The Washington Huskies are done treating the quarterback spot like an open question.
With both Demond Williams Jr. and Elijah Brown healthy, Jedd Fisch is keeping Williams in the No. 1 role when Washington faces Michigan State at 1:15 p.m. PT on Saturday at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing, Mich.
That decision comes after a stretch in which both quarterbacks had their moments. Williams opened the season as the starter for the second year in a row, with Brown behind him after transferring in from Stanford. Last season, Williams had Tulane transfer Kai Horton as his backup.
Williams put up big numbers overall last year, leading the Big Ten in total yardage with 3,676 total yards, but his season hit a rough patch once conference play ramped up. He was knocked out in Washington’s 41-24 loss to Iowa on Oct. 9 with a rib fracture, and Brown took over from there.
Brown responded well. He threw three touchdowns in the second half against Iowa, then started the following week and helped Washington beat Purdue 38-26 on Oct.
- He also got the start against Nebraska on Oct. 31 before Williams came back in during the fourth quarter and helped finish off a 17-10 win with a go-ahead drive.
That set the stage for Williams to reclaim the job against Penn State at home at Husky Stadium, now Columbia Bank Stadium. He started slowly, but he finished with a strong second half as Washington scored 19 unanswered points. The Huskies still fell 28-25, dropping to 5-4 overall and 2-4 in Big Ten play.
For the season, Williams has completed 64.5% of his passes for 1,667 yards, 11 touchdowns and four interceptions in eight games, including two in which he played less than a half. He has also run 73 times for 254 yards and two scores.
Brown has been efficient when called upon, completing 70.7% of his passes for 774 yards, seven touchdowns and three interceptions. He has rushed seven times for minus-46 yards and has appeared in four games, with only one of those spanning all four quarters.
Still, Fisch said the recent body of work points back to Williams.
“I think by just looking at the totality of the product, looking at how we finished our game against Nebraska, how we finished our game against Penn State, I think that, offensively, there some plays that Demond made that are pretty hard to make,” Fisch said. “And whether it was the two-point play to make it a three-point game, whether it was a couple of conversions with his legs, whether it was the throw up to (Dezmen Roebuck) on the sprint-out or seeing (Baron Naone) on the (other touchdown), there’s just an overall sense at this point in time (with) the way he’s played. ... We need to get started quicker, but I do feel like there was nothing that put us in a position that wouldn’t tell me that (Williams) gave us the best chance to win last week and we’re going to go with that same thought process (against Michigan State).”
For now, the Huskies’ quarterback picture looks settled. Williams has the edge, and Fisch is sticking with the player he believes gives Washington the best shot to win.
In Other News...
Washington Faces A Bowl Pressure Test It Cant Afford To Waste
Washington heads to East Lansing with more than just a nonconference road trip on the line. The Huskies are trying to steady themselves in a game that carries real postseason weight, and the matchup with Michigan State gives this one a different feel than a typical early-season test. Staff analysis around the game has centered on how Washington matches up on both sides of the ball, with the offense and defense each carrying their own questions into a setting that can quickly turn uncomfortable for a visiting team.
For Washington, the pressure is tied to the bigger picture as much as the opponent in front of it. The Huskies need a result that keeps their bowl path moving in the right direction, and this is the kind of game that can shape the rest of the season if it goes the wrong way. The predictions around the matchup reflect that uncertainty, with the stakes rising because of what comes after and because this trip may end up saying a lot about how much margin Washington still has left. [Read more 🡒]
Washington Bowl Push Suddenly Faces A Brutal Michigan State Problem
Washingtons trip to Michigan State hit an unexpected snag Friday when the team could not leave Seattle as planned because of a nationwide flight stoppage ordered by the Federal Aviation Administration. The disruption stemmed from a system-wide telecommunication and network router issue that affected air traffic control centers, leaving the Huskies stuck in place as they tried to sort out what came next.
The delay adds another layer of uncertainty to a game that was already supposed to be a key road test, and it now leaves the schedule in limbo. Washington was back on campus looking into other travel options, while the bigger question is whether the matchup gets moved or whether the Huskies end up having to play on very little rest. [Read more 🡒]
Washington Faces Its First Real Test Against Unbeaten Utah
Utah and Washington arrive in Salt Lake City unbeaten, but the tone of the matchup feels different from the warm-up games that came before it. Utah had to work through a halftime deficit to get past Weber State, leaning on a strong second half and a career-high 21 points from Alec Anigbata, while Washington kept rolling with another convincing win as coach Danny Sprinkle continued to stress the Huskies emphasis on long-range shooting.
For Washington, this is the first real chance to see how that perimeter-heavy approach holds up against a team with size, experience and a little more urgency around the margins. The Huskies have looked sharp early, but facing Utah on the road should reveal more about how sustainable that formula is when the shot-making gets tighter and the margin for error gets smaller. [Read more 🡒]