UW coach Jedd Fisch confident Huskies can compete for championships (Seattle Times)

UW coach Jedd Fisch speaks about the upcoming season during a press conference on Monday, Feb. 3, 2025, in Seattle. (Nick Wagner / The Seattle Times)

By Andy Yamashita Seattle Times staff reporter

LAS VEGAS — Jedd Fisch’s second Big Ten media day feels a little different. 

Washington’s football coach isn’t speaking about a program and roster that he’d inherited like he did a year ago. He’s not representing a university mere months into its move to a new conference for the first time in more than 100 years. 

“We don’t need to wear name tags any longer,” he said, “so that’s a positive.”

Fisch and three Husky players — quarterback Demond Williams Jr., cornerback Ephesians Prysock, and running back Jonah Coleman — spoke Wednesday during Big Ten media days at the Mandalay Bay convention center.

With fall camp set to begin next week, Fisch praised his team’s growth over the past season, and has big expectations for 2025.

“We spent a lot of time trying to build our culture over the past. 16-18 months,” Fisch said. “I think we’ve gotten really close to getting the team that we’re looking for to compete with year in and year out for championships here in the Big Ten.

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The UW coach covered a wide variety of topics, and threw his support behind Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti’s expanded College Football Playoff model. 

“We have to realize this is a conference with a lot of good teams,” Fisch said. “This isn’t like the olden days where there’s a couple (good) teams and that was it. They all have great resources. They all want to get into the playoffs. They’re all paying their players. They’re all paying their coaches.” 

Petitti’s model calls for four automatic qualifying berths for the Big Ten and SEC, two each for the ACC and Big 12 and one for the best Group of Six team, along with three at-large bids. Fisch argued the depth of the Big Ten’s league has to be weighed when considering which teams are allowed to compete for a national championship — especially if the Big Ten is going to continue playing nine conference games. 

Fisch said the Big Ten’s ninth conference game becomes a penalty in the current model, where the Power Four champions and the best Group of Six team earn automatic bids and the rest of the at-large bids are left up to the discretion of the CFP committee. Fisch also advocated for the play-in system Petitti pitched. 

The UW coach’s argument stems, in large part, because of his experience in the NFL. Fisch said it’s perfectly reasonable for an 8-4 team to compete for a shot at the national title. 

He pointed out it’s a nearly equivalent winning percentage to an 11-6 NFL team, a record which essentially locks a team into the playoffs and might get them into contention to host the first round. The Los Angeles Chargers, for example, went 11-6 during the past season and were the No. 5 seed in the AFC. 

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“When the New York Giants go ahead and beat the 18-0 Patriots, they were a wild-card team,” Fisch said. “Well, no one’s putting an asterisk on the Giants saying, ‘Well they had a play-in game.’ No, they won the Super Bowl. … Let’s just play the game and let the field decide who should be in the playoffs. Not a committee.” 

Looking at college football through a more professional lens is something Fisch said everyone will have to consider as the modern landscape continues to evolve. He said it’s unrealistic to imagine only a few teams will have a chance to win a national championship, especially as programs across the country continue to spend money on facilities, coaches and now players. 

Yet Fisch, who’s just as — if not more — enamored with the pageantry and history of college football as any fan, also said recalibrating expectations for who is allowed to compete for a championship has no impact on what makes the sport enjoyable. 

“That doesn’t take away from a band,” he said. “That doesn’t take away from sailgating. That doesn’t take away from memories of where you went to school.”

Huskies lose edge rusher for season

Junior edge rusher Russell Davis II, an Arizona transfer who played in three games during the past season, will be out for the entire 2025 season, Fisch told The Seattle Times Wednesday after suffering a patella injury during the offseason. 

He is one of two players, along with redshirt freshman defensive back Rahim Wright II, who Fisch does not expect to participate immediately when fall camp begins July 30. 

It’s another difficult injury setback for Davis, who missed the first eight games of the 2024 season with an undisclosed injury. He returned during Washington’s 26-21 win against USC Nov. 2, but enjoyed his breakout game during UW’s, 31-19 win against UCLA Nov. 15. 

Davis’ three-sack performance against the Bruins, which clinched bowl eligibility, also included a forced fumble and fumble recovery. He was named Big Ten defensive player of the week for his efforts. 

However, it was also his final appearance of the campaign. Davis suffered a triceps injury during practice before Washington’s regular-season finale against Oregon, which prevented him from playing in UW’s 35-34 Sun Bowl loss against Louisville and participating in spring football. Davis used his redshirt after playing in just three games during 2024, and will be eligible for a medical redshirt for 2025, preserving two years of eligibility. 

Davis was going to compete for snaps with a crowded, though still slightly unproven edge rusher group. Fifth-year edge rusher Zach Durfee was a very limited participant in the spring while recovering from turf toe, but flashed when healthy early in the 2024 season. 

Junior Isaiah Ward had three sacks and a team-best six tackles for a loss in his first year at UW after transferring from Arizona. Junior Jacob Lane had a strong spring after getting a heavy dose of first-team repetitions because of the injuries to Davis and Durfee, along with sixth-year senior Deshawn Lynch. The Huskies added another former Wildcat in senior edge rusher Ta’ita’i Uiagalelei from the transfer portal during the offseason, along with true freshmen Devin Hyde and Victor Sanchez Hernandez.

Andy Yamashita: ayamashita@seattletimes .com. Seattle Times staff reporter Andy Yamashita covers UW football.