Washington is heading into Saturday with something it hasn’t had much of this season: a little traction.
The Huskies have stacked back-to-back Big Ten wins, sit at 5-3 overall and 2-3 in conference play, and now get Penn State at 12:30 p.m. PT at Husky Stadium in Seattle.
The last two victories came on the road, a 39-26 win over Purdue on Oct. 16 and a 17-10 comeback over Nebraska on Oct. 31.
And the quarterback situation is tilting back toward Demond Williams Jr.
Health permitting, the third-year signal-caller is expected to start against the Nittany Lions, which would be his first start since Oct. 9.
Williams began the season as Washington’s starter, then exited the 41-24 loss to Iowa on Oct. 9 with a rib injury. That opened the door for Elijah Brown, who started the next two games.
Brown gave Washington a big lift against Purdue, throwing for more than 300 yards and three touchdowns in his first start with the Huskies. He also got the nod against Nebraska, but the offense didn’t find the same rhythm. Brown went 19-for-30 for 136 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions through three quarters before Williams entered in the fourth.
That switch changed the game. Williams led the Huskies on the go-ahead touchdown drive, finishing it with a 25-yard completion to second-year wide receiver Chris Lawson. He ended the night 7-for-13 for 99 yards and a touchdown, while also running four times for 28 yards.
Head coach Jedd Fisch said Monday that Washington will keep evaluating the position through the week.
"We'll take it each week," Fisch said in a weekly news conference Monday at Husky Stadium. "We'll make a decision here at the end of the week.
If Demond is feeling good, I don't see why he wouldn't play and start. But we haven't been on the field yet.
He took some hits in that game (against Nebraska). So we just have to make sure he's good to go and that he feels right.
If he feels right, hopefully we can play off the momentum of the fourth quarter (against the Cornhuskers), similar to how we played off the momentum of the third and fourth quarter against Iowa into the Purdue game with Elijah."
Both quarterbacks will get first-team reps in practice leading up to Penn State.
Williams’ numbers this season reflect both the injury and the uneven stretch that came with Big Ten play. In six games, including the Nebraska win, he has completed 65.8% of his passes for 1,495 yards, nine touchdowns and three interceptions. He has also rushed 68 times for 211 yards and two scores.
Brown has appeared in four games and completed 70.7% of his passes for 714 yards, seven touchdowns and three interceptions.
Fisch said the decision at quarterback is not a season-long lock either way. With four games left and one win still needed to reach bowl eligibility, Washington appears set to keep sorting out the position week by week until someone grabs it.
In Other News...
Washington Found A New Difference Maker In Gritty Win At Nebraska
A road win in Lincoln can say a lot about a team, and Washingtons 17-10 victory over Nebraska offered a clear reminder that the Huskies still have ways to win when the offense has to grind. At 5-3, they got enough from a defense that kept making Nebraska uncomfortable and enough timely production from Chris Lawson, who came through with the kind of catches that can swing a tight game away from home.
Lawsons role keeps growing in a passing game that needed someone to steady it, and his performance gave Washington a reliable target in the moments that mattered most. The other side of the story was just as important, with the Huskies defense creating takeaways and turning one of them into a back-breaking score, a momentum shift that helped close out a win they badly needed. [Read more 🡒]
Nebraska Is Tweaking Its Offense Right Before Illinois
Nebraska is making a few sideline adjustments as it heads into its matchup with Illinois, but Matt Rhule made clear the bigger picture is staying the same. The head coach said the staff will remain intact despite the recent losses, even as he acknowledged the offense has sputtered and needs to be simplified. Rhule also took responsibility for the way things have gone, a sign that the pressure around the unit is being felt well beyond the play sheet.
The wrinkle now is how the Huskers will handle game-day communication and responsibilities from the coaching box. Dana Holgorsen and offensive line coach Geep Wade are shifting upstairs for play-calling duties, while run game coordinator Lonnie Teasley will see his role adjusted as Nebraska tries to clean up its offensive operation. For a team looking to steady itself quickly, the changes are less about a reset than a recalibration, and the next step will be whether that is enough to get the offense moving in the right direction. [Read more 🡒]