When head coach Jedd Fisch was hired by the Washington Huskies football team ahead of the 2024 season, there was an expectation that a rebuild would follow.

Almost all of the best players from the program's College Football Playoff runner-up season the year before had either joined the professional ranks or entered the transfer portal and the coaching staff was stripped to the studs after then-head coach Kalen DeBoer left to take the same job at Alabama.

With the situation being what it was, the Huskies had a predictable downturn in Fisch's first year, going 6-7.

Washington improved last season, the team's second under Fisch. The team went 9-4, capped off with a 38-10 win against the Boise State Broncos in the Los Angeles Bowl. The Huskies also added the 12th-ranked 2026 recruiting class in the country.

With the improvement of the team and the incoming class, there are expectations that Washington will take another step forward in '26. Those expectations took a brief hit when junior quarterback Demond Williams Jr. briefly entered the transfer portal and reversed his decision.

In a recent article for CBS Sports, Cody Nagel predicted Williams to help lead the Huskies back to the promised land:

After a brief transfer flirtation that he now admits was a mistake, quarterback Demond Williams Jr. returns to Washington needing to make up for the offseason drama that raised questions about his commitment. Year 3 is his chance to prove he is the quarterback the Huskies envisioned when he arrived. Much of the starting offensive line returns, but Williams will need to step up as the primary playmaker and carry the offense without his top rusher and leading receiver from last season.

In his true sophomore season last year, his first as a starter, Williams led the Big Ten in total yards. He completed 69.5% of his passes for 3,065 yards, 25 touchdowns and eight interceptions.

Williams also ran the ball 143 times for 611 yards and six touchdowns.

As mentioned by Nagel, Williams will be without his leading receiver from a season ago, junior Denzel Boston, and the team's leading rusher, senior Jonah Coleman. Both players will enter the 2026 NFL Draft.

Williams will still have weapons at his disposal and solid surrounding pieces in '26. All-Freshman offensive lineman John Mills is returning to the team, and the team's second-leading receiver, sophomore Dezmen Roebuck, will also return.

If Williams does take that next step forward, the College Football Playoffs could very well be in Washington's future.

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