Dissly: ‘I Just Want To Play Football’
September 07, 2016 | Football
Mason Kelley
GoHuskies.com
Will Dissly and Drew Sample were sitting in their dorm room. They were freshmen. The teammates were getting to know each other better by asking about the past, talking about high school.
During the conversation Dissly, a defensive lineman, told Sample, a tight end, they might one day share a position.
"Maybe I'll get a few reps there," Dissly said at the time.
He was joking. He had no idea that conversation would prove to be prophetic, because now, as a junior that is exactly what's happened.
"Here we are now," the tight end said. "It's kind of ironic. It's funny."
A talented tight end in high school – he caught 55 passes for 917 yards and 11 touchdowns as a senior – but Washington's coaching staff put Dissly on defense and he embraced the role.
"I've always said, 'I just want to play football,'" Dissly said. "So, whether that's offense, defense, I'm just thankful to be here at this great university."
For two season, Dissly was a contributor as a defensive lineman, playing in all 13 games his sophomore season.
Then, back in the spring, Dissly was asked to make a change. All of a sudden, he was joining his roommate – same side of the ball, same position.
"It's been really positive," Dissly said. "I'm clicking with the guys in the room. Coach (Jordan) Paopao is doing a great job of getting me the reps I need, doing a great job of coaching that. It's been a lot of fun so far."
He spent the spring learning the nuances of playing tight end in the Huskies' system, and he continues to work on the mental aspects of his new position.
"There are 10 times the amount of assignments than I had as a defensive lineman," he said. "Being able to know your assignments and still play with aggression is definitely the biggest change."
When asked if his defensive background helps him in his new role, he said it does, before adding, "it's nice to know what they're doing, but at the same time you still have to execute your plays and get the job done."
The group he works with in the tight ends room has made the transition easier.
"Hats off to Darrell (Daniels) and Drew for being great leaders and coach Paopao for sticking with me," he said.
It also helps to have former quarterback Jeff Lindquist also going through the transition.
"Together we're able to help each other out," he said. "Jeff is, obviously, a really smart guy, so he helps with assignments and stuff and I have a defensive background, so I can help with how defensive people think and a little bit of striking power to help him with that. Overall, we're all having fun. We're all helping each other out."
Dissly has proven his ability to mix it up along the line. He has the size and strength to become an important part of Washington's offense as a blocker, but what about his hands? His high school numbers as a pass catcher were impressive. Can he replicate that with the Huskies?
He provided a simple answer to those questions.
"If they throw it to you, you're supposed to catch it," he said with a smile, "so I'll just leave it at that."
When Dissly first arrived at Washington, he never thought that joke he shared with Sample would come true. But here he is – a tight end. Will he ever end up back on the other side off the ball?
"He's been playing all offense, but he also is a really smart guy," Washington coach Chris Petersen said. "If anything happened and we had to get some things done over there, we could kick him over there and practice him up and he'd be okay."
Dissly will play wherever he's asked. His only concern is helping the Huskies win.
"We all want to win here," he said. "That's the expectation. It's not really about us. It's about the team and whatever we can do to help that is what we're going to do."
