Washington is hoping to take a step forward in the Huskies' second Big Ten season

Yahoo

6 hours ago

SEATTLE (AP) — Getting some strong quarterback play out of Demond Williams Jr. would go a long way as Washington looks to improve upon the 6-7 record it posted in its first Big Ten season.
Williams, who appeared in 13 games for the Huskies as a freshman and completed over 78% of his passes, drew praise from first-year offensive coordinator Jimmie Dougherty at the beginning of fall practice, not just for his passing abilities, but also his attention to detail.
'Demond only had one interception on over 100 attempts,' Dougherty told reporters in July. 'If we can keep that ratio going, we're going to do a lot of good things in the passing game.'
During head coach Jedd Fisch's first year at the helm, Washington did a solid job airing it out even before Williams took over for the final two games of the season.
The Huskies ranked 32nd among FBS teams in passing yards per game (261.7), but struggled to consistently establish a run game. Washington running backs combined for 128.8 yards per contest, good for 100th in the country, though Jonah Coleman was a steady contributor by rushing for 1,053 yards and 10 touchdowns.
With Williams and Coleman back in Seattle, as well as wide receiver Denzel Boston, who had 63 catches for 834 receiving yards in 2024, the Huskies have a trio of offensive weapons that can stack up with plenty of others in the conference. But, as Fisch noted, competition will be stiff in a conference that produced four College Football Playoff teams a year ago.
'We have a really, really good conference with really, really good coaches,' Fisch said. 'We have really good teams. We have a lot of big-name programs that have spent years and years building up rosters, coaching staffs, facilities, fan base, etc., to be able to prepare themselves to play in the Big Ten.'
Shutdown secondary
The Huskies will be hard-pressed to do much better in the secondary than they did in 2024, when they ranked second in the country with the fewest passing yards allowed per game. Washington returns cornerback Ephesians Prysock and has added fellow 6-foot-4 cornerback Tacario Davis to the mix.
'Obviously having 6-4 corners is something that not a lot of NFL teams can say,' first-year defensive coordinator Ryan Walters said. 'So, it allows you to be aggressive at the line of scrimmage. And, hopefully, those guys can make it hard for those guys on the outside.'
Slotting in
While Boston returning for a fourth season bodes well for the Huskies' passing game, questions persist about who will most frequently line up at slot receiver. Following Washington's final open practice of fall camp, Fisch sang the praises of freshman Braiden Vines-Bright, as well as Kevin Green Jr., who missed last year due to injury, and Penn State transfer Omari Evans.
Left guard up for grabs
From Fisch's perspective, it's an ongoing competition between John Mills and Paki Finau to see who will start at left guard for Washington in 2025. Finau, a redshirt freshman, and Mills, a freshman, don't bring much experience to the table, but both were highly regarded recruits.
'Those two guys continue to battle it out,' Fisch said. '...I would expect alternating in some regard. But, really good job by Mills stepping in as a true freshman, and Paki keeps getting better.'
The schedule
The Huskies open at home against Colorado State on Aug. 30 and visit rival Washington State on Sept. 20. Washington's first conference game comes at Husky Stadium against Ohio State on Sept. 27. The Huskies' longest road trip is Oct. 4 at Maryland. Washington also travels to Michigan on Oct. 18 and Wisconsin on Nov. 8. The Huskies conclude their season at home against rival Oregon on Nov. 29.
___
Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football