Washington does not know who its head coach will be next season, but whoever it is will apparently have a big building block in defensive tackle Danny Shelton.
Shelton, the 6-foot-1, 327-pound mammoth who has anchored the Huskies' defense the past two seasons, will return to school for his senior season, RealDawg.com reported.
A two-time first-team Academic All-Pac-12 honoree, Shelton had 52 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, and two sacks in 12 games this season. He was named honorable mention All-Pac-12.
Described as a "prototypical nose tackle" by NFL Media analyst Charles Davis, Shelton has thrived in defensive coordinator Justin Wilcox's hybrid scheme that alternates between 3-4 and 4-3 looks. Shelton is more of a space-eater than a disruptive presence who will create negative plays, but his three career blocked kicks indicate he does have explosiveness.
USC sophomore defensive end Leonard Williams will garner all the draft hype among Pac-12 defensive linemen going into the 2014 college football season, but Shelton has a skill set that could be just as valuable to NFL teams.
Follow Dan Greenspan on Twitter @DanGreenspan.