, he practices everything. That's one of the things that he embodies, and it's showing up."
One of the most noticeable areas of Fruean's improvement has been his power. At several points during Washington's first few padded practices, while working with both the first and second-team defenses, he has displayed a stronger bull rush to walk back offensive tackles that, when combined with the rest of his athletic traits, gives him a ceiling as high as any pass rusher on Washington's roster.
"His speed," defensive line coach Jason Kaufusi added. "You talk about elite bend coming around the corner. He's starting to mature a little bit more physically, and also just mature himself. And so, I expect great things from him, and I think once he figures it all out—he puts it all together— I think you guys will see a really good product on the football field."
This article originally appeared on Huskies Wire: Ramzak Fruean displaying exponential growth at Washington fall camp
