Inside The Huskies

Thomson Passes Up Eighth College Season to Pursue Pros

The graduate transfer quarterback never got on the field for Washington, but he temporarily held the starting job.

Dan Raley

The insurance policy won't be renewed.

Kevin Thomson, the grad transfer who brought quarterback experience to the University of Washington football team if needed, announced on Tuesday he won't be returning for an eighth season.

That's right, his long NCAA journey is over.

Thomson leaves the college scene having experienced about as many highs and lows as any college player has.

He never played a down for the Huskies in their four pandemic-permitted games — and he was supposed to had fate not intervened once more.

Thomson won the starting job in a four-player competition before the season began, according to knowledgeable sources, but an injury, believed to be ribs but not confirmed, put him on the sidelines in street clothes for the opener against Oregon State.

The 6-foot-1, 200-pound quarterback, who's older than Patrick Mahomes, stepped aside for redshirt freshman Dylan Morris, who was so proficient he wouldn't give up the job and on Tuesday was even named All-Pac-12 honorable mention.

Thomson graduated in 2014 from Auburn Riverside High School, about 30 minutes south of the UW campus, and spent two seasons at UNLV, four more at Sacramento State and this past season with the Huskies. He hopes to play pro football somewhere.

"I have decided to forgo what is somehow my eighth year of eligibility in order to pursue my dream of playing professionally," he wrote on social media. "I'm excited for the next chapter and grateful for everything that has happened!"

Thomson was so good for Sacramento State in 2019, throwing for 3,216 yards and rushing and passing for 39 touchdowns, he was named Big Sky Offensive Player of the Year and an FCS All-American selection.

The low in his long-winding college football career was injuring his shoulder at UNLV and requiring Tommy John surgery and nearly two years of medical rehabilitation.

Thomson went into competition for the UW quarterback job with Jacob Sirmon, Ethan Garbers and Morris.

Sirmon has since transferred to Central Michigan.

Garbers redshirted as a true freshman.

Morris, Garbers and incoming freshman Sam Huard, a 5-star recruit and son and nephew of former Husky quarterbacks, will resume the battle for the starting job when the pandemic permits, hopefully in the spring.

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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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