Quarterback Order at UW Could Get Reshuffled During Bye Week

Jedd Fisch doesn't shy from the possibility of elevating freshman Demond Williams Jr.

Huskies quarterback Demond Williams Jr. (2) and edge rusher Milton Hopkins Jr. (14) celebrate their 31-19 win over UCLA. / Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

The freshman quarterback got to the point where he made so many good things happen on game day that his coach ultimately had no choice but to turn the team over to him and start the newcomer over a veteran.

That was Will Rogers at Mississippi State in 2020, installed by Mike Leach as the No. 1 signal-caller four games into his first season of college football.

Two weeks from now, this could be Demond Williams Jr.'s good fortune at Oregon, coming at the expense of Rogers, now a 51-game starter but struggling to the point he's been replaced by his younger understudy in the second half of each of the past two games against Penn State and UCLA.

"I'm going to use the bye week for that," UW coach Jedd Fisch said of determining his starting quarterback, not dodging the issue at all after Friday night's 31-19 win over the Bruins. "I'll certainly announce that at the right time -- or not."

He said the last part with a big smile while suggesting a change in the order of how he uses his quarterbacks could happen but not wanting to let the No. 1-ranked and unbeaten Ducks know exactly what's coming.

UW quarterback Demond Williams Jr. (2) scrambles around the end for a sizable gain against UCLA. / Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

Williams will play against Oregon no matter what, it's just the order in which he goes onto the field is suddenly in question.

He seemingly earned the right to start after rescuing the Huskies' victory over UCLA once Rogers hit a real rough patch by throwing a pair of interceptions to open the second half, this after having a second-quarter pick in the end zone nullified by a roughing-the-passer penalty.

The 5-foot-11, 187-pound Williams from Chandler, Arizona, took over in the third quarter with the UW precariously holding onto a 14-13 lead and he brilliantly led the team on three scoring drives thereafter. He gave UCLA fits by completing 7 of 8 passes for 67 yards and a 1-yard touchdown pass to freshman tight end Decker DeGraaf for a 24-13 lead. Williams had the Bruins totally unnerved by his ability to run, rushing six times for 31 yards,

Entering the UCLA game, Fisch had talked about installing Williams as the quarterback starter in 2025 and the idea of this had made him giddy thinking about it.

"We'll have him for three more years," the coach said smiling. "I've never had a quarterback for that long. This is like a dream of mine. I think I've had 19 quarterbacks in 20 years, 19 starters in 20 years. The idea of having a quarterback for a couple of years that we can build this thing through is pretty exciting."

UW quarterback Demond Williams Jr. offers a smile after throwing a touchdown to fellow freshman Decker DeGraaf against UCLA. / Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

While extolling Williams' possible good fortune, Fisch was careful not to discard Rogers completely. He'll still have the two-quarterback system that he's utilized all season, only possibly in reverse order.

The coach credited the 6-foot-2, 216-pound senior from Brandon, Mississippi, with getting the Huskies out to a 14-3 lead over UCLA. He also told how Rogers immediately knew he was coming out after throwing the second interception that stood up.

"He's such a wonderful person and he's such a great kid," Fisch said of Rogers. "You can feel it in his heart that he knew when coming off the field that we were going to go to Demond and he was nothing but supportive."

After going the first five games without getting intercepted, Rogers has served up three in two weeks, while getting that fourth one reversed. It's almost as if he's become worn out like a bald tire after starting those 51 games and throwing for 14,773 yards at two schools.

Yet he doesn't need to have the circumstances of what could happen explained to him because Rogers once lived through this as the young guy who got promoted before his time.

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