How the Washington Huskies signed WA standout Ramzak Fruean

When Travis Domser describes Ramzak Fruean, the Bethel High coach always comes back to one adjective.

“He’s absolutely fearless,” Domser said.

It’s high praise coming from Domser, who completed his third season at Bethel in 2025, because it’s a trait he’s seen very recently. Before he watched Fruean ascend to become the state’s top linebacker during the 2026 recruiting cycle, Domser coached Zaydrius Rainey-Sale — the consensus No. 1 player in Washington during the 2025 cycle — at Bethel before the standout freshman linebacker signed with the Huskies.

“They’re very similar in those things that really matter,” Domser said. “They’re fearless. They have a great work ethic. Zak did a great job. You can’t take him off special teams. He looks at you funny. And I said that same thing about Zay. Zak just wanted to be on the field.”

Fruean, a 6-foot-4, 215-pound linebacker, signed with Washington Dec. 3, just days after announcing his commitment to UW on Dec. 1. A former UCLA commit, Fruean was considered a three-star prospect, the No. 6 player in the state and the No. 64 linebacker nationally by the 247Sports composite rankings, though 247Sports’ own ratings had Fruean as the No. 4 player in Washington and the No. 48 linebacker in the country.

“The best in Washington play for Washington,” Fruean said.

But Fruean hasn’t always called the Evergreen State home. He’s a relatively new resident.

Fruean originally hails from Nanakuli, Hawai’i, a small town on O’ahu’s leeward coast around 25 miles from Honolulu. He played his first two seasons of high school football at Kapolei High, the alma mater of former UW offensive lineman Julius Buelow.

His family moved to Washington before Fruean’s junior year of high school, in large part to help him gain more recruiting exposure, and chose the Spanaway area because they had relatives in the area. Fruean admitted it took some time to adjust to the Pacific Northwest weather, and said he’s still searching for a good poke restaurant.

By coincidence, the move allowed Fruean to partner with Rainey-Sale — who also spent part of his childhood in Hawai’i — in the heart of the Bethel defense.

Domser made it clear Fruean and Rainey-Sale are different players physically, despite sharing many of the same mental intangibles. Where the 6-foot-3, 225-pound Rainey-Sale has always profiled as a more traditional linebacker, Domser said Fruean demonstrated significant positional versatility at Bethel.

Fruean’s slightly longer and lighter frame allowed him to play in multiple spots. At Bethel, he spent time at safety and linebacker. He played some edge rusher during his time at Kapolei. All while maintaining the same level of fearlessness. Domser joked Fruean’s lone flaw as a player was that he didn’t know how to clone himself.

“If we could have 11 Zaks, he could play every position on defense,” Domser said

Fruean set up several official visits for the summer before his senior season at Bethel, including trips to Oregon State, UCLA and BYU. Washington was scheduled to be his final stop.

But Fruean never made it onto UW’s campus. He committed to UCLA on June 9, days after completing his official visit with the Bruins, part of a summer recruiting surge under second-year UCLA coach DeShaun Foster. Fruean said his relationship with Bruins defensive coordinator Ikaika Malloe — the former Husky safety who was also a defensive assistant at UW under Chris Petersen and Jimmy Lake — was the main reason he chose UCLA.

His plans changed abruptly Sept. 14. UCLA, enduring an 0-3 start to the season that included losses to UNLV and New Mexico, fired Foster. Three days later, Malloe departed the program as the Bruins tried to salvage their season. Fruean was one of five Bruin commits who reopened their recruitment the day Foster was dismissed, along with O’Dea High defensive lineman and UW signee David Schwerzel.

“I don’t think there’s that much stability yet,” Fruean said on Dec 11.

So Fruean began considering his options with fewer than three months to make a decision. Arizona briefly entered his recruitment, but BYU and Washington quickly emerged as Fruean’s top choices.

The Huskies had been in early contact with Fruean back when he was playing at Kapolei, primarily through former Director of Recruiting and Hawai’i native Josh Omura. They remained in contact after Omura left for Arizona State, and made him a priority once Fruean reopened his recruitment.

“They never gave up on him,” Domser said. “They created a relationship there and a trust. They couldn’t have done a better job. They worked super hard to make sure it was the right fit.”

Fruean said Washington’s coaching staff said they want to lean into his versatility. Fruean noted he’s expected to start out as a linebacker under position coach Brian Odom when he enrolls for winter quarter in January, but added they’ve talked to him about getting repetitions playing the box safety role where junior Alex McLaughlin starred for defensive coordinator Ryan Walters in 2025.

It’s a similar role to the one he’s played for two seasons at Bethel. When Domser and the Bison deployed Fruean at linebacker, he primarily lined up on the wide side of the field where his strong coverage skills and ability to snuff out screens were particularly impactful.

“Ramzak Fruean was a huge get for our program,” UW coach Jedd Fisch said during his signing day news conference Dec. 3. “I think he is going to be a special linebacker.”

Fruean, however, wasn’t able to make his decision until days before the early signing period started as he contemplated playing at UW or BYU.

Despite contemplating his collegiate future, Fruean’s play never declined. He was named the 2025 Class 4A South Puget Sound League south division’s co-player of the year along with Graham-Kapowsin’s Kase Betz. Fruean made 62 tackles including nine for a loss, six sacks and three interceptions during his senior season. He also played offense, adding 24 catches for 625 yards receiving and seven touchdowns.

He’ll line up against anybody. Anywhere. Anytime,” Domser said. “If he’s not a part of the play, he’s going to run you down. Unless the defensive scheme is stopping him or slowing him down, he’s going to get there. And he’s going to be mean when he gets there.”

Fruean said it was the hardest decision he’d ever made, and Domser said the ability to play in front of his family helped Fruean make his decision. Fruean is the third of 10 siblings, and staying close to home will allow his entire family to come watch him play — fearlessly — at UW.

“He’s about as fearless of a kid as I’ve ever coached in my life,” Domser said. “It’s rare to find those kids anymore. And it’s not because of a trainer. It’s not because of a head football coach. He just has this spirit inside of him that wants to be physical on the football field. It’s something you can’t coach.”