Excitement Palpable For UW Football’s Second Year In Fisch Era: ‘Nice To Feel Grounded’
By Charles Hamaker
Seattle, WA - Within the brand new recruiting lounge that’s located in the football offices at Husky Stadium, some things are clear after hearing from Washington head coach Jedd Fisch, offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Jimmie Dougherty, and defensive coordinator Ryan Walters: a level of continuity will be huge for the Huskies, and the offense should provide plenty of excitement. The word continuity was repeated as though there was a quota to meet regarding it’s usage, but considering how many moving pieces were in action for there to even be a functioning Washington team last year, having some level of consistency will be critical for this Husky team going into the second year of the Jedd Fisch era and the second season in Big Ten conference play. While there is that excitement, which shone through the coaching staff and players on this media day about as bright as the sun through the large windows facing the field within that recruiting lounge, Washington’s top man in Jedd Fisch did seem to temper some expectations and make it clear that the Huskies will have their hands full when it comes to this years slate of games. Here’s an overview on what Fisch said to local media in attendance for this pre-camp media day ahead of the 2025 season.
Fisch began his opening remarks acknowledging the new recruiting lounge, an area amongst the football offices at Husky Stadium that had been under construction dating back to January and just recently getting finished up. In addition to acknowledging this newer addition to the programs facilities, Fisch did mention that there are a few other changes that have been made while stating that the decisions made to create this new look were all intentional. While things can shift rapidly in college football, something that Washington knows perhaps better than anybody else given what’s taken place with the program over the last two years, it does appear that Fisch and his staff are crafting a strong foundation to help the Huskies move forward with in this time of NIL and the whole mess of things that it brings along.
One of the more noticeable pieces of discussion mentioned by Fisch was feeling more grounded, citing that aforementioned change and how much of it there has been in college football as well as with Washington. Given how the Huskies had to scramble to field a roster for the 2024 season and how they’ve been forced to rebuild at times through the portal, it has to be nice for a coach that was brought in to fill the void left by Kalen DeBoer to finally be somewhat “grounded,” as he said during that presser. Being grounded and having some continuity, seen throughout the coaching staff while there are a few newer names stepping up in bigger roles, can be a big key to improvement for a Washington team that went 6-7 in their inaugural season in the Big Ten conference.
“I know that it’s certainly been a lot over the last, I don’t know, 15-16, months to digest as we’ve been going through this process now, probably 18 months total since we were hired. A lot of changes, lot of changes in college football, a lot of changes within the program, and it’s now nice to feel grounded. It’s nice feel like we’re going into year two. We know our team really well. We know our program really well. We understand the community really well, and now I think we’re at a point that we can really take that next big step.”
The first thing that Fisch was asked about was the fact that these fall practices will be open, and how that’s a change in direction compared to how some other programs across the country are running things. Oregon’s Dan Lanning and Texas’ Steve Sarkisian are shutting the doors on the practices for their respective programs, while the Huskies are bucking the norm and allowing their fanbase to come out and get an early glimpse at what their favorite team will look like when the reps start to count later in the fall. What stood out most perhaps about the practices being open for Washington was, in this new era of NIL and how important player exposure can be for those individual athletes, promotion of the players in this program. Through a multitude of outlets, the University of Washington has prided itself on being a place that does well to prepare it’s athletes across the board for their future, whether that’s in the classroom or financially. Fisch mentioned this program has learned different aspects of how to market their players on this team and how to best help their guys succeed in the community, so allowing fans and potential “investors” so to say get a better look at some of these athletes could be huge. Another aspect of having them open was the ability for the Husky players to feel comfortable playing in front of anybody that wants to watch, and obviously that is a skill and or characteristic that this program will need considering their conference is.
“I think that we all have a responsibility to promote our players. We’re in a new world here with name, image and likeness. Over the last four years, we’ve all learned different aspects of how to market our team, brand our guys, and help our guys succeed in the community. I think that one of the best ways to do that is allow the community meet our guys.”
A big factor in the Huskies struggles in Big Ten play was their issues handling the physicality of the conference at times, largely in the trenches. Fisch was asked how he thought the team had improved physically over the offseason, in an obvious effort to deal with some of the programs that quite literally ran them over at times, and he did mention some key areas of growth both in speed and in strength. In looking for a specific number on that improvement, Fisch said that the team has gained over 700 pounds as a team, and that’s with the program asking some players to lose weight while others are working on gaining it. Jedd credited Ben Creamer, Washington’s Director of Sports Science, for helping to lay out where the team could improve some of their physical attributes and how they’re tracking that progress. In addition to that weight and muscle gained for the team, the speed is taking a notch up as well as the “average part of our team is up 1.6 miles per hour.” The sports science department does seem to be an area where the Huskies want to gain an edge, as in the modern world of sports everything can be tracked and monitored to try and get that extra bit of advantage, as Fisch cited things such as power output numbers and speed to power ratio. All of the numbers in the speed and power departments look good according to what the Huskies head coach is saying, it’s just up to them to turn that process into success now on the field.
“I certainly watched our conditioning test yesterday, and we look really good as a team. Where we’re supposed to be big, we look big. Where we’re supposed to be fast, we look fast. The team looks like they’re in a great spot. I’m excited to go out there and watch them practice.”
One of the most notable aspects of the new recruiting lounge was the wall, the East facing wall and one that was behind where the step and repeat for the press conference aspect of the media day was, that included recent first round picks from the Washington program including Michael Penix Jr., Shaq Thompson, Vita Vea, Troy Fautanu, Rome Odunze, Kaleb McGary, Joe Tryon-Shoyinka, and Trent McDuffie. Washington does have the strong history of building NFL talent and that’s certainly taken a notable jump over the last decade and a half, roughly, so it’s fair to wonder: which names on the roster will join that list of players drafted to the league and how soon as some of them to being ready for that? Fisch acknowledged that while it may be hard to replicate what was done recently, like in 2023 with three first rounders and a handful of others in the early rounds after that, Washington believes that it’s getting back to that same sort of formula for pumping out NFL caliber talent. Fisch states that while the talent is there on their roster, the reasoning for putting those aforementioned first round picks on a large wall spanning from floor to ceiling is to serve as motivation for those aspiring to reach that level so that they can see the pedigree that the Husky program has for producing that success.
“We’re only in year two, but I do believe we’ve got first round talent on this roster. I believe we’ve got high level talent, top 100 players in a few different areas. I think that we have certainly a lot of young kids that are going to one day have the opportunity to grow into being a first round talent, but that’s why we put those guys up there.”
An exciting area to note for the Washington offense this season will be the wide receiver room, as Demond Williams Jr. will have plenty of talent to get the ball to in what should be his first full year as the quarterback in this Husky offense. There are some questions, though, regarding what the depth chart may look like when it comes to that receiver group behind junior wideout Denzel Boston. Fisch didn’t let on to what that pecking order may look like, and he has no reason to given that the fall practices haven’t even started yet, but there were a few names that stood out in his answer to being asked about his receiver group this year. Rashid Williams, a sophomore, was cited as having a really good summer, building off last season where he was praised for making the most of the opportunities that he was given. The next name out of Jedd’s mouth was that of Omari Evans, a transfer receiver from Penn State, as he presents a great problem of not being sure where best to place him in terms of where he lines up, whether that be in the slot or on the outside. Sophomore pass catcher Audric Harris was another name that was given high marks for the Spring and Summer that he’s shown with the program, while there’s excitement with Washington getting Arizona transfer and junior wideout Kevin Green Jr. back to full health to see what he can contribute to this Husky team. Freshman Raiden Vines-Bright was the last specific name that was mentioned by Fisch before citing excitement with some of the youth at the position, as he made some big catches in the Spring game, throughout Spring ball, and in the last few practices that the team actually had.
“We brought in five receivers that are young. We have the veteran group that is returning that I haven’t mentioned yet, but combined, I think those 10,11,12 guys can all make it work. We’ll have a good rotation, we’ll compete, we’ll throw the ball a lot in practice to see who can really go make those plays. Then we’ll probably have a four man rotation.”
One of the biggest areas of discussion for Washington, dating back to the last season itself and throughout the offense as the Huskies searched for reinforcements in the transfer portal, was the offensive line play. Obviously everything with an offensive unit can hinge on the prowess of your five linemen up front, and there’s extra emphasis to have improved play at that unit considering the budding star you have in Demond Williams Jr. with a heightened importance on protecting him. Immediately in answering about his offensive line, Fisch cited competition and how important that will be for Washington there, mentioning it as a central theme for the program. There certainly should be some competition for the Huskies there, considering the struggles up front last season as well as the variation of experience on the roster for Washington. Experience isn’t the ultimate determining factor, certainly not given what Fisch said, so it’ll be fascinating to watch the line mold itself out throughout the fall and ultimately into the early chapter of the season. Paki Finau, Carver Willis, Champ Taulealea, John Mills, Geirean and Landen Hatchett, Maximus McCree, and Soane Faasolo were all mentioned by name from Fisch as players to potentially watch and see along that offensive line. Things will look different, and if you’re looking for a position battle to watch without much certainty, look no further than the Huskies offensive line.
“When you look at our offensive line, we’ve got a big battle ahead of us... I’m looking forward to seeing what does this look like with those guys? We’re talking about ten guys that have had playing experience, or we believe are at an elite level as a freshman, that can go compete immediately to to make an impact.”
One of the things previously mentioned by coach Fisch was the importance of keeping these fall practice sessions open to the public. Here’s a guide to the dates and times that these practices will take place on for you to be able to attend. All of these practices will take place at Husky Stadium. If a date is not mentioned (Such as August 2nd, 6th, or 11th), that means the team has the day off and they will not be practicing. This schedule outlines practices starting tomorrow and lasting through August 17th, as Fisch mentioned that Washington will keep the practices open until they get started for the first week of the season.
July 30th, start time of 10AM PDT
July 31st, start time of 10AM PDT
August 1st, start time of 10AM PDT
August 3rd, start time of 10:15AM PDT
August 4th, start time of 10AM PDT
August 5th, start time of 10AM PDT
August 7th, start time of 10AM PDT
August 8th, start time of 12PM PDT
August 9th, start time of 5:45PM PDT
August 10th, start time of 5:30PM PDT
August 12th, start time of 10AM PDT
August 13th, start time of 9:15AM PDT
August 14th, start time of 10AM PDT
August 15th, start time of 9:15AM PDT
August 16th, start time of 6:30PM PDT
August 17th, start time of 5:30PM PDT
Instagram: @CirclingSeattleSports Twitter: @CirclingSports Threads: @CirclingSeattleSports Tiktok: @CirclingSeattleSports Facebook: Circling Seattle Sports BlueSky: @circlingseasports.bsky.social
〰️
Instagram: @CirclingSeattleSports Twitter: @CirclingSports Threads: @CirclingSeattleSports Tiktok: @CirclingSeattleSports Facebook: Circling Seattle Sports BlueSky: @circlingseasports.bsky.social 〰️
Check out our previous CSS Huskies articles here.
Check out our previous Washington Husky Football articles here.
Check out more articles with writing by Charles Hamaker here.
Support the work of Circling Seattle Sports by checking out our merchandise!