Inside The Huskies

Selling of Demond Williams Begins with April Public Appearance

The young Husky quarterback will do a meet and greet with customized merchandise.

Dan Raley

Demond Williams Jr. got a taste of several games on the road in the Big Ten.
Demond Williams Jr. got a taste of several games on the road in the Big Ten. / Skylar Lin Visuals

And so the Seattle marketing of Demond Wiliams Jr. begins.

While the national analysts still pretend he doesn't exist when compiling their preseason quarterback lists -- even after seeing him in his full glory at the Sun Bowl -- the selling of the diminutive University of Washington signal-caller will commence shortly after spring football begins.

On Sunday, April 6, following the first three practices, sporting apparel company Simply Seattle will host a Williams meet and greet from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., at its new University Village outlet.

It won't be free.

In this day and age of compensating college athletes beyond the traditional scholarship provision, the 5-foot-11, 187-pound Williams will meet with fans who will play $50 for the privilege and receive a signed poster and a T-shirt that offer his likeness.

It's not clear what the player's compensation level is for the event.

Williams, of course, has been handed the keys to the Husky offense. He was made the starter for the last two games of last season, in the regular-season finale against Oregon in Eugene and in the postseason against Louisville in El Paso.

At the Sun Bowl, Williams threw for 387 yards and 4 touchdowns, all going to wide receiver Giles Jackson, while rallying the UW from a two-touchdown deficit to boldly go for a two-point extra point and the win, only to lose 35-34 when his end-zone pass was tipped away.

In the postgame media session, UW coach Jedd Fisch came away vowing to make Williams a No. 1 NFL draft pick and a Heisman Trophy candidate, so impressed was he with the then freshman's performance.

To get the latest UW football and basketball news, go to si.com/college/washington

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Dan Raley
DAN RALEY

Dan Raley has worked for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, as well as for MSN.com and Boeing, the latter as a global aerospace writer. His sportswriting career spans four decades and he's covered University of Washington football and basketball during much of that time. In a working capacity, he's been to the Super Bowl, the NBA Finals, the MLB playoffs, the Masters, the U.S. Open, the PGA Championship and countless Final Fours and bowl games.

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