Huskies Used to Pray for Rain -- Not Against Michigan This Time

Jedd Fisch's team needs decent weather to beat the Wolverines.

UW coach Jedd Fisch talks with quarterback Will Rogers during the Northwestern game on a sunny day. / Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

The weather forecast surrounding Saturday's Michigan-Washington football game calls for partly cloudy skies, temperatures in the mid-60 degrees and an 8 percent chance of rain -- exactly the conditions the Huskies desire.

They used to pray for the worst climatic conditions imaginable in Montlake, especially when some warm-weather team such as USC or UCLA came to town, and they wanted to neutralize the speed of the Californians or just get them out of their comfort zone.

This time, the UW needs the weather to behave itself to take advantage of Michigan's well-advertised deep passing limitations, plus to ensure that the Huskies' highly accurate starting quarterback, Will Rogers, can unleash his per game averages of 29 passing attempts, 22 completions and 2 touchdowns to keep the home team in this one.

Yet what if the skies opened up?

That could mean that everything shifts to Michigan's benefit as the teams would have to resort to leaning on their rushing attacks and skipping through the puddles, with the Wolverines historically known for dealing with this punishing Big Ten style of play and using their run game to great advantage such as they did in the CFP national championship game last January -- against the Huskies.

Yet the best way to measure this situation is to go back into Mr. Rogers' neighborhood wherever that may be and chart what kind game-day elements he's encountered in his five seasons of college football at Mississippi State and the UW.

Well, to begin with, this Husky quarterback has been pampered.

He's clearly never seen the squalls on Lake Washington and the wind whipping off it, the rain going sideways and the Evergreen Point bridge shut down because of it all.

Game conditions for him in 48 career outings break down like this: 31 played when there were sunny or clear skies, a dozen held when it was cloudy overhead and just five conducted in the rain.

Rogers previously took snaps in 87- and 83-degree heat on back-to-back weekends in 2021, both in Starkville, Mississippi. The hottest it ever got for him was 89 degrees at kickoff for a 2022 game at LSU. Why he even faced Jedd Fisch-coached Arizona in 82-degree heat in Mississippi and 84 degrees in Tucson.

As for those five wet-weather games, Rogers has done OK -- he's 3-2 in terms of winning them.

In his freshman season in 2020, he wound up facing Tulsa in the Armed Forces Bowl in Fort Worth, Texas, with the temperature at a frigid 37 degrees and rain coming down hard. Directing Mississippi State to a 28-26 victory, Rogers completed 19 of 30 passes for 148 yards and a score, but he was sacked 4 times.

His next nasty weather game involved the 2021 Egg Bowl at home in Starkville against state rival Ole Miss. On a 55-degree rainy day, his team lost 31-21, yet he as able to launch 58 passes and complete 38 for 336 yards and a score, despite getting sacked 3 times.

In 2022, Rogers opened the season at home against Memphis under a weird weather pattern -- 82 degrees, yet raining. In a 49-23 victory, he alternately rinsed out his uniform and got a nice sun tan while completing 38 of 49 passes for 450 yards and 5 touchdowns, giving up an interception and getting sacked once.

Will Rogers recovers a bad snap against Washington State. / Skylar Lin Visuals

Rain game No. 4 for him came against Auburn at home later in the 2022 season, when he was met by the wet stuff and temperatures in the 65 degrees range. No problem. Rogers hit on 42 of 59 passes for 357 yards and 3 touchdowns in a 39-33 victory. On the down side, he was sacked 5 times and served up a pick.

As for Rogers' last rainy day adventure -- it came last Friday with his new football team.

With sheets of rain falling on the Rutgers-UW game in New Jersey throughout the opening half and the temperature at 66 degrees, the veteran quarterback completed 26 of 36 passes for 306 yards and 2 TDs, but he and the Huskies lost 21-18.

When he wants people's attention as the UW coach, Jedd Fisch typically uses a social-media clip of Gene Kelly wielding an umbrella while toe-tapping through the streets in the film musical "Singing in the Rain." As soon as he can maybe for this day only, the Husky leader needs to swap it out for something from the movie "Some Like It Hot."

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