Washington Huskies flip NFL legacy DT, Joseph Peko, from Colorado

Washington is adding some unexpected, last-minute defensive line help.

Joseph Peko, a 6-foot-2, 315-pound defensive tackle who had been committed to Colorado since Dec. 25, 2025 but never signed an aid agreement with the Buffaloes, announced he will instead attend Washington in a post on his social media accounts on Wednesday. Peko, the son of 14-year NFL veteran Domata Peko, is part of the 2026 recruiting cycle and will join the team this summer.

He's the 26th member of UW's 2026 recruiting class and the sixth defensive lineman. Joseph Peko finished his tenure at Oaks Christian High in Southern California as a three-star prospect, the No. 87 player in the state, the No. 124 defensive lineman nationally, according to the 247Sports composite ratings.

https://twitter.com/JosephPeko/status/2059734109111685237?s=20

"I chose Washington because it's going to give me the most opportunities I can (get) on and off the field with their elite coaching staff and academic background," Peko told The Seattle Times. "I'm very excited to work under (defensive line coach Jason Kaufusi) and coach Jedd Fisch. I know that they're going to create the most out of me."

Peko held offers from Arizona, Arkansas, BYU, Boston College, California, Colorado, Louisville, Miami, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, North Carolina, Oregon, SMU, UCLA and USC among others. He took official visits to Colorado and North Carolina before committing to the Buffaloes in December, after the early signing period had already passed.

Domata Peko was Colorado's defensive line coach when Joseph Peko committed, but the longtime NFL nose tackle departed coach Deion Sanders' staff in February to take on the same position with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Joseph Peko took trips to Arizona and Colorado before a visit to Montlake in April sealed his decision to join Washington.

His older brother, Domata Peko Jr., signed with Colorado during the early signing period after becoming the country's top-ranked junior college edge rusher at Ventura College.

Joseph Peko enjoyed a strong three-year tenure at Oaks Christian. The Calabasas, Calif., native earned first-team All-league honors as a sophomore and junior while playing both offensive and defensive line for the Lions.

His senior season started well, too. Peko made 38 tackles including 6.5 tackles for a loss, five sacks, a pass deflection and forced a fumble in five games in 2025 according to MaxPreps before a season-ending knee injury prematurely ended his high school football career.

Joseph Peko certainly has the blood lines to grow into an impactful college football player. Domata Peko was selected by the Cincinnati Bengals in the fourth round of the 2006 NFL draft after finishing his collegiate tenure at Michigan State. He spent 11 seasons with Cincinnati before spending parts of four seasons with the Denver Broncos, Baltimore Ravens and the Arizona Cardinals.

Additionally, one of his uncles, Tupe Peko, was an offensive guard who played three seasons with the Indianapolis Colts and spent part of the 2001 season on the Seahawks' practice squad. Rey Maualuga, another uncle, was a unanimous All-American linebacker and 2008 Chuck Bednarik Award winner at USC. He played nine seasons in the NFL, predominantly also with the Bengals.

Another cousin, nose tackle Kyle Peko, has spent parts of nine seasons with the Denver Broncos, Buffalo Bills, Colts, Tennessee Titans, Las Vegas Raiders and Detroit Lions after finishing his collegiate career at Oregon State. Kyle Peko most recently spent parts of the 2025 season on the New England Patriot and Los Angeles Charger practice squads.

At Washington, Joseph Peko joins a young group of defensive tackles. The Huskies lost eight defensive tackles from their 2025 roster. Ta'ita'i Uiagalelei, Logan Sagapolu and Simote Pepa exhausted their eligibility. Anterio Thompson was drafted in the sixth round by the Atlanta Falcons. Bryce Butler (Texas Tech), Armon Parker (Maryland), Jayvon Parker (Maryland), Caleb Smith (Alabama), Dominic Macon (Oklahoma State) and Caleb Smith (Alabama) all departed via the transfer portal.

Coach Jason Kaufusi signed junior Darin Conley from Ball State, junior DeSean Watts out of FCS Sacramento State and sophomore Kai McClendon, who missed the entire 2025 season at Mississippi State because of an anterior cruciate ligament injury, to replace some of UW's departing contributors.

But Kaufusi also signed a large group of true freshmen, including JD Hill, a composite four-star prospect out of Mission Viejo High in Southern California; Tufanua Ionatana Umu-Cais, a high three-star recruit from Cherry Creek High in Denver; O'Dea standout David Schwerzel and Tacoma native Ta'a Malu. Kennedy Catholic High's Derek Colman-Brusa, the top-rated player in the state during the 2026 cycle, also spent all of spring practices exclusively playing defensive tackle after predominantly playing edge rusher at the high school level.

Colman-Brusa and Umu-Cais were both enrolled in time to participate in spring practices. Hill, Schwerzel and Malu will enroll during the summer with Peko.

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This story was originally published May 27, 2026 at 4:51 PM.