Aug. 12, 2004

LOGAN, Utah - Utah State safety Terrance Washington may only be a sophomore, but he is already a leader of the Aggie football team, both on and off the field. His statistics speak for themselves. As a freshman in 2003 he recorded 93 tackles to rank third on the team and recorded five interceptions, which ranked him 29th in the NCAA. His efforts on the field did not go unnoticed as he was named a second-team Freshman All-American by the College Football News and second-team all-Sun Belt Conference in his first year of play. Despite his outstanding freshman campaign, the league media and coaches did not select the Ogden, Utah native to their preseason all-conference team this summer. "In my mind it is disrespectful for anybody in the Sun Belt Conference not to look at him as one of the best guys in the secondary anywhere and I think he is going to prove that," said USU safeties coach Jeff Choate. The humble, soft-spoken Washington is not concerned about individual honors, instead focusing on the team and its improvement. "I feel a lot more confident in the defense," Washington said after the team's second practice on Thursday. "I am just trying to help the other guys so that in case I go down or someone else goes down, we have somebody that can step in and take their place." Choate pointed out that the young Washington has taken on a bigger leadership role this year. "He is not a guy who is going to be a real vocal leader, but he leads by example in everything he does on and off the field," Choate said. "Not only is he a tremendous, tremendous athlete, but he is a great young man, heavily involved in the community, very active in his church and an outstanding student." His leadership role was evident after Thursday's practice. After a quick position meeting, Washington kept the safeties on the field for a brief talk and some extra pushups. "We weren't catching the ball during individual time and we have got to make more plays when we get the chance, so that is what I am trying to get these guys to realize," Washington explained. He is obviously beginning to feel more comfortable in his leadership role. "The coaches have really been hammering that into me because I don't really talk a lot, so they are trying to get me to talk more and be more of a leader and help the other guys out, so that is what I am trying to do," Washington said. While he has received honors for his football ability, his efforts off the field have also gone rewarded. He was named the school's male Big West Conference Scholar-Athlete and he earned better than a 3.0 grade-point average en route to earning a spot on the Sun Belt Conference Commissioner's Honor Roll. The business major from Ogden, Utah credits his parents, Darryl and Patricia, with his success. This summer the athletics department had an opportunity to see why Terrance is so respected by everyone at Utah State as the elder Washington's cooked lunch for approximately 40 members of the department one day in July. "They did that when I was in high school," Washington said. "They did that for the coaching staff there and decided to do it up here. They have that kind of heart. They like to bless other people. The date they worked so hard happened to occur on their wedding anniversary as well as Patricia's birthday. That did not surprise Terrance. "That is where they get their joy," Washington said. "They like seeing other people happy. They do stuff for themselves, but they like to do stuff for other people." Right now their son is bringing joy to USU coaches and fans who are extremely happy with his play and citizenship.