With Washington’s 2026 season opener against Washington State set for September 6, the Huskies’ countdown has reached 25 days - and that number brings a group of players whose careers covered everything from championship runs to unforgettable moments that still live on in Montlake.
George Fleming is one of the big names tied to Washington’s 1961 Rose Bowl team and its first national title against Minnesota. He was everywhere for that squad.
Fleming handled punting, kicking and punt returns, worked in the backfield as the team’s fourth-leading rusher with 245 yards, and played defensive back, where he matched Bob Schloredt for the team lead with six interceptions. He was also the co-MVP of the 1960 Rose Bowl with Schloredt after kicking a then-Rose Bowl record 44-yard field goal in a win over Wisconsin, adding a punt return touchdown and five extra points in that game.
Even now, Fleming still owns several punt and punt return records and remains among the program’s career interception leaders with 10. The Oakland Raiders took him in the second round of the 1961 AFL Draft, while the Chicago Bears selected him in the sixth round of that same year’s NFL Draft.
He played one season with Oakland before moving on to two seasons with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. After football, Fleming built a long political career in the Washington State legislature, spending two years in the House of Representatives and 20 years in the Senate before retiring after the 1990 legislative session.
Wayne Moses, who earned four letters at Washington from 1973 to 1977, finished his Husky career with 78 tackles and four interceptions. He was part of the team that beat Michigan in the 1978 Rose Bowl, but his post-playing reputation is just as strong. Since 1979, Moses has coached at one position or another.
Bishop Sankey arrived in Montlake after a recruiting flip that changed his path. A standout from Gonzaga Prep in Spokane, he had committed to Washington State before switching to Washington shortly before signing day.
Sankey played in 38 games for the Huskies and started the final 25 of his career. By the time he left after the 2013 season, he had become one of the best tailbacks in school history, ranking fourth all-time with 3,496 rushing yards and second in program history with 37 touchdowns.
He still holds the single-season rushing record with 1,870 yards, set in 2013. That junior year also brought All-Pac-12 honors and All-American recognition from several major publications.
Sankey was taken by the Tennessee Titans in the second round, 54th overall, of the 2014 NFL Draft, played two seasons there, bounced around the league for a couple more years, and later spent the 2019 and 2020 football seasons with the Toronto Argonauts. After the 2021 season, he retired from football.
Curtis Williams remains one of the toughest players to wear a Washington uniform, and his name still carries enormous weight in program memory. He teamed with Hakim Akbar in 1999 and 2000 to form one of the most feared hitting duos in school history.
Williams started 20 games and finished with 132 tackles. His final tackle attempt as a Husky, in a rain-soaked game at Stanford in 2000, left him a quadriplegic, and the impact of that injury still resonates around Montlake.
He died a little more than 18 months later, on May 6, 2002, at his home in Fresno, of natural causes. It remains the only death of a Washington student-athlete caused by a sports-related injury.
Ben Burr-Kirven was not a heavily recruited prospect coming out of Sacred Heart Preparatory School in Atherton, California, but Washington identified him and brought him in anyway. Over four seasons from 2015 to 2018, he played in 53 games and started 22.
His senior year helped power the Huskies to the Pac-12 title, and he was named Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year and a First Team All-American by the Associated Press and Football Writers Association. Burr-Kirven piled up 176 tackles that season, along with 5.5 tackles-for-loss, two sacks, two interceptions, four forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries.
Those 176 tackles were the most by a Washington player since David Rill had 188 in 1987. Burr-Kirven closed his Husky career with 338 tackles, 11.5 tackles-for-loss, four sacks and four interceptions.
The Seattle Seahawks picked him in the fifth round, 142nd overall, of the 2019 NFL Draft, and he has spent the past two seasons with the team.
Elijah Jackson didn’t finish his college career as a Husky, but he still owns one of the biggest plays in recent Washington football history. With Texas leading 37-31 and one second left in the Sugar Bowl, the Longhorns had 4th-and-11 from the Washington 13.
Quinn Ewers dropped back and threw a jump ball toward Adonai Mitchell on the right side, but Jackson got the timing exactly right and knocked it away. The stop sent Washington to its first Sugar Bowl win and into the National Championship game against Michigan.
Before that 2023 run, Jackson had mostly been a rotational player. He ended his Washington career with 89 tackles and seven pass breakups.
In Other News...
Washington's Transfer Class Could Decide How Far The Huskies Go
Washington spent the offseason reshaping its roster through the portal, bringing in 14 transfer players as it looks to build on last season and keep pace in a competitive Big Ten race. A handful of newcomers stand out right away because of both their experience and the positions they fill, including cornerback Emmanuel Karnley, defensive lineman Darin Conley, kicker Tyler Robles and running back Jayden Limar.
Karnley and Conley figure to help a defense that needs more reliable play on the back end and up front, while Robles gives the Huskies a specialist with a chance to stabilize a key spot. Limar, meanwhile, adds another layer to the offense as Washington tries to sort out its rotation and find answers that can hold up over a full season. The talent is there, but how quickly those transfers settle in may end up saying a lot about just how far the Huskies can go. [Read more 🡒]
Washington Camp Battle Is Starting To Reveal A Defensive Climber
Washingtons training camp brought the Huskies back inside Husky Stadium for a practice that mixed offense-versus-defense drills with a few notable absences, and the defense came away looking like the sharper side for much of the day. The offense still had its moments, with Christian Moss and Justice Williams both flashing in spots, but the overall tone of the workout leaned toward a unit that was winning more of the key battles.
Among the players drawing attention was freshman safety Gavin Day, who kept showing up around the football and continuing a camp trend that has made him hard to ignore. With several Huskies sidelined for the session, the door was open for younger players to make an impression, and Day appears to be climbing fast enough to force the staff to keep a closer eye on how much more he can carve out before the season turns from competition to consequence. [Read more 🡒]
Washingtons Backup QB Battle Is Starting To Get Real
Jedd Fischs latest look at Washington camp had a little bit of everything, from the defensive front to the quarterback room, but the most interesting subplot might be the one behind Demond Williams Jr. Stanford transfer Elijah Brown is in the mix to become the Huskies No. 2 quarterback, with Dash Beierly and Tristan Kini McMillan also trying to make that job their own as fall work continues. Its the kind of competition that can shape a season quietly at first, especially for a team that wants every snap in August to sort itself out before the games start counting.
Fisch also pointed to the defensive line, where Ramzak Frueans explosiveness has stood out and Taitai Uiagaleleis return adds another layer of depth for Washington. For a roster trying to build stability on both sides of the ball, those developments matter just as much as the headline battle under center. The Huskies have already seen one offseason story line settle into place at quarterback, but the backup race is still one of the cleaner ways to measure how much trust this team really has behind its starter. [Read more 🡒]