When the playoff awards are handed out, University of Washington defensive tackle Jacob Bandes likely won’t become an All-America or All-Big Ten selection.

If teammate Jayvon Parker hadn’t ruptured his Achilles a month ago, the 6-foot-3, 307-pound Bandes might not have started the Husky’s season this fall, but he would rather have come off the bench and would have played in snatches whereas he usually has in his career.

Yet for six seasons, Bandes has proven to be a relentless, entertaining and sometimes unforgettable player for UW, someone who seems to draw attention to himself at unexpected times, and last weekend’s game at Indiana was no exception.

He intercepted a pass.

He did his best to pass as cornerback Thaddeus Dixon and stole an aerial delivery from the Hoosiers that was hit like a pinball machine.

On the first play of the second half, Bandes exchanged two pushes with Indiana center Mike Katic, turned just in time to see the aforementioned Dixon in coverage deflect a thrown ball downfield and the throw back nearly 10 yards toward the line of scrimmage — and then the fun began.

Bandes caught the ball with his right hand, ran 2 meters and was tackled, and he stood up and then transformed into Great Osobor.

He made a jump shot in basketball.

“I came to the right place at the right time,” he said. “He was in the air for probably three seconds. Oh, I got it. I got it. I didn’t plan on that or anything.”

The one-on-one put the Huskies on the Indiana 24 and four plays later led to a Demond Williams Jr. touchdown.

Bandes, always a showman, had every right to bow.

With his career winding down at least four more games, starting with hosting USC on Saturday at Husky Stadium, the fun-loving player has made the most of his time at UW that could have been tedious and somewhat anonymous work in the trenches. .

Three years ago, Bandes was called at the end of practice to do his best impersonation of a punt returner, alongside offensive tackle Roger Rosengarten, who now plays in the NFL. Each heavy player was asked to throw a towering kick to prevent their side of the ball from having to execute training-ending wind sprints.

Rosengarten, particularly athletic for a lineman, made the catch with a little difficulty, making his teammates who were watching attentively laugh.

The groups put on more shows. Once the ball was in the air, this D tackle clearly seemed to have great difficulty tracking it. At the last second, Bandes dove and took it in while losing his helmet, all in one motion.

He stopped his guys from running any more, but not from screaming at his antics.

If it seems like Bandes has been a part of UW football forever, it’s true. The game against USC will be the 55th of his career. This journeyman only had three career starts entering the season, but he started all but one of them this fall. In fact, he has appeared continuously in every Husky outing since the 2019 Las Vegas Bowl against Boise State.

“I’m making the most of it, with the time I have,” he said. “In the end, it was amazing for me. No regrets, nothing really.”

Longevity, however, is not this guy’s calling card at Montlake. It’s what is he going to do next? Running for a touchdown? Hit a basket?

With Jacob Bandes, anything goes.

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