From Gig Harbor to UW, Durkee Has Always Excelled
November 24, 2015 | Football
By Shon Purdy
It was just a typical night. After coming home from a long day of class and work I usually wind down from the day by playing a little guitar, maybe some FIFA on the Xbox. The week before Thanksgiving night happened to be one of those FIFA nights. I settled down on the couch with my roommate Korey Durkee, who happens to be the punter for the University of Washington football team, and I decided to dig deeper into his past and his time as a Husky.
As I was sitting there talking with him about the NFL, girls, and all the other things us guys talk about, I am thinking, 'you know it's not every day you get to write a story about your roommate, let alone one of your best friends.'
Growing up, Durkee and I went to rival middle schools. I didn't know him on a personal level back then and as good of an athlete as I thought I was at the time, I was still always afraid to play Kopachuck, my rival middle school, in any sport because of Durkee.
He was one of those guys who got his growth spurt about three years before every normal human being. Durkee was his middle school's leading scorer in basketball and was the goalie for the best team in Gig Harbor, Wash. He was a man amongst boys.
Fast forward to high school where Durkee continued his athletic dominance. He was a three-sport athlete, playing on the football, basketball, and soccer teams at Gig Harbor High School. I always wondered how he managed his time with all of that, but he assured me that he had a lot of support.
“I think it starts with the coaches I have had in the past, like Kevin Olson, Kelly Bendixen, Todd Nordstrom, and Darren McKay,” said Durkee. “They have taught me a lot with how to deal with sports and time management – as well as my parents of course. They are my number one role models.”
By the time Durkee was a junior in high school everyone in the whole town knew who he was. He had earned all-state honors in both football (as a punter and place kicker) and soccer (as a goalie). He even won state soccer player of the year as a junior. To put it lightly, he was a stud.
It is no wonder Durkee had been recruited by the University of Washington. The Huskies were not the only school after him. Many universities wanted his talents, including some for soccer.
“I got recruited to play soccer fairly early through the Washington Premier program,” Durkee noted. “Schools like San Diego State, Santa Barbara, Denver, they all sent me letters expressing interest. But the trouble was I committed to football so early, in my junior year summer, so I never really had the opportunity to experience what soccer would be like recruiting wise.”
Durkee has always been a homer. He loves the city he grew up in and credits most of his success to his parents, Alan and Karen Durkee, who helped shape him into the man he is today. His parents and coaches helped in his adjustment from high school to college, but like most others making the transition, it was not an easy step.
“Dealing with high school sports is much different than college,” said Durkee “It is a whole different level when you talk about college sports. But my past coaches sure made the transition easier when you come up here, because football is like a job.”
Durkee joined the Huskies in 2012 and earned the starting punting job as a freshman. But after three non-conference games, the coaching staff thought it would be more productive for him to sit out a season. But he is very appreciative of his chance to play early for for the University of Washington.
“Coach (Steve) Sark(isian) gave me a terrific opportunity to come and play college football,” Durkee explained. “Coach (Johnny) Nansen, who was a special teams coach then, also gave me the opportunity.”
In 2013, Durkee served as the holder on field goals and PAT's but did not punt. That job went to Travis Coons, who handled both kicking and punting duties. After the season, Sarkisian left and in came Chris Petersen, giving Durkee a chance to play for a different staff. Having been out of punting for a year, Durkee was eager to get his feet wet again.
“When coach Pete came in here, he said there is no depth chart instead there is a seating chart,” said Durkee. “He says that even before every week. So you are battling for a position all the time on the football field, no matter what your name is.”
He won the punting job in 2014 and has maintained his hold on the job this season. Durkee is part of a special teams unit that ranks among the best in the Pac-12 in most categories.
“The Special Ops Unit, as we like to call it, is very tight knit. It is comparable to a football fraternity,” Durkee said.
“Where there are fraternities up on campus, football has a fraternity in itself. You have close friends within it. It has been an awesome experience getting to know those guys. Those will be friends for life and I appreciate the opportunity getting to know them.”
Friday's game will be the last time Durkee, and all the other Husky seniors, take the field at Husky Stadium. Emotions will be running high, but at the end of the day there is no place he would rather be.
“It should be a lot of fun,” said Durkee. “I am glad that my last home game will be the Apple Cup this year. Seeing those 70,000 fans fill the stadium for one last time, I am sure I will get a little emotional. No matter the outcome, after the game I am sure I will get emotional as well because it might be the last football game I ever play.”
Today might be the last time Durkee steps on a football field, but it will not be the last time he makes an impression on the people around him. Durkee has been working hard in the classroom and is set to graduate with a degree in Sociology. Wherever he ends up, he is sure to excel. And I will be right there with him, as best friends always do, cheering him on.
