Washington will hire Jedd Fisch as its 21st head football coach in program history. The decision comes two days after Kalen DeBoer announced his decision to take the head coaching job at Alabama. Washington’s decision was reportedly narrowed down to three finalists on Saturday, January 13th. The school’s Athletic Director, Troy Dannen held final interviews Saturday night, and Fisch accepted the job on Sunday.
Jedd Fisch at Arizona
Fisch took over the Arizona Wildcats program in 2021 while they were at the bottom of the Pac-12 Conference. That year, the Wildcats finished 1-11. In just two seasons, Fisch turned the program 180 degrees, leading it to a 10-3 season in 2023. In his third season in Tucson, Fisch narrowly lost to Washington and USC, then proceeded to win the final seven games on the schedule. Those wins included five ranked wins and an Alamo Bowl victory over Oklahoma. The remarkable turnaround in Tucson has helped lead to an uptick in recruiting, as Arizona now has the sixth-best class in the newly arranged Big 12 Conference.
Fisch’s other head coaching experience was short-term. He was the interim coach, and offensive coordinator, for UCLA when Jim Mora got fired late in the 2017 season. Fisch was the winning coach in the regular season finale and UCLA’s bowl game. He was a candidate for the permanent job that eventually went to Chip Kelly.
Quarterback Noah Fifita was another large piece of Arizona’s success last season. The true freshman quarterback became the Wildcats’ starting quarterback after an injury to Jayden De Laura last season. Fifita threw for 25 touchdowns, and six interceptions, completing 72.4% of his passes. With Fisch heading to the Northwest, it’s not unlikely that he will take Fifita with him as the Huskies need a quarterback.
Fisch’s Situation
The situation that Fisch is inheriting at Washington will not be an easy one. This roster has seen seven players enter the transfer portal since DeBoer’s announcement on Friday. That includes cornerback Jabbar Muhammad, incoming quarterback Will Rogers, and safety Mishael Powell. Washington also lost three of their top recruits.
A couple of 2024 players announced their de-commitments. Those included Dominic Kirks, a four-star defensive lineman, and Noah Carter, a four-star edge rusher. Carter did say that Washington is not off of the table. Fisch will have an opportunity to get him back. Washington also lost a commitment from Zaydrius Rainey-Sale, a four-star linebacker in the class of 2025. This roster is also going to need to replace the nation’s leading quarterback, three of the nation’s top wide receivers, and one of the better running backs in the conference from the 2023 season.
Jedd Fisch Announced as Washington’s Next Head Coach
It was a whirlwind of a week for Husky Nation. Just three days after competing in the College Football Playoff National Championship, Nick Saban’s retirement would cause a ripple through the sport. Two days later, that ripple crashed through Montlake and swept up one of the hottest coaches in college football in DeBoer. In no time, Washington was in a coaching search and dealing with severe player attrition. Now, Washington has its head coach in Fisch who will look to build on the program’s recent success, while working to win back some highly-touted recruits.
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